Accessibility and Assistive Technology

Guide to Creating an Accessible ScreenSteps Article

Updated on

Why should you create accessible ScreenSteps Articles (Job Aids)?

Creating accessible articles (job aids) is important because it ensures that everyone, regardless of ability, can access and understand the information presented, promoting inclusivity and improving usability for all users. 

The built-in authoring tools in the Screensteps will help you create a wide range of accessible job aids that offer fast, simple, and just-in-time training and support for students, staff, and faculty. 

  • Step-by-step instructional guides
  • Process documentation
  • Checklists, cheat sheets, and worksheets
  • Video and screen recordings with accurate captions
  • Marked screenshots with alternative text
  • In-app guidance and feature walkthroughs

Use the following guide to bake in accessibility when creating Screensteps articles and job aids. 

How are you going to test for accessibility?

  • Automated testing: You should use software tools to scan the article for accessibility issues, quickly identify areas that don’t meet accessibility standards, and fix the errors before publishing your article or job aid.
  • Manual testing: You, the author, must manually check elements like color contrast with color contrast software. You must fix the issue if you discover that the color combinations or color contrast are inaccessible. You should test with keyboard navigation and, if possible, screen reader compatibility to ensure a user-friendly experience. 

What are the built-in tools that I need to use to create an accessible article?

Start by Selecting the Heading Style

Heading helps the user understand the page and how it is organized. To find out how to create the correct heading structure, you can go to the article How to Use Heading Structures Correctly and Efficiently.

Watch this quick video on How to Create a New Heading.

The new item drop-down menu in screen steps.

Select the heading from the outline view. Drag it to the appropriate heading level you need it to be.

New heading on the left side of the screen steps editor.

When you complete the dragging of the heading level, it should change from "H2" and the correct heading hierarchy level (ex., H3, H4, etc..).

The heading size three for the new heading set up.

Always Add Alternative Text (Alt. Text) to any picture or image

Describe all visual objects with an Alternative Text (Alt Text).  

  • Explain “why” the image relates to the content. The Alt Text is read aloud by screen reading software. Review the following article to learn more about How to create Alternative Text. 
  1. Select the image.
  2. A column for the alt. text will appear on the left hand side of your article.
The alt-text text-box boxed in.

Always Run Color Contrast Checking Software

  1. What is Color Contrast?
  2. Color Contrast Information and Tools

 

If you are going to add Text Styles, consider the font color

Drop-down menu for the text style settings.

If you must use the text style guides, the default settings will generate an inaccessible font color, and you must change the font color to black to comply with WCAG standards.

Give hyperlinks meaningful display names.  

In the Styles gallery, a visual menu is located on the Home tab. 

To apply a style, select the text you want to format, and then click the style you want in the Styles gallery.  To learn more about Style formatting, visit the Microsoft Support Website:

Select your paragraph content block to create your destination (meaningful link and description link).

  1. Type your paragraph.
  2. Type the destination words that you want to be linked out.
  3. Highlight the words you typed as the destination, for example, "installing WAVE and using WAVE."
Words “installing WAVE and using WAVE” highlighted.
  1. Select the link icon in the home ribbon.
  2. Then select "External Link" from the drop-down.
The drop-down menu from selecting the link icon. With the "External link" selection highlighted.
  1. Paste the link into the text field.
  2. If you select "Open link in a new window," you must include a written working in the article, warning the user that they will be taken to a new window.
  3. WCAG standards recommend leaving "Open link in a new window" unselected.
The window to enter the link for the right-clicked text.

Use Simple Plain Language, Check Spelling, and Grammar

Accessibility best practice recommendation to create a draft in Microsoft Word. You can edit the draft and review the content using the built-in Editor tool, or if you have a Grammarly account, you can copy and paste your draft into Grammarly to check spelling and grammar.  

Run the Automatic Accessibility Checkers such as the Web Accessibility Evolution Tool (WAVE)

After you post the article in ScreenSteps, run WAVE to check for accessibility barriers.

Review your final draft to ensure you baked in accessibility

  • Keep titles unique and simple
    • Use different naming conventions for manuals, chapters, and articles.
  • Many users may have difficulty distinguishing between the manual title, chapter title, and article title if they all have the same title.
  • Here is an example of an accessible chapter titled "Break Out Rooms in Ring Central."
  • Here is an example of an accessible article titled "Creating Break out Rooms in Ring Central Meeting."

Use Simple, Plain, and Inclusive Language

When creating your articles and job aids, use more inclusive language, for example, “select,” “hit,” "press," or “choose" instead of using the word "click." 

  • When we use the word "click," we assume everyone uses a mouse.

Do you plan to include a video link in your article?

You must consider accessibility and follow the steps in following guides:

Adding Tags (Relevant Keywords) Makes the Article Searchable and Easy to Find 

It is essential to add tags (relevant keywords) to the article. Tags (relevant keywords) are indivisible labels that add critical information about the article's content. Inserting tags (relevant keywords) will help users discover the article if they need to know precisely what they are looking for.

  1. These tags help find the articles in the database.
  2. Go to the Screen Steps online
  3. Go to the article where you want to add tags (relevant keywords). You can find it under "properties."
A preview of a screen steps article with the "Properties" tab open and the "Tags" section of it boxed in.
  1. Type in tags (relevant keywords) about your newly created article.
  2. Use the enter button after typing in one of the tags (relevant keywords). You can use alternative spellings and abbreviations as well.
The box for entering tags for the article.

Please add as many different words to include in your article tags (relevant keywords). Adding searchable keywords will be beneficial to all users.

Additional Resources

 

Previous Article Checklist of Accessibility Learning Activities
Next Article ScreenSteps Accessibility Checklist

Accessibility and Assistive Technology

Need More Help? 2
Overviews of Accessibility Settings (Windows and Mac) 2
Employee-Facing Support and Services 3
Web Accessibility and Testing 7
Accessibility Best Practices for Content Creation 11
Text-to-Speech Tools 12
Voice and Speech Recognition Software 6
Color and Contrast 8
Keyboard Accessibility 2
Alternative Text 12
Accessible and Inclusive Environments (Virtual or In-person) 15
Accessible Spreadsheets, Tables, and Charts 10
Accessible Audio, Images, and Video 14
Page Structure 3
Vision Settings 2
Hyperlinks 6
Reading Tools 16
Writing Tools 5
Math Tools 6
Logical Reading Order 2
Tasks and Organization 8
Older Operating Systems 6
Creating Accessible Job Aids in Screensteps 6
Creating Accessible Content in Venngage 1
Print Article
Still Need Help? Contact Us