Information Kit on Web Accessibility

Target Audience: Textbook authors, faculty, and instructors in the area of computer engineering, computer science, and web design.

Rational: Everyone dealing the design of web based products and services need to have a deeper understanding of accessible design and the need for designing more accessible products and services. This need derives federal laws that are mandating the design of accessible products and services as well as ethical considerations and a growing market for more accessible products and services.

How: Faculty and students can be introduced to accessibility issues, needs, and principles through the use of homework assignments, course projects, examples, or demonstrations that support course content while introducing accessibility issues.

What does this Kit contain? A discussion of the most critical legal and marketing concerns that surround web accessibility. Examples of proper accessible web design. Reference material and other web accessibility resources.

Prepared by: Robert F. Erlandson, Ph.D.

Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering Department

Director, Enabling Technologies Laboratory

College of Engineering

Wayne State University

Detroit, MI 48009

Phone: 313-577-3900

Fax: 313-577-1101

Email:

This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant DUE-0088807. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Why Should I be Concerned About Web Accessibility?

According to recent surveys, approximately 19% of Americans have some type of functional limitation [Bureau, 1997 #3]. This number, which includes the aging “baby boomer” generation, represents a large portion of our population that cannot access the World Wide Web without some sort of assistive technology. If websites are not developed with accessibility standards in mind, it is often difficult or even impossible for people who rely on these assistive technologies to access the web.

“Disability” does not end with mental and physical disabilities. Beyond the 19% mentioned above, our society is seeing more and more individuals who are “situationally disabled.” Situational disabilities imply that while the individual may not have permanent mental or physical disabilities, their hands, eyes, or ears may be occupied while accessing your website, or their situation may pose a burden on their performance. For example, if an individual has a slow internet connection, uses an old or text-based browser, or is using a cellular phone or palm-held computer to access the web, her functionality is limited by her situation.

Thus, the number of people affected by functional limitations, whether the limitation is due to a mental/physical disability or a situation, represents a large market for a variety of products and services. Beyond simply being a marketing opportunity, however, it is important to note that several laws mandate accessibility to information and services.

In order for individuals with functional limitations to successfully access materials on your web site, measures must be taken to make the website accessible. Accessibility refers to efforts taken to reduce or eliminate the barriers that functional limitations may pose to products, services, and information. In order to help you author your website for optimum accessibility, this kit will:

Discuss the most critical legal and marketing concerns that surround web accessibility
Cite examples of proper accessible web design
Reference other web accessibility resources

As you read through the tips and information offered in this kit, you will see that it is possible to create a high-tech website with all of the “bells and whistles” offered by modern technology that is also highly accessible.

What Legal Imperatives Should I Know About?

While accessibility in general is largely an ethical issue, legal imperatives are taking shape that mandate accessibility on the web in the same way that wheelchair ramps are mandated for public buildings. Examples of laws that mandate the incorporation of accessible design into public facilities, products, and services include the following:

The Americans with Disabilities Act (

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination in all employment practices, ensures equal access to buildings, government programs and services, as well as mandates accessibility to information sources.

The Telecommunications Act of 1996, Section 225 ( )

This act requires that manufacturers of telecommunications equipment and providers of telecommunications services provide the means necessary for people with disabilities to readily use the telecommunications products and services.

The Rehabilitation Act, Section 508 (

This act mandates that electronic and information technology sponsored and used by the federal government be accessible to people with disabilities.

Cynthia D. Waddell, JD, has produced a series of papers that clearly state the essential issues related to accessibility and evolving digital technology and telecommunications [Waddell, 19d98 #27] ( [Waddell, 1999 #6] [Waddell, 2000 #40] (

What are the Accepted Web Accessibility Standards?

Several agencies have researched and developed standards for accessibility on the Internet.

The most prominent of these agencies is the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) ( The following will present the WAI’s web accessibility guidelines as found at The purpose and proposed execution of each of these guidelines is explained in detail on the WAI’s website.

Web Accessibility Guidelines

(as provided by the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Accessibility Initiative)

Provide equivalent alternatives to auditory and visual content

Provide content that, when presented to the user, conveys essentially the same function or purpose as auditory or visual content.

Don’t rely on color alone

Ensure that text and graphics are understandable when viewed without color.

Use markup and style sheets and do so properly

Mark up document with the proper structural elements. Control presentation with style sheets rather than with presentation elements and attributes.

Clarify natural language usage

Use markup that facilitates pronunciation or interpretation of abbreviated or foreign text.

Create tables that transform gracefully

Ensure that tales have necessary markup to be transformed by accessible browser and other user agents.

Ensure that pages featuring new technologies transform gracefully

Ensure that pages are accessible even when newer technologies are not supported or are turned off.

Ensure user control of time-sensitive content changes

Ensure that moving, blinking, scrolling ,or auto-updating objects or pages may be paused or stopped.

Ensure direct accessibility of embedded user interfaces

Ensure that the user interface follows principles of accessible design: device-independent access to functionality, keyboard operability, self-voicing, etc.

Design for device independence

Use features that enable activation of page element via a variety of input devices.

Use interim solutions

Use interim accessibility solutions so that assistive technologies and older browsers will operate correctly.

Use W3C technologies and guidelines

Use W3C technologies (according to specification) and follow accessibility guidelines. Where it is not possible to use a W3C technology, or doing so results in material that does not transform gracefully, provide an alternative version of the content that is accessible.

Provide content and orientation information

Provide context and orientation information to help users understand complex pages or elements.

Provide clear navigation mechanisms

Provide clear and consistent navigation mechanisms—orientation information, navigation bars, a site map, etc.—to increase the likelihood that a person will find what they are looking for at the site.

Ensure that documents are clear and simple

Ensure that documents are clear and simple so that they may be more easily understood.

Beyond this set of guidelines, companies and agencies outside of the WAI have developed checklists and validation systems to ensure compliance with web accessibility standards. Most notable are IBM’s Web Accessibility Checklist, which is available at and CAST Organization’s “Bobby” Online Web Accessibility Validator, which is available at The IBM checklist recognizes the WAI web accessibility standards, as well as provides detailed explanation of the rationale for each checklist item and techniques for implementing and testing the item. CAST’s “Bobby” system is also based on WAI web accessibility guidelines. After a user enters in the URL of the website needing to be checked for accessibility compliance, Bobby will first examine the page, then list any accessibility conflicts found as well as recommendations for correcting the problem(s). Both the IBM checklist and CAST’s Bobby are free for public use.

Where Else Can I Go for Help and Information?

The World Wide Web hosts a wealth of information on web accessibility guidelines and methods for implementation of those standards. Consider the following resources when seeking additional information on web accessibility. The following materials are meant to be illustrative of available materials. It is a very small sample of what is actually available.

Experience alternatives:

IBM Home Page Reader;

Obtain a free 30 day trial version of the IBM Home Page Reader so as to actually hear and experience a web page.

JAWS®: Screen reader for Windows.

Comparing Screen Readers: A review by Federal Computer Week

Web Accessibility Standards and Evaluation Tools:

The World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Accessibility Initiative:

CONTENT/

IBM Web Accessibility Checklist:

HTML Writers Guild:

Center for Applied Special Technology (CAST):

Section 508 Web Accessibility Checklist : WebAim (Web Accessibility in Mind)

Section 508/Accessibility: Tools to Assist You:The National Institute of Environmental and Health Sciences

Evaluation, Repair, and Transformation Tools for Web Content Accessibility: W3C Web Accessibility Initiative

The myths of Section 508 accessibility; from IBM Developers Works

Web Accessibility Legislation:

The Americans with Disabilities Act:

Rehabilitation Act, Section 508:

Telecommunications Act:

A Guide to Disabilities Rights Laws:

Other Related Resources:

Disability Statistics Center:

Trace Research and Development Center:

Association for the Development of Information Technology Systems for the Disabled:

National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR):

Microsoft Accessibility Technology:

The International Center for Disability Resources on the Internet (ICDRI):

Prepared by: Robert Erlandson, Enabling Technologies Laboratory, Wayne State University1

Email: