Technical & Advanced Skills
Technical accessibility is about how your content is built “under the hood.” Even when something looks fine on screen, issues in the underlying structure—like missing labels, incorrect coding, or inconsistent behavior—can make it difficult or impossible for people using assistive technologies to interact with your content. Technical choices affect how screen readers, keyboards, and other tools interpret and present what you create.
You don’t have to be a developer to understand the basics. Knowing what to look for and how to talk about technical accessibility helps you work more effectively with web teams, platform admins, vendors, and tools.
Key Points to Learn
Technical accessibility shapes how content behaves, not just how it looks. A few core ideas help you ask the right questions and spot potential problems.
- Underlying structure matters: Screen readers and other assistive technologies rely on structure that may not be visible, such as headings, landmarks, labels, and reading order. If that structure is missing or incorrect, users may hear content in a confusing order or miss key information.
- Semantics and roles help tools understand content: Elements like buttons, links, form fields, and headings need to be coded or configured with the right type and role. For example, something that looks like a button should actually behave like a button for keyboard and screen reader users.
- Keyboard access is essential: People should be able to move through interactive content (like menus, buttons, and forms) using only the keyboard. If you cannot tab to something or activate it with the keyboard, it may be inaccessible.
- Labels and instructions connect to the right controls: Form fields, inputs, and interactive elements need clear labels that are programmatically associated with the control. This is what allows screen readers to correctly announce a field’s purpose and instructions.
- Consistency across tools: Many platforms (LMS, web CMS, media players, survey tools) have built‑in accessibility features, but they must be used correctly. Understanding basic technical expectations helps you choose tools wisely and configure them in accessible ways.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Styled elements that are not real controls: Using styled text or images as buttons or links without assigning them the correct behavior and role can make them invisible or unusable for screen reader and keyboard users.
- Interactive elements with no accessible name: Icons or controls, such as a magnifying glass for search or a gear for settings, that have no text label behind the scenes may not be announced properly by assistive technologies.
- Inconsistent or broken focus order: Custom menus, dialogs, or widgets that trap the keyboard focus, skip over controls, or jump unpredictably can make it impossible to navigate using only the keyboard.
- Missing or incorrect form labels: Text that visually appears next to a field but is not programmatically tied to it means screen readers may announce a generic field without indicating what should go there.
- Relying solely on tool claims: Assuming that something is fully accessible because a vendor or platform says it is, without checking how it actually behaves with your content and use cases.
Tips for Digital Formats
For websites, technical accessibility often comes down to how templates and components are built. Work with your web team or vendor to ensure that navigation, menus, buttons, forms, and dialogs are properly coded for keyboard and screen reader use. When you add content in a content management system, use the built‑in heading levels, lists, and link tools so the underlying HTML structure remains clean and predictable. If you notice that you cannot reach parts of a page with the Tab key, or that a screen reader reads content in a confusing order, report it so it can be addressed at the template or component level.
In course platforms, much of the technical structure is controlled by the learning management system, but how you use it still matters. Create content using the platform’s built‑in tools for headings, lists, quizzes, and links instead of pasting in heavily formatted HTML from other sources. When using third‑party tools or integrations inside a course, consider whether they support keyboard navigation, clear labels, and screen reader compatibility, and consult your teaching and learning or accessibility teams if you have concerns about a particular tool.
For dashboards, charts, and interactive data experiences, technical accessibility includes how elements are coded and announced. Work with tool owners or developers to ensure charts have accessible names, descriptions, and logical focus order, and that data can be reached or understood without relying solely on color or mouse interactions. When you embed visualizations, provide clear text summaries or alternative views of the data so users who cannot interact directly with the visualization still get the essential information.
For media players and platforms, technical accessibility covers the controls and how they are exposed. Use players that support keyboard navigation, visible focus indicators, and clearly labeled buttons for play, pause, volume, captions, and full screen. When embedding media, verify that users can turn captions on and off, access transcripts, and control playback without needing a mouse. If you encounter media tools that are difficult to operate with a keyboard or screen reader, raise those issues with your media or accessibility contacts.