Jul 02, 2024
Accessibility is “the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments to be usable by people with disabilities.”
In the context of the web, accessibility refers to the design and development of websites, web applications, and digital tools in a way that ensures they are usable by people with disabilities. Thinking about those with different abilities can help us grow as an honest society that considers everyone's needs.
Accessibility aims to provide all users equal access to information and functionality, regardless of their abilities or the devices and technologies they use to access the web. It involves implementing techniques such as providing alternative text for images, creating keyboard-accessible interfaces, ensuring compatibility with screen readers, using semantic HTML markup, and adhering to web accessibility standards and guidelines such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). By making digital content and services accessible, organizations can ensure inclusivity and provide a better user experience for all users.
While significant strides have been made in recent years, web accessibility remains a work in progress. According to the 2023 The WebAIM Million report by WebAIM, which analyzes one million website home pages, an average of 50 errors per home page is detectable. The same study found that 96.3% of home pages had detected WCAG 2 failures. WCAG 2.1 guidelines were followed to audit said pages. This translates to many websites posing challenges for users with disabilities. Despite growing awareness and legal regulations, like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in the US, a lack of resources, technical expertise, and consistent enforcement continues to hinder widespread implementation of accessibility best practices.
According to a study by accessibility.com, a staggering 90% of websites are estimated to be inaccessible to users who rely on assistive technologies. This highlights the urgent need for a collective effort from developers, designers, and policymakers to bridge the gap and create a genuinely inclusive digital world.
Disabilities come in many flavors; this includes individuals with visual, auditory, motor, cognitive, or other impairments. The internet offers a wealth of information and connections, but for users with disabilities, navigating websites can be a frustrating and exclusionary experience.
While we often think of surfing the web with our eyes and using a mouse, many user experiences exist.
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People with visual disabilities use various assistive technologies to access and navigate the web, such as Screen readers that convert digital text into synthesized speech.
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A high enough color contrast ratio is vital for users with visual disabilities to better perceive the content on the page; it also helps all users have a better reading experience.
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People with auditory disability may benefit from audio transcripts and video subtitles.
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Users with motor impairments may use specialized keyboards or joysticks. Websites that lack proper keyboard navigation or have buttons too small to target can become obstacles to navigation.
How to Address Accessibility Issues
Let’s consider the most common WCAG 2 failure types and how to address them.
Low-Contrast Text
Low-contrast text is by far the most common WCAG failure. It makes reading more difficult, particularly for people with color blindness and other visual disabilities. WebAIM defines color contrast as “a measure of the difference in perceived luminance or brightness between two colors.”
Modern web browsers enable anyone to analyze contrast using developer tools. If a developer notices a contrast problem, it’s a good idea to let the designer know so they can make the appropriate adjustments to bring the colors into compliance.
The minimum required contrast for AA-level compliance with the WCAG standard is 4.5:1. Large text, such as titles and text in images, can have a lower contrast ratio of at least 3:1. Also, logos and text that are not part of the user interface can be ignored.
Missing Alternative Image Text
Missing alternative text for images may sound like an easily fixable problem, but incorrect, non-descriptive text is often included as an alternative image tag. In a world where more and more images are used per homepage (turning the internet into a more graphic-centered channel of information), including correct alt tags on images is crucial for making screen reader devices better companions for people with visual impairment
Different considerations may be taken when deciding what alternative text to use in an image. Criteria used to determine an Alt tag depend upon the text surrounding an image (if the text is describing enough, a detailed alt tag may be redundant). Another criterion for deciding an alt tag is the functionality of the image, for example, if it links to another web page.
Form Labeling
Form labeling is perhaps the most crucial aspect of web accessibility. Forms are typically the primary way a user inputs information onto a website. Form elements should be grouped into field sets described by legend elements. Using the
Headings
Headings are often misused, and their hierarchy is disrespected. This presents a problem for those who use screen readers to navigate through content, as headings are the primary way to do so. There should be no more than one h1 element on the page, heading hierarchy levels should not be skipped, and headings should not be omitted, as they give structure to the page.
Wrapping Up
Accessibility is essential when creating a web page to comply with standards and regulations because, according to the WHO, 1 in 6 people experience disability. By ensuring adherence to web accessibility guidelines, we can create barrier-free web experiences for all individuals.
You can scan your site using Oshyn’s free Reliability Report tool to get feedback on its accessibility, performance, and security data.
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