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D2L

D2L Accessibility Checklist

How to address digital accessibility for D2L shareable course shells and custom course shells

Two methods to fix digital accessibility issues

  1. Using YUJA Panorama and working through the “Fix the Issue” processes it requires to increase your course’s overall Panorama score to 90% or higher.
  2. Using the faculty accessibility checklists and how-to training videos on the Aims Accessibility Hub which provide step-by-step workflows to fix digital accessibility issues for HTML pages, documents, presentations, and spreadsheets (PDF, Microsoft, and Google), media (audio/video, multimedia, animations), and images (photos, complex images of text) that are in a course shell.

What needs to be made accessible?

  1. According to the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1, Level AA (WCAG), there are a number of important things that need to be done to make HTML pages and documents accessible.

  2. Structure your HTML page or document page content using a single H1 for the main heading, followed by H2, H3, and so on, in ascending order. Avoid skipping heading levels.
    Exam assessments need to be written in plain language and to be easy to understand. 

  3. Images within HTML pages that convey meaning need to have meaningful alt text descriptions. Decorative images that don’t convey meaning do not.
  4. Complex images of text that convey meaning - like charts, graphs, illustrations, and infographics must have an alt text stating what the image is and point students to the location of a long description adjacent to the image. This long description needs to provide the meaningful information that the chart or graph shows, its context in the overall lesson, and any information that is expected knowledge for an assessment.
  5. For links to third party content - link descriptions need to convey the location and meaning of the linked content.
  6. Video and audio/podcast content has captions. Some videos may need audio descriptions if meaningful information within the video is not communicated through the captions’ dialogue or narration. Please review the audio/video accessibility checklist for more details.
  7. The reading order of an HTML page, especially for navigation menus and other interactive components, should ideally follow the visual order of the page.
  8. Sufficient color contrast of text against background page color needs to meet the WCAG contrast ratio. Use this WebAIM color contrast checker to check your colors. To easily meet this requirement, simply use black text on a white page background.
  9. For HTML contact forms, text fields need to be labeled above the field. Text fields also need to have error handling that guides a user to the field where they made an error.
  10. For STEM course materials with equations and formulas:
    1. For HTML content consider using MathML or LaTex to code the equations and formulas.
    2. Second, if you decide to use images of text for the equations and formulas - that will require having alt text for the images and long descriptions adjacent to the images.
    3. An alternative format would be to use audio files adjacent to the equations and formulas, so students can listen to them.
    4. For Google Documents with equations and formulas: use the Google equations editor to place equations and formulas using text instead of using images.

Start to address digital accessibility in a D2L course

  1. Before you start working on digital accessibility, make sure to maintain a source copy of all documents that you have in a D2L course. Save this source copy on your computer, in your Google Drive, or in a shared drive with other faculty on Google Drive.
  2. Start using Panorama in your D2L course shell to address D2L HTML files
    To start working on accessibility within your D2L course shell, click on the Panorama icon regardless of whether it is red, yellow, or green, next to each of the following D2L sections to check for digital accessibility: Announcements, Course Information, Course Syllabus (Microsoft Word file or HTML format), Course Schedule, Table of Contents, Student Resources, Assessments, etc., and then for every content section within the course shell. Go through the course table of contents to address each chapter and content section within the chapter.
  3. Using the table of contents, work through Panorama for all content sections
    For every content item, click on the Panorama icon next to the content item, regardless of whether it is red, yellow, or green. When the Panorama window opens up, click on the Accessibility Report at the top of the screen. The Accessibility Report will open. Check if Panorama lists any known errors in your HTML content page or section or in a document. If it provides a “Fix the Issue” button then click the button and follow the process. After fixing the issue, make sure to click the Apply button.
  4. Check that Panorama fixed your content correctly
    After Panorama has fixed an HTML section or page or document, and you have clicked the Apply button, open the content file and check that there is no content missing, necessary formatting undone, or anything majorly wrong with the file. If you see anything wrong, then delete the content file and replace it with your source document from your offline copy, then run it through Panorama again and recheck it.
  5. Panorama lists an issue but does not provide a “Fix the Issue” button
    In this case, you should still fix the issue manually by following the step-by-step process listed in one of the faculty accessibility checklists on the Aims Accessibility Hub, depending on the type of document that you are working in.
  6. Faculty digital accessibility support
    If you run into any problems when using Panorama or if you have any questions about how to make something accessible, first refer to the faculty accessibility checklists on the Aims Accessibility Hub. If you still need support, then contact digital accessibility support in one of these three ways:
    1. Email: aa.digital.accessibility@aims.edu
    2. Slack channel: team-aa-digital-accessibility-support-int. All Academic Affairs employees were automatically subscribed to this channel.
    3. Set up a 15 minute Zoom support appointment with this Calendly link: https://calendly.com/michael-forbes-aims to choose a date/time and receive a Zoom URL in the confirmation email.
  7. Update your source documents on your computer or in Google Drive
    Once you have used Panorama and the faculty accessibility checklists and how-to training videos on the Aims Accessibility Hub as guidance to make your D2L course shell and documents as accessible as possible, download a copy of these accessible documents from the D2L course shell. These accessible files should now become your new source documents saved on your computer or in Google Drive.

Resources