Accessible course design
Headings
Headings enable users to quickly navigate a page or document using assistive software, and provide structured sections which improves the readability of content.
To add a heading in Moodle
- Select the text to be made into a heading.
- Click the Styles button in the text editor and choose a large, medium or small heading as appropriate.
Hyperlinks
Consistent link behaviour
Link behaviour means whether the link will open in the same window or a new window. Links should be set to be opened consistently. The following link behaviour is recommended:
- Links within the course should open in the same window.
- Links to external sites should open in a new window.
Descriptive links
A descriptive link is a link which describes where the link will lead to in the link text. For example, the sentence "Explore Moodle in action on the Mount Orange School site." includes a descriptive link; "Click here to explore Moodle in action." does not.
Plain URLs such as https://moodle.org should be avoided, as users of assistive technology must listen to the URL being read out.
To add a descriptive link in Moodle
- Select the descriptive link text.
- Click the link button in the text editor.
- Enter the URL and tick 'Open in new window' if appropriate
- Click 'Create link'.
Text
A sans serif font is recommended for ease of reading on a screen.
Important information should be emphasised by including it in a separate paragraph, using a word such as 'Important' or a symbol such as an asterisk. Styling such as bold, italics, underlining or a different colour should not be used, as users of assistive technology are often not aware of such styling.
Tip: Styling may be removed by selecting the text then clicking the 'Clear formatting' button in the text editor.
See also
- Usability in the developer's documentation
- The Usability forum