Accessibility

Jacksonville State University has a legal responsibility to provide course material and content that is accessible for all learners. Further, accessible content ensures that all students can participate and benefit from learning opportunities at JSU.

Legal Rights for Students

According to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act, all higher education institutions must provide students with disabilities equal and integrated access to higher education. This means that online courses must be accessible. 

To read more about students' rights and protections, please visit UDL on Campus.

WCAG 2.0 Standards

WCAG 2.0 standards established by the World Wide Web Consortium serve as a basis for guidance in ensuring that all material is accessible. 

Access the standards. 

The standards can be organized under four broad principles:

  • Perceivable - Information and user interface components must be presentable to users in ways they can perceive.
    • Example 1: Provide text alternatives for any non-text content
    • Example 2: Make it easier for users to see and hear content including separating foreground from background.
  • Operable - User interface components and navigation must be operable.
    • Example 1: Make all functionality available via a keyboard.
    • Example 2: Provide ways to help users navigate, find content, and determine where they are within content.
  • Understandable - Information and the operation of user interface must be understandable
    • Example 1: Make text content readable and understandable.
    • Example 2: Make web pages appear and operate in predictable ways.
  • Robust - Content is robust enough that it can be interpreted reliably by a wide variety of user agents, including assistive technologies.
    • Example 1: Maximize compatibility with current and future user agents, including assistive technologies.

Resources at JSU

Canvas

The Canvas Learning Management System (LMS) contains mechanisms to assist instructors in making all Canvas pages, assignments, discussions, and announcements accessible. 

By default, all Canvas courses at JSU have the JSU Disability Resources Policy Statement page included. 

Video Captioning

Online@JSU supports the Canvas Studio. Studio can be accessed in Canvas and has a built-in machine captioning service. 

WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool

Go to this page and download the WAVE browser extension. Once enabled, you can select it to check the accessibility of your pages in Canvas.

The Office of Disability Resources