Students with disabilities can use a computer to access school assignments and tests. Using Microsoft Office programs, such as Microsoft Word and Microsoft PowerPoint, teachers can prepare effective teaching materials that are accessible to students with disabilities.
1. Make documents accessible
When you create documents that have clear structure and formatting, it helps everyone who views those document grasp the key points more easily. For example, when you apply styles, such as headings and paragraph spacing, screen readers can navigate the page more efficiently. The same is true when you use header rows in tables, use descriptive text for hyperlinks, and add alternative text to images.
How to:
2. Find and fix accessibility issues in Microsoft Office files with Accessibility Checker
Word 2010, Excel 2010, and PowerPoint 2010 include Accessibility Checker. By identifying areas that might be challenging for users with disabilities to view or use, and by providing a task pane to review those areas, Accessibility Checker can help you fix potential problems with your content before you share it with others.
If Accessibility Checker finds an issue, the task pane identifies why the content might be inaccessible. It also classifies the identified issue as an error, a warning, or a tip.
Error. Content that makes a file very difficult or impossible for people with disabilities to understand
Warning. Content that in most, but not all, cases makes a file difficult for people with disabilities to understand.
Tip. Content that people with disabilities can understand but that could be better organized or presented in a way that would maximize their experience.
After you select the identified issue, you then see instructions on how to repair or revise it.
Read more about Accessibility Checker. You can also see a complete listing of the issues addressed by Accessibility Checker, or watch these videos:
3. Add subtitles to videos in PowerPoint 2010
If your classroom PowerPoint 2010 presentations include video and audio files, you can add closed captions to help ensure that students with hearing impairments can access the content.