All course materials shown in class and posted on Canvas need to be accessible to all students with disabilities. This includes but is not limited to Microsoft PowerPoint presentations, PDFs and Microsoft Word documents.
Here are some pointers to consider:
Research shows that sans-serif fonts are more easily read on computer monitors than are serif fonts.
For 508 compliance, alternative text must be available and readable by screen readers - software that allows blind or visually impaired users to read the text that is displayed on the computer screen with a speech synthesizer or braille display.
Limit images on course material to those that have a purpose rather than for aesthetic.
Alternative text should communicate the image or graphic’s purpose or the information it is conveying.
Keep a high contrast between the background color and the font color.
Avoid extremely bright colors as a background color as it makes text very hard to read.
TPGi Colour Contrast Analyser is a free desktop application (Win/mac OS) to aid in determining appropriate color contrast levels.
Do not use color alone (or other sensory characteristics like size, shape or location) to convey meaning.
If color or other sensory characteristics are used, create text that duplicates the meaning.
Use descriptive text when using hyperlinks.
Do not use hyperlinks written as "click here."
Use built-in Bullets, Numbering and Multilevel List to organize information.
This creates a structure that allows screen readers to identify information to the user.
Use styles to create headings.
Headings break up content to make information easier to locate.
If a link to a video is included, ensure the video is captioned. A transcript is also helpful.
If a link to audio is included, ensure the audio has a transcript.