How to Make an Agenda Accessible to WCAG 2.1 AA Standards Using MS Word and Adobe Acrobat (part 2)

Introduction

In today’s post, we’ll learn how to make a complex agenda accessible in Microsoft Word and PDF formats. We’ll then upload the accessible document to the Streamline platform. This is a continuation of a previous video where we covered basic accessibility features. This tutorial is more advanced and tackles additional complexities such as table formatting and color contrast issues.

Video Guide

Steps to Make an Agenda Accessible

1. Setting Up the Document in Microsoft Word

Opening the Navigation Panel

• Open the navigation panel by typing “navigation” in the search bar.
• This panel will help organize the document by applying appropriate heading levels.
• Apply heading levels to your agenda. For example, the main title should be Heading 1, subheadings should be Heading 2, and so on.

Applying Descriptive Hyperlinks

• Replace any URL with descriptive text.
• Highlight the text, right-click, select ‘Link’, paste the URL in the address bar, and select ‘OK’.

2. Making Tables Accessible in Word

Best Practices for Tables

• Avoid using merged or blank cells as they can create accessibility issues in Word.
• If merging cells is necessary for the PDF format, ensure proper tagging later in Adobe Acrobat.

Table Design and Headers

• Select the table design tab and set the appropriate headers.
• Use styles like “plain table” to ensure headers are bold and rows are banded for better readability.

3. Checking Color Contrast

Using WebAIM Color Contrast Checker

• Use an external tool like WebAIM Color Contrast Checker to ensure text meets WCAG standards.
• Adjust the colors if they fail the contrast check, although sometimes automated tools might miss certain issues.

4. Running the Accessibility Checker in Word

• Go to ‘File’, then ‘Info’, select ‘Inspect Document’, and check for accessibility issues.
• Fix any identified issues, although merged cells might be left if converted to PDF.

Creating an Accessible PDF

1. Converting Word Document to PDF

• Use the Acrobat toolbar in Word to create a PDF.
• Ensure all necessary tags and properties are carried over correctly.

2. Reviewing Tags in Adobe Acrobat

• Open the tags panel and review the tag structure.
• Ensure all headings, lists, and tables are correctly tagged.

3. Setting Document Properties

• Set metadata like the document title, author, and subject under ‘Document Properties’ in Acrobat.

4. Running Acrobat’s Accessibility Checker

• Use the ‘Prepare for Accessibility’ tool and run the checker.
• Fix any issues such as tab order, table summaries, and regularity of table cells.

5. Fixing Table Issues

• Right-click in the table and use the ‘Table Editor’ to adjust properties like column span for merged cells.
• Ensure all rows and columns are correctly defined and labeled.

Uploading to Streamline Platform

1. Uploading the Document

• Navigate to the ‘My Content’ tab in Streamline.
• Upload the document and save it to the desired page.

2. Verifying Accessibility in Streamline

• Use the built-in accessibility checker in Streamline to ensure the document meets all standards.
• Address any flagged issues, such as missing alternate text for links.

Final Steps and Verification

• After making all necessary adjustments, verify the document’s accessibility once more.
• Ensure all hyperlinks, tables, and content are accessible and meet WCAG 2.1 AA standards.

By following these steps, you can ensure that your agenda is fully accessible in both Word and PDF formats and meets the necessary WCAG 2.1 AA standards. Regularly running accessibility checks and manually verifying elements will maintain a high standard of accessibility for your documents.

Let me be your champion for inclusion. I offer tailored solutions (and self-paced courses!) to ensure your documents meet and exceed compliance expectations. For more detailed insights, tutorials, and in-depth discussions on accessibility and related topics, don’t forget to check out my YouTube channel: The Accessibility Guy on YouTube. Subscribe for regular updates!