Ally for Canvas

Ally is the accessibility tool built into Canvas that helps you review and improve the digital materials you share with students. It does not change your course for you, but it shows where improvements are possible and gives you guidance for fixing issues directly in context.

This page explains what Ally does at UC, what different users see, and how to use Ally to move your courses toward better accessibility over time.

Ally works behind the scenes in Canvas to:

• Scan many types of course content (Canvas pages, files you upload, and some embedded media).
• Assign an accessibility score to each item and to your course overall.
• Show indicators next to content to highlight where issues exist.
• Offer alternative formats for students, such as audio, ePub, or tagged PDF in many cases.
• Provide targeted suggestions to instructors on how to fix common problems, like missing alt text or untagged headings.

Ally is a guide and feedback tool—it surfaces issues and gives you concrete steps, but you remain in control of when and how you change your content.

As an instructor in Canvas, Ally provides two main views:

On pages, files, and some activities, you will see a small indicator (icon) that reflects the current accessibility of that item. Clicking the indicator opens a sidebar that:

• Explains what Ally found.
• Shows the impact on students.
• Offers clear, focused advice on how to fix that specific issue.

This allows you to work on accessibility in small, manageable pieces—one file or page at a time.

Ally also provides a course‑level report that:

• Shows your overall accessibility score for that course.
• Highlights which types of content (for example, PDFs, Word files, images) have the most issues.
• Helps you prioritize where to focus first for the biggest impact.

You can use these views during course design, before a new term starts, or while the course is running to make incremental improvements.

Students do not see your scores or indicators, but they can benefit from Ally through alternative formats. For many files you upload (such as Word documents, PDFs, and PowerPoint slides), Ally can generate alternative versions that students can choose to download—for example:

• An audio version that can be listened to on the go.
• An ePub or HTML version that can reflow on different screens.
• A tagged PDF that works better with some assistive technologies.

These alternatives do not replace your responsibility to make content accessible, but they give students more flexible ways to engage with materials while you improve the underlying content.

You do not need to aim for perfection all at once. Ally works best when you use it to make steady, meaningful progress. You might:

• Focus first on content that students use heavily (syllabus, weekly overviews, key readings, major assignments).
• Use Ally’s course report to see which file types cause the most issues (for example, older PDFs) and target those.
• Fix “quick win” issues when you see them—such as adding alt text to a few images or improving headings on a frequently used page.
• Plan larger remediation work (like re‑creating inaccessible PDFs) over time, possibly with help from instructional design or accessibility staff.

Ally’s guidance is most helpful when it is part of your regular course review cycle, not something you only look at once a year.

Ally is a powerful tool, but it has limits. It cannot fully understand your learning goals, course context, or students’ individual needs, and it may not detect every issue, especially in complex or highly customized content. It does not replace the need for human judgment, particularly around pedagogy or nuanced accessibility decisions, such as when audio description or alternative formats are needed.

Ultimately, instructors are responsible for reviewing and improving accessibility in their own courses, using Ally as a guide rather than a final decision‑maker. Academic leadership is responsible for setting expectations, providing time and support, and using Ally data to direct that support effectively. The Accessibility Network and Digital Accessibility Team provide guidance when questions go beyond what Ally can show or when systemic issues arise across courses or programs.