Prioritizing Web Accessibility
Web accessibility refers to how easily people with disabilities can navigate and interact with websites. Disabilities may be physical, such as vision impairments including blindness or low vision, hearing impairment such as deafness, or fine motor skills difficulty; or cognitive, such as dyslexia or attention deficit disorder. People with disabilities often use assistive technologies to help them navigate the web. An assistive technology is any device that helps a person with a disability. Common web assistive technologies include modified mice and keyboards, screen readers, and screen magnifiers.
Web accessibility occurs when websites are compatible with assistive technologies, support accessibility standards, and are easy for people to navigate and understand. D2L follows web accessibility standards closely and work with clients and accessibility experts to test the usability experience of our products for people with disabilities. D2L believes that instructional practices should focus on helping people learn, and should not be limited by the learning management platform the material is delivered in. Many features in Brightspace can be adjusted to improve access for individuals with disabilities. We recommend that individuals who use screen readers, screen magnifiers, or navigate primarily by keyboard, become familiar with the accessibility features available in Brightspace. Learning how to navigate Brightspace with their assistive technology tools also helps ensure that the features and settings they use best support their needs.
For more details about our commitment to accessibility and our accessibility conformance reports, see Committed to Accessibility in Education.
Accessibility enables learning
Accessibility is a requirement of all D2L projects. Brightspace products have equal and inclusive learning opportunities and comply with WCAG AA accessibility benchmarks. WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standards ensure maximum interoperability with assistive technologies, browser plug-ins (for example, the OpenDyslexic Font for Chrome for learners with dyslexia), and operating system preferences for alternative display and access to web content. This includes, but is not limited to: screen readers, braille outputs, screen magnifiers, color contrast plug-ins, and tools to support reading comprehension. D2L Project Management reviews and documents any exceptions, and shares those exceptions in the VPAT documentation.
D2L also supports simplified navigation and formatting, and responsive navigation for tablets, mobile devices, and other narrow screen displays adhere to and enhance the accessibility benchmarks D2L sets for users requiring assistive devices.
WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standards ensure maximum interoperability with assistive technologies, browser plug-ins (for example, the OpenDyslexic Font for Chrome for learners with dyslexia), and operating system preferences for alternative display and access to web content. This includes, but is not limited to: screen readers, braille outputs, screen magnifiers, color contrast plug-ins, and tools to support reading comprehension. D2L Project Management reviews and documents any exceptions, and shares those exceptions in the VPAT documentation.
D2L has created responsive, accessible content templates that are free to use. Accessible templates are available for use in the Content tool under a creative commons license on the Brightspace Community. Using these templates, instructors and instructional design teams can create HTML documents that match the look and feel of the Brightspace interface.