Accessibility Focus: Tables 

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Over the summer, we explored some different accessibility concerns, how to fix them, and how Canvas can help. But there’s some things that need a little more attention before we jump into the school year – tables and alt text. Today, we’ll be chatting about tables! Accessibility for tables is fairly straightforward, but there are several details to watch out for.  

Pay attention to text accessibility rules 

When entering data in your table, you need to make sure that the different text styles you use can still be understood by screen readers. In tables, the most important text accessibility concerns are about bold/italics/underline and use of color.  

• Bold/italics: use to show emphasis (do not use underline!). Remember that table headers aren’t just bold text – they use a specific style that gives the proper context to screen readers.  
• Use of color: be careful when adding color through cell background color or highlighting – make sure that there’s still enough contrast to be easily readable and that color isn’t the only way you’re conveying emphasis or distinction! 

Use the defined row/column header styles 

Row and column headers are important for screen readers to understand and properly relay all the information in a table.  

Note: if you are using the Canvas accessibility checker to fix tables that don’t have headers – AND you have a table that has a double layer of column or row headers, you’ll need to manually set the headers for the second row/column 

Set the scope for columns and rows 

Having header scope correctly labeled is also important for screen readers to properly understand and relay the information in a table. In Canvas, you can either use the accessibility checker to set the scope, or you can go into the advanced table settings in the RCE (in the expanded toolbar, go to the table settings, then select “cell” from the drop down) and set the scope.  

Include a caption 

Table captions act like a heading or title for the table and identify what the table covers. If your table is directly under a paragraph heading, it may seem like that’s enough – but a defined table caption is tied to the table itself to clearly indicate what the table covers. In that kind of situation, instead repeating the same information, either 1) make sure that there is a difference between the two pieces of information in the text heading and the caption or 2) use only the table caption and apply the heading style to it as well!  

Wrap-up 

Table accessibility can seem complex, but everything boils down to making sure that the information is clear and easily understandable by everyone. One of the easiest first steps to take for creating accessible tables is only using actual tables – don’t use screenshots of tables. When you are creating tables in Canvas, the accessibility checker will help you make sure your tables are accessible, and Canvas support is available if you run into any issues using the tool. If you have questions about accessibility (either regarding tables or generally), please don’t hesitate to reach out to us! Drop us a comment below or email us at ctl@cedarville.edu, and we’d love to chat.

Want to never miss a post? Subscribe here!