TLi is excited to host En-Gauge with ALLY Week at CI as part of a weeklong, system-wide event to promote accessible instructional materials by design and for all students. The aim is to improve the accessibility score of as many digital instructional materials as possible through ALLY.
As you may know, ALLY is an integrated tool within Canvas that analyzes content for accessibility, assigns an accessibility score to your course, and makes recommendations for improving your content and, subsequently, your course accessibility score.
Throughout the event, the ALLY team will provide the Chancellor’s Office with data at the end of each day, which will be put into a leaderboard so we can track our progress. Scoring will be calculated based on the number of fixes relative to the number of students enrolled at that specific campus.
At the end of the event, the campus with the most “fixes” will be recognized and awarded a monetary prize from the Chancellor’s Office!
How to Fix Your Content
Note: fixes can only be tracked if they happen through ALLY directly.
Below are specific pages for most of the “fixes” listed on the event pledge form.
- Add Alt-Text to an Image Article
- Add Context to Links or Files Article
- Change Hyperlinks to Meaningful Text Article
- Fix Headings in Canvas Content Article
- Fix Tables in Canvas Content Article
Tips to Improve Your Content
The following tips apply to all Canvas content such as announcements, assignments, discussions, quiz descriptions, syllabus page, and pages.
- Check Your Headings
- Structure your documents and Canvas content using Paragraph Styles. Headings make the structure of your content more accessible for screen readers while improving the usability for everyone.
- Check Your Alt-Text
- A description should be added to every image, graph, and chart that conveys meaning in instructional materials whether in Canvas content, word processing documents or slide presentations.
- Describe (explain the content of) the image and what’s important, and mention any text in the image to improve your score.
- If your image is meant only for aesthetic purposes and does not contain info relevant to the learning content, you can instead click “indicate image is decorative”. This means no alternative description is necessary, and your accessibility score will improve.
- A description should be added to every image, graph, and chart that conveys meaning in instructional materials whether in Canvas content, word processing documents or slide presentations.
- Check Your List Styles
- Structure your bulleted (unordered) and numbered (ordered) lists using List Styles. List Styles improve the readability and perceptibility by screen readers.
- Check Your Hyperlinks
- Meaningful and unique text should be used for all hyperlinks in place of adding the full URL or generic text (e.g., click here, YouTube video, read this, etc..) in your content
- Check Your Tables
- Table headers are essential for screen readers to be able to perceive and read a table’s content. It’s also important to indicate the scope of a header to identify if it’s associated with a row or column.
- Check Your Color Contrast
- It is essential that appropriate contrast exists between the text and the background. In general, lightly colored text should have a darker background, and darkly colored text should have a light background.
- When creating graphics (i.e., banners, buttons, etc) for your course be sure to check the color contrast before saving the design and adding it to your course.
- Colour Contrast Analyser is a helpful tool for testing the color contrast of your content and is available for Windows and Macs.
- When creating graphics (i.e., banners, buttons, etc) for your course be sure to check the color contrast before saving the design and adding it to your course.
- It is essential that appropriate contrast exists between the text and the background. In general, lightly colored text should have a darker background, and darkly colored text should have a light background.
FAQs
What counts as a fix?
Any fix that Ally can track will be included (e.g., issues identified in the “Accessibility Report” located in the Canvas course menu). It is recommended that you make the changes within the ALLY Instructor Feedback Panel when possible. However, some exceptions include adding alt-text and adding context to links or files.
How much time do I have to “fix” my content as part of this event?
It begins on Monday at 12 a.m. and concludes Friday at 11:59 p.m.
Where can I get support if I have questions?
TLi’s Accessibility & Inclusive Design Specialist will be available in Zoom support on Monday from 9-5p and can pop in if you visit on Wednesday or Friday as well. Additionally, the TLi team will be available in Solano Hall (1201 and 2230) for encouragement, assistance, and troubleshooting.
Will deleting unused files count towards the number of fixes?
Removing/deleting files will not go towards the count of fixes. But the overall score will be improved, and removing unnecessary content helps students to find content easier, reduces storage space in the LMS, ensures fresh content, etc.
Does adding alt text to images count towards the overall number of fixes?
- Adding alt text to images that are embedded in the LMS will count.
- Adding alt text to images in documents that are in the LMS will count AS LONG AS that improved file is uploaded through ALLY’s Instructor Feedback*. (See Considerations when adding alt-text resource for more information)
- If someone deletes the old file and uploads a new, improved file, ALLY cannot track that as an improvement. Instead, upload the improved file via ALLY’s Instructor Feedback versus through the LMS.
- The best way to add alt-text so it is retained in Canvas (e.g., copying content from one course to another) is to add it through ALLY in a Canvas rich content page* (See Add Alt-Text to an Image article)
Resources
- Considerations when adding alt-text in Canvas by the ALLY Team
