Accessible Course Design

Why Accessible Course Design Matters 

Approximately 20% of Western students receive disability-related accommodations, a figure that mirrors national trends in higher education. Because we know that students with disabilities, the majority of which are non-apparent and co-occurring, are a consistent and important part of our learning community, it makes sense to proactively design courses that are accessible and inclusive. Rather than relying solely on individual accommodations after barriers arise, accessible course design helps us effectively teach the students we have today, and those we know will be in our classrooms tomorrow.  

WWU-Specific Statistics 

  • Non-apparent disabilities (i.e., mental health, ADHD, learning disabilities) account for the largest disability categories among DAC students  
  • Increase in chronic health conditions  
  • Many students have co-occurring conditions, such as ADHD and depression, or Autism Spectrum Disorder and Generalized Anxiety Disorder 

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) 

Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework that promotes flexible and inclusive teaching practices. Rather than creating a single approach, UDL encourages providing multiple ways for students to access information, engage with course content, and demonstrate what they know. 

UDL does not eliminate the need for accommodations. Instead, it helps minimize barriers from the outset so that more students can fully participate in the learning experience.   

Check out this self-paced asynchronous Canvas course to learn more.  

Simple Ways to Improve Accessibility

Use a consistent course structure in Canvas so students can easily locate important information, assignments, and resources. Predictable navigation reduces confusion and supports all learners. 

Flexible Teaching Resources | ATUS | Western Washington University 

Create documents in Word or Google Docs and then save them as PDFs. This helps ensure the document remains readable by screen readers and other assistive technologies. If using scanned PDFs, verify that text can be highlighted and selected. 

Images, charts, and graphs need a text equivalent so that screen reader users can access that visual content.  Here’s now:  Include alt text on images | University Communications and Marketing | Western Washington University 

Whenever possible, choose readings that are available in accessible formats.  A PDF is a common file type that may or may not be accessible.  A PDF is accessible if it is text-selectable (meaning you can double-click a word and it will highlight the word).  A PDF is inaccessible if is saved as an image.  This is an important distinction because only text-selectable PDFs are searchable, and only text-selectable PDFs can be read aloud by text-to-speech software, which hundreds of students, faculty, and staff rely on. 

Scanned or existing PDFs  

If you have scanned content or unsure if it’s text-selectable, see if you can highlight individual letters and words in the document.  If yes, it is accessible to text-to-speech software.  Please note that modifications may still need to be made on images, charts, and graphs.  Here’s now:  Include alt text on images | University Communications and Marketing | Western Washington University 

If a document is not text-selectable, use a free tool like Sensus Access to convert it into an accessible format. 

Digital Accessibility Requirements 

Federal regulations require public institutions, including WWU, to proactively provide accessible digital content. These requirements apply to websites, digital documents, mobile applications, and online course materials. Faculty play an important role in ensuring that students can access course content regardless of disability.  Learn more: Digital Accessibility | Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance | Western Washington University

Use Canvas's accessibility tools, such as the Pope Tech Accessibility Checker, to identify common accessibility barriers in course content before publishing.  Learn more: Pope Tech Canvas Accessibility Tools | ATUS | Western Washington University

Choose videos that include accurate captions and provide transcripts when available. Ensure audio-only content, such as podcasts, is accompanied by a transcript.  If creating new video lectures, use Panopto, which has automated captioning.  Automatic captions can help get you started, but they may contain errors. Reviewing and editing captions improves accessibility and helps ensure all students can engage fully with your content. As an added benefit, caption review can offer valuable feedback on the clarity and pace of your instruction. 

If you’re looking for pre-recorded content on YouTube, add “CC” at the end of your search criteria and it will limit your search to captioned content.  (Example: cats dancing, CC). 

Learn how to edit your captions in Panopto.  

Faculty interested in developing more accessible and inclusive courses can explore: