Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Compliance

Name: Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Compliance
Author: Anne Ross

Learn the basics of Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Compliance

Preview the first lesson free — get full access to all 3 lessons.

Course: On-Demand

Hi, I'm Dr. Annie Matthew Ross. In this lesson, you will describe the WCAG guidelines, discuss international standards of WCAG compliance, and describe national law for WCAG in the US, EU, and UK. According to the W3C, web content and accessibility guidelines is for web content developers including page authors, site designers and so forth, web authoring tool developers, web accessibility evaluation tool developers, and others who want to or need to set a standard for web accessibility, including mobile accessibility. The WCAG provides some web accessibility content guidelines. First, the content needs to be perceivable. It needs to be operable, understandable, and robust. Perceivable means that you are providing text alternatives for non-text content like images or buttons. You are providing captions and other alternatives for multimedia such as captions on videos. You're creating content which may be presented in various ways like with assistive technologies and the content won't be perceived with any different meaning. You are making it easier for users to see and hear content. When you are ensuring content is operable, you're making all functionality available from a keyboard and giving enough time to users to read and use the content. You're not using content that causes physical reactions such as dizziness. You're helping users navigate and locate content, and you are providing easy ways to use inputs other than the keyboard. The understandable criteria means that the designer is making text that is readable and understandable and allowing content to appear and operate in specific ways. It also means to help users avoid and correct mistakes. Robust means to maximize compatibility with current and future users. According to the W3C, WCAG standards are developed in conjunction with individuals and organizations around the world. This means that the goal is to provide a single standard internationally to meet the needs of individuals, organizations, and governments global. According to the W3C, laws and policies have been put into place in the United States, United Kingdom, and the European Union supporting the web accessibility standards. This table available in the WAI section of the W3C website on policies outlines various laws put into place in the four mentioned countries. As you can see, the European Union has a Web and Mobile Accessibility Directive from 2016 addressing the public sector to abide by the WCAG 2.0 standards. The United Kingdom has an Equity Act of 2010 pertaining to non-discrimination law for both the public and private sectors to comply with the WCAG 2.0 standards. And the United States has four different laws. First, Section 508 of the US Rehabilitation Act of 1973, amended in 1998, dealing with procurement law and accessibility law for the government to follow WCAG 2.0 standards. Next, the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, modified in 2009, for a non-discrimination law pertaining to both the public and private sectors. Then Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 has an accessibility law for public and private sectors. And Air Carrier Access Act of 1986, amended in 2013, has a non-discrimination law for the private sector to conform to WCAG 2.0 standards. And finally, the 21st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 pertains to the private sector. For more information, visit w3.org/wai/policies. You should now be able to discuss challenges for impaired or disabled individuals accessing the web, discuss international standards of WCAG compliance, and describe national law for WCAG in the US, EU, and UK.

Beginner Provider : Anne Ross 3 Lessons · 9m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Urdu, Chinese

Course Description

In this course on Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Compliance, you will learn how to define web accessibility and who it affects. You will also learn about how a website’s design can affect an individual’s ability to navigate and interact with it, depending on their abilities or impairments. In addition to learning about the importance of accessible design, you will also learn about the legal obligations and guidelines for compliance with web accessibility.

Having a well-designed website is important for all users, but the severity of how much a user is affected can vary greatly. For some individuals, poor UX design may just be mildly frustrating. For other users, however, poor or inaccessible UX design can make a website completely unusable. Because of this, it is extremely important that web developers and designers understand web accessibility laws and compliance guidelines, in order to create the best website possible for a business or organization.

What You'll Learn

Describe the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) and define web accessibility and who it affects
Identify the international standards for WCAG compliance
Explain how a website's design can affect a user's ability to navigate and interact with it based on their abilities or impairments
Discuss WCAG and the legal obligations and guidelines for compliance
Define and discuss Section 508 standards
Correlate WCAG criteria with web accessibility

Key Takeaways

Web accessibility concerns how a website's design affects an individual's ability to navigate and interact with it, depending on their abilities or impairments.
The impact of poor design varies: for some users it is mildly frustrating, while for others poor or inaccessible UX design can make a website completely unusable.
Web developers and designers need to understand web accessibility laws and compliance guidelines to build the best possible website for a business or organization.
WCAG compliance involves legal obligations, international standards, and Section 508 standards.
WCAG criteria can be correlated directly with web accessibility.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who is this course for?

It is aimed at web developers and designers, who need to understand web accessibility laws and compliance guidelines in order to create the best website possible for a business or organization.

What does this course cover?

It covers defining web accessibility and who it affects, how website design can affect a user's ability to navigate and interact with a site, the importance of accessible design, the legal obligations and guidelines for compliance, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), international standards for WCAG compliance, and Section 508 standards.

What topics are taught in the lessons?

The lessons cover the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), Section 508 standards, and WCAG criteria and web accessibility.

What skills will I gain from this course?

The course covers skills including ADA Compliance, Visual Compliance, Web Accessibility, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, Web Dynproing (WDA), and Web Standards.