By: Tanya Zhelezcheva
In the recent eLearning newsletter, Dr. Ridinger-Dotterman provided valuable insights into ADA compliance in online courses, highlighting CUNY’s commitment following the Title II Voluntary Compliance Agreement. As Dr. Ridinger-Dotterman emphasized, faculty must ensure that all course materials—including content we create ourselves—meet accessibility standards. Microsoft Word includes built-in accessibility features that make it relatively simple to create compliant documents.
The Accessibility Assistant ensures that when your document is read aloud by assistive technology (or Word’s built-in Read Aloud feature), the experience is smooth for students. Consider what happens if you don’t mark decorative elements appropriately: when a screen reader encounters that horizontal line you used to separate sections, it will attempt to read it, creating an awkward interruption in the flow of your content. The student hears the substantive material interrupted by the screen reader trying to interpret a graphic element that conveys no information.
Similarly, tables without designated header rows create confusion for screen readers. The assistive technology can’t distinguish between headers and data, so when a student using a screen reader navigates your table, they can’t easily understand which column or row they’re in. Properly formatted table headers allow screen readers to announce “Column 1: Name, Row 3: Data” rather than just reading a confusing string of disconnected information.
This is why using Word’s Read Aloud feature is a valuable testing tool. When you click the Read Aloud button, you experience your document exactly as a student using a screen reader would. You’ll immediately hear when decorative lines interrupt the flow, when unclear table structures create confusion, or when missing alt text—written description of an image—leaves gaps in understanding.
This article will guide you through Word’s Accessibility Assistant and show you how to quickly identify and fix common accessibility issues.
The first step in creating an ADA-compliant Word document is locating the Accessibility checker. Look at the bottom of your Word window. You will see an accessibility indicator that displays the current status of your document. It might read “Accessibility: Good to go” if no issues are detected, or it will alert you to problems that need attention. (See Screenshot 1 - with red ellipse highlighting this feature at bottom of screen) Click on this indicator to open the Accessibility Assistant panel on the right side of your screen.
Once activated, the Accessibility Assistant panel organizes potential issues into several categories:
Color and Contrast This section identifies text that may be difficult to read due to insufficient contrast between the text color and background color. Screen readers don’t struggle with this, but students with visual impairments or color blindness rely on adequate contrast to read study materials.Media and Illustrations - Missing Alt Text Any image, chart, diagram, or illustration in your document needs alternative text (alt text) that describes the image for students using screen readers. When you insert an image without alt text, the Accessibility Assistant will flag it as “Missing alt text.”
However, not every visual element needs descriptive alt text. If you’ve included decorative elements—such as horizontal lines, borders, or purely aesthetic graphics that don’t convey information—these should be marked as “decorative.” Screen readers attempt to read every element on a page, so if you have a decorative line separating sections and it’s not marked as decorative, the screen reader will try to describe it to the student, creating confusion and disrupting the flow of your content. By marking these elements as decorative, you’re telling the screen reader to skip over them.
To mark an image or shape as decorative in Word:
- Activate the Accessibility Checker at the bottom of the screen (Screenshot 1)
- Under Media and Illustrations, click “Missing Alt Text” (Screenshot 1)
- Click on the decorative element (e.g. a line) in the document (Screenshot 1)
- Check the box that says “Mark as decorative” (Screenshot 3)
Tables: Tables can present significant accessibility challenges if not properly formatted. The Accessibility Assistant checks whether your tables have designated header rows and if the structure is clear. Screen readers need properly formatted tables to help students understand the relationship between data cells. Use the “Header Row” option when creating tables with column labels.
Document Structure: This category examines whether you’ve used proper heading styles (Heading 1, Heading 2, etc.) rather than just making text bold or large. Proper heading structure allows screen readers to navigate through your document efficiently, letting students jump between sections. It also ensures a logical hierarchy in your document.
Document Access: This section identifies issues like non-descriptive hyperlink text. Links that say “click here” or “this link” don’t provide context for screen reader users. Instead, use descriptive text like “CUNY’s IT Accessibility web page” or “Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.”
One of the best ways to understand your document’s accessibility is to use Word’s “Read Aloud” feature to hear how a screen reader would interpret your content. To access this feature:
- Click on the “Review” tab in Word’s ribbon
- Look for the “Read Aloud” button (or access it through the menu as shown in Screenshot 1)
- Click it to have Word read your document aloud
This feature helps you identify issues you might have missed—like decorative elements being read unnecessarily, or unclear table structures.
While the Accessibility Assistant is excellent for catching issues, it might be helpful to build accessibility into your workflow from the beginning. For more detailed guidance on creating accessible documents, visit CUNY’s IT Accessibility web page at www.cuny.edu/accessibility. By taking these steps to ensure our Word documents meet ADA standards, we’re not only complying with CUNY’s agreement, we’re creating a more inclusive learning environment where all students can succeed.
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