Module 1 Book: Formatting Course Content so it's Accessible
Tables and Lists
Tables
Tables should be structured in a way that is easy to read and accessible to those who may have cognitive disabilities or those who are blind or have low vision using assistive technologies.
Screen readers read tables left to right, top to bottom, and one cell at a time. Including column headers and/or row headers will ensure that users of assistive technologies are oriented to where they are in the table by identifying the row and column, the header, and the information in that table cell. Screen readers also have difficulty reading complex tables, such as those with empty, merged, or split cells as the reading order can be disrupted, making the information provided in the table difficult to comprehend.
It can be tempting to use tables to help organize content, but tables are best reserved for:
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Numerical data or data that can be described within a matrix layout efficiently
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Providing visual organization to information in a condensed way
To summarize, here are some general best practices for making your tables more accessible:
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Try to keep your tables simple or, when possible, use lists as an alternative or as an additional option. Ask yourself whether a table is necessary to best convey the information.
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Ensure your table includes a clear caption title to help orient readers as to what information will be included.
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Include column and/or row headers with the correct scope assigned.
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Avoid blank or merged cells.
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For lengthy tables, consider including an option for readers to skip passed the table.
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The following resource by W3C provides an overview for formatting complex tables to maintain web accessibility: Tables Tutorial.
Lists
In order to be recognized by assistive technologies, lists should always be created by selecting the list tool in the editor of the software platform you are working in. For example, do not type "-" before each item. Although your content may visually look like a list, it will not be recognized as such. Screen readers are capable of recognizing nested lists, i.e., lists within lists.
Tip!
Adding content in both a table and list form can be great way to improve accessibility by providing the learner a choice in how to best interpret the content.