The HighEdWeb Association’s 2022 Accessibility Summit took place online this past July. Several members of the web team benefited from attending the virtual presentations. We’re excited to share some key takeaways with you.
Zoom In
Many people magnify websites to make them easier to read. This includes those with low vision or low-contrast vision, as well as people experiencing eye strain or trying to read a small font size. To make sure web content is accessible to this audience, test it in your browser with the zoom set to 200%. You’ll be able to see if this introduces any issues, such as content that overlaps or becomes out of order.
Keep It Simple
Online content should be written at a seventh to ninth grade reading level. Everyone benefits from this, especially:
- People with low literacy
- People whose first language isn’t English
- People with cognitive impairments
- People with autism
- People who are stressed, in a hurry or multitasking
This supports web standard 5.1.5, Content Readability, which recommends a fifth through eighth grade reading level for NIU websites.
Use Brief Alt Text
It’s a best practice to keep alt text for images under 250 characters since some screen readers cut off after that point.
