{"id":5238,"date":"2026-02-17T21:04:58","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T21:04:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.education.uw.edu\/technologycenter\/?p=5238"},"modified":"2026-02-17T21:12:21","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T21:12:21","slug":"accessibility-bingo-for-faculty-staff","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.education.uw.edu\/technologycenter\/uw-resources\/accessibility-bingo-for-faculty-staff\/","title":{"rendered":"Accessibility Bingo for CoE Faculty & Staff"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Below includes expanded context and resources for use with your Accessibility Bingo for CoE Faculty & Staff card<\/a>. If you have additional questions after reviewing the resources below, please reach out to edhelp@uw.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Create descriptive links.<\/span><\/h3>\n

When embedding links into content, descriptive link text should be unique within a page, should be meaningful when read out of context, and should help users to know something about their destination if they click on it. Consider the various ways users interact with links in your content when creating descriptive text for links.<\/p>\n

URLs should generally be avoided as link text. They are difficult for screen reader users to understand and difficult for voice input users to express. Short URLs can sometimes be an exception. For example, \u201cwashington.edu\u201d is easy to understand and easy to say.<\/p>\n

Learn more about\u00a0Links & Buttons<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0UW-IT Digital Accessibility Checklist<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Use the Accessibility Checker to review a Word Document or PowerPoint in Microsoft Office.<\/h3>\n
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Many of the programs we use on a daily basis, including Microsoft Office (O365) products, offer built-in accessibility checkers that make creating accessible content easy while also building your accessibility literacy and skills.<\/p>\n

Never used the accessibility checker when creating content? Check out the\u00a0Digital Accessibility Quick Cards<\/a> for practical, easy-to-follow guidance for creating inclusive and usable content in Microsoft Office applications:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Outlook Quick Card<\/a> | Word Quick Card<\/a> | PowerPoint Quick Card<\/a> | Excel Quick Card<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Add alternative text to an image or mark as decorative.<\/h3>\n

Users who are unable to see images depend on alternative text, often abbreviated as \u201calt text.\u201d Alt text is a short description of the image, residing behind the scenes, where its purpose is to communicate the content of an image to people who can\u2019t see it (for example, a person who is blind, using an audible screen reader or Braille device).<\/p>\n

Alt text should be succinct, just enough text to communicate the idea without burdening the user with unnecessary detail. When screen readers encounter an image with alt text, they typically announce \u201cImage\u201d and then read the alt text.<\/p>\n

Learn more about working with\u00a0Images and Alt Text<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0UW-IT Digital Accessibility Checklist<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Pick up an Accessibility Cube from the Tech Suite for your desk.<\/h3>\n

Stop by the CoE Tech Help Desk in Miller Hall 424 to pick up an Accessibility Cube!<\/p>\n

This handy desk reminder highlights the main tenets of accessibility known as the POUR Principles<\/i>. The\u00a0POUR Principles<\/i>\u00a0reference that all digital content should be Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, & Robust.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Use at least a 12 pt font in any digital content.<\/h3>\n

When creating web content, you should be using 12 pt font as the minimum normal size of text. While all major desktop web browsers have built-in functionality that enables users to zoom in to elements on a page, 12 pt font is the recommended best practice.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Avoid using font color as the sole means of communication.<\/h3>\n

Regardless of the media you\u2019re using to communicate, avoid using visual characteristics such as spatial references or color to communicate information. When providing instructions, consider whether the instructions are likely to make sense to a person who is blind, or to the person who is accessing the content of a video by reading a transcript.<\/p>\n

Therefore it is important to avoid using color alone to communicate information. For example, if link text within a paragraph of text is designed to be recognizable solely by its color (e.g., black text, blue links), the links should also be underlined. Otherwise, users who are unable to perceive color differences may be unable to distinguish links from surrounding text.<\/p>\n

Using text emphasis styles such as bold and italics are recommended to convey additional emphasis to text as these styles are announced by screen readers and other assistive technologies. Headings styles are also important when organizing and outlining content.<\/p>\n

Learn more about working with\u00a0Visual Characteristics<\/a>\u00a0including color in the\u00a0UW-IT Digital Accessibility Checklist<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Create a list using the bullets, numbers, or letters button.<\/h3>\n

Whenever content on a web page or in a digital document can be described as a\u00a0list\u00a0of something, it should be created as a list, using the list features that are provided by the authoring tool (e.g., Microsoft Word). Most authoring tools provide one or more controls for adding unordered lists (with bullets) and ordered lists (with numbers).<\/p>\n

When creating content, it is important to recognize when your content is a list of items. For example, university web pages often include lists of links, events, staff members, degree programs, and much more. When lists are explicitly created as lists, screen readers can inform their users that they have landed on a list and can provide additional information such as the number of items in the list, which is extremely helpful. It also facilitates navigation, as users can easily navigate between list items with a single keystroke.<\/p>\n

Learn more about working with\u00a0Lists<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0UW-IT Digital Accessibility Checklist<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Apply a heading structure to a Word Document.<\/h3>\n

Headings and subheadings play a critical role in accessibility.\u00a0 Most web pages and documents include a main heading that identifies the title or main topic, and subheadings that identify the start of new sections. Visibly, headings typically appear in a larger, bolder font than the surrounding text. Headings benefit all users, as they keep content organized and help users quickly find the particular content they\u2019re looking for. Virtually every document authoring format includes support for headings and subheadings.<\/p>\n

Headings should form an outline of the page content (Heading 1 for the main heading, Heading 2 for the first level of sub-headings, etc.) and must be identified\u00a0as such (Heading 1, Heading 2, etc.) using the heading features that are provided by the authoring tool.<\/p>\n

This enables screen reader users to understand how the page is organized. If the heading structure skips or reverses heading levels, this breaks the outline and users have a much harder time figuring out the relationships between sections of the page.<\/p>\n

Screen readers also have features that enable users to jump quickly between headings with a single keystroke, or to view an outline of the page created from its heading structure. This functionality makes it possible for screen reader users to navigate within a page with the same efficiency as sighted users.<\/p>\n

Learn more about working with\u00a0Headings<\/a>\u00a0in the\u00a0UW-IT Digital Accessibility Checklist<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Check that the color contrast is accessible.<\/h3>\n

Another important note when it comes to using colors accessibly is to confirm that the colors you use have an acceptable color contrast ratio. Some users have difficulty perceiving text if there is too little contrast between foreground and background colors. The W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 define specific contrast ratios that must be met in order comply at particular levels based on text size:<\/p>\n