Accessibility in Word

Creating Accessible Microsoft Word 2016 Documents (Windows)

Heading Styles

Create a uniform heading structure through the use of styles in Word. This allows screen readers to navigate a document and improves accessibility for everyone.

1. Start a new line to create a heading or select text to change to a heading.
2. Open the Home tab, and choose the appropriate heading in the Styles panel.
3. Headings 1, 2, or 3 can also be assigned using Ctrl + Alt + 1, 2, or 3, respectively.

 

Adding Alternative Text

Alternative Text allows a screen reader to describe an image to someone who can't see that image.  

1. Right-click on the image and select Format Picture. A dialog will appear.
2. Select the Layout & Properties icon and choose Alt Text.
3. Enter appropriate Alt text only in the Description field (not the Title field).

 

Hyperlinks

Word automatically creates a hyperlink when a user pastes a full URL onto a page. These may not make sense to screen reader users, so make sure the link text is unique.

1. Select a hyperlink, right-click, and select Hyperlink or hit Ctrl + k.
2. Change the text in the Text to Display field to a more meaningful description.

 

Tables

Accessible tables need a clear table structure and table headers to help guide a screen reader user.

1. Select the Insert tab on the ribbon, then select Table > Insert Table.
2. To add table headers to the first row, select Table Tools > Layout on the ribbon, then choose the Repeat Header Rows option in the Data section.

Options in the Design tab may be used to change appearance but will not provide the necessary accessibility information.

 

^{“Creating Accessible Microsoft Word 2016 Documents (Windows).” NCDAE: The National Center on Disability and Access to Education, ncdae.org/resources/cheatsheets}