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\uD83D\uDCD8 Instructions
Section 1.1: Fonts
MS Word provides you with hundreds of fonts to choose from. Some of them are good to use, but you want to be careful since many are not accessible.
How to choose a font:
Go to the Home tab.
In the Font section, click the font drop down box.
Choose the font you would like to use.
When using fonts, you want to use fonts that are easily readable and not distracting or fancy. Fonts like Times New Roman, Verdana, and Georgia are examples of good fonts to use. It is not recommended to use fonts like Algerian, Jokerman, or Script MT Bold.
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While these fonts look more interesting, some users may have a hard time reading them. |
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These fonts are much easier to read. |
Section 1.2: Font Size
To keep things simple and easy to read, make sure the font is over 12 points in size.
To change your font size, go to the Home Tab.
In the font section, select the font size button and select the size font you want.
Section 1.3: Capitalization
Screen readers do not recognize capital letters, so there is no point to relying on capital letters to emphasize text.
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This example shows text with capital letters that are not needed. Screen readers will not emphasize the text even when it is in all caps. |
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This example shows a new way to show the important content. Screen readers will read the (covered) label and tell the reader that it will be on the test. |
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Use capital letters to show the IMPORTANT text. Be sure to use capitalizations sparingly. |
Section 1.4: Bold, Italic, Strikethrough, or Underlined Text
Screen readers by default do not recognize text that is bold, italic, or underlined. The text will be read as normal text. There are settings available in NVDA to make the text be read as bold, italic or underlined. However, very few people change these settings. A good rule is to use these text attributes sparingly.
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This is an example that is difficult to read, it |
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This example uses bold, italics, strikethrough, and underlined text sparingly. Only change the important words. This will make the content easier to read. |
Section 1.5: Highlighting Text
When highlighting, it is important to be sure it is not the only way to convey meaning. Screen readers will not recognize the highlighted text as highlighted text. So it will only read it as normal text. A person using a screen reader may not know the difference, so it is important to include an indicator.
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This example only highlights the text and does not provide an additional queue for a screen reader. This will leave a reader unable to know if any text is highlighted. |
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This example gives a second queue for the screen reader to read. This will help a reader understand the meaning and context behind a highlighted text. |
Section 1.6: NVDA Settings for Reading Text
When you use text that has a text attribute, be sure to modify the settings in the screen readers. This will allow the screen reader to tell the reader of any bold, italic, strikethrough, or underlined text. To change the settings,
In NVDA, go to the Preference Tab, then click Document Formatting.
Select the Font Attributes check box in the pop up box. Click Apply in the bottom right corner.
In JAWS, you can examine the font attributes at the cursor, including whether or not there is strikethrough. This can be done by pressing INSERT + F.
Section 1.7: Symbols and Special Characters
You can use many different symbols and special characters. However, they must always be shown in regular text as well. This must be done so the screen readers will read the symbol properly to the reader. Here is a list of 15 symbols and special characters that are good to use.
The AT Symbol.
The Ampersand.
The Slash Symbol
Copyright Symbol
Trademark Symbol
US Dollar
Euro
British Pound
Japanese Yen
Paragraph Symbol
Bullet
Degrees
One Half
One Fourth
Three Fourths
Section 1.8: Creating Symbols
Go to the Insert Tab.
Go to the Symbols section and click Symbol.
A dropdown menu will appear, click more symbols to get a wider variety of symbols to choose from.
Example of using symbols…
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This example only shows the symbols and fails to explain to the readers what the symbols mean. Screen readers will not read the symbol without an additional queue. |
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This example shows two ways to type in information and give the same outcomes for readers. You can just type it in text. Another way is to type the symbols, then type in the text in parenthesis. Both ways give readers and screen readers an easier understanding of the information provided. |
Section 1.9: Color Contrast
When typing in text you want to consider the color contrast between the text and the background. For small text (under size 18), a good contrast ratio to aim for is 4.5:1 or higher. For bigger text (over size 18) a good contrast ratio is 3:1 or higher. Black text on a white background or 21:1 is the highest and best ratio you could have.
To change the color of your font,
Go to the Home Tab.
In the Font Section, click on the Font Color button and choose your color.
To see if your color provides a strong color contrast ratio, use the Adobe Color Contrast Analyzer. If you can get all of your previews to pass, then you can use that font color.
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As you can see in the example, good color contrast makes the text easier to read for the viewer. |
Section 1.10: Using Color to Convey Meaning
When using color in a project to convey information, you should include a text alternative.
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This example only has color conveying meaning. If Dan was colorblind for red and green colors, how would he have known if he made the team? |
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This example shows two ways to indicate that Dan made the team. The first is that his name is colored red, and there is (Olympic Team) next to his name. Now Dan can easily read the list and know he made it to the Olympic Team. |
Table Example: The text alternative must mean the same thing as the color.
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In this table, only the red section is accurately labeled. The yellow and green sections are blank. A reader with color blindness many struggle to see the difference in color. |
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In this table, all three sections are accurately labeled. Now all readers will be able to tell what each section means and their color. |
This last example shows the importance of using multiple factors of indication in a Pie Chart.
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In this pie chart, there are no data labels. The list below the chart may help some people identify the slice with its category, but not everyone. A second indicator or data labels are needed. |
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In this pie chart, color blind users have been given a second label. The label allows them to see the sports next to their designated section along with the percentages. This makes the pie chart much easier to understand. |
Section 1.11: Background Colors
Background colors are fine to use, as long as they have a good contrast ratio. It is also a good idea to avoid strong background gradients or patterns. They can make the text very hard to read and are usually very distracting.
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This example has a background and text that is too dark and do not have a good contrast ratio. The brown background is also very distracting to readers. |
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This example has a good color contrast ratio. It is also very easy to read and is not distracting to readers. |
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This example has a very distracting background and is very hard to read. The color contrast ratio is also very low. |
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This example has a more subtle background and a good color contrast ratio. This one is much easier to read and wont overwhelm the readers. |
Section 1.12: Can I use Dropcap in a Word Document?
No, dropcap cannot be used. While it may look cool, it is not accessible for readers with visual issues. If dropcap is used, the letter itself would be read separately from the whole word. This would only confuse readers and screen readers.
Section 1.13: Acronyms
When using acronyms you need to type out the whole name in parenthesis after giving the acronym.
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Example: WCAG 2.1 (Web Accessibility Guidelines Version 2.1) |
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Bad Example: WCAG 2.1 |
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