A student opens the image for tomorrow's critique. The assignment asks her to analyze composition, contrast, and scale, but the image description says only, "abstract painting." She knows what she's supposed to analyze. She just doesn't have access to the details that make the analysis possible.

Fixing that barrier matters. But even when an image, video, performance, or demonstration is technically accessible, students may still struggle actually using the content to notice what's important, follow the creative process, or understand what they need to do. Making creative media technically accessible matters. So does making it usable so students can meet your learning goal.

That's where purpose becomes important. Fine arts courses ask students to learn through looking, listening, making, performing, and responding - experiences that are often central to the discipline. Before changing those experiences, ask: What are students supposed to perceive, interpret, create, or communicate? What challenge is essential to that work?

Then consider where different learners might get stuck. The goal isn't to remove the sensory, creative, or experiential challenge. It's to reduce barriers that aren't essential to learning.

1. Describe What Students Need to Notice

"A painting of three people" may technically identify an image, but it doesn't provide much to work with if students are asked to analyze composition, technique, scale, symbolism, or visual relationships.

Start with the assignment: What do students need to notice to do the interpretation themselves?

• Use brief alternative text when identifying the work is sufficient.

• Provide a longer description when students need significant visual detail.

• Describe relevant composition, placement, scale, color, texture, contrast, or technique.

• Separate observation from interpretation.

For example: If students are analyzing composition and visual relationships in Edward Hopper's Nighthawks (1942), a description might read:

“Four people occupy a brightly lit diner at night. Three customers sit along a curved counter while a worker stands behind it. Large glass windows reveal the interior from the dark, nearly empty street outside. The diner extends diagonally across the painting, with its illuminated windows occupying much of the foreground.”

The description gives students visual details to examine without interpreting the artwork for them.

2. Narrate the Creative Process, Not Just the Steps

Watching someone throw clay, mix paint, position a camera, shape a musical phrase, or demonstrate movement can communicate things that are difficult to capture in written instructions alone.

But a demonstration can be perfectly visible and audible, while important ‘expert thinking’ and other details remain hidden inside phrases such as "watch what I'm doing" or "you want it to look like this." Consider techniques that support learner usability alongside the technically accessible content.  

• Narrate significant movements, choices, adjustments, and changes.

• Explain what you're looking, listening, or feeling for as you make a decision.

• Pair demonstrations with instructions or reference materials that students can revisit.

Describing the process doesn't replace the demonstration. It makes the expert's thinking inside it more visible.

See it in practice: Artist Kelly Wang discusses materials, techniques, and tools, with footage of her studio demonstrations. How might narrating your creative decisions help students understand not just what you're doing, but why? Note: Captions are auto-generated.

3. Give Performances More Than One Way to Be Studied

Music, theater, dance, film, and other time-based work may combine dialogue, sound, movement, gesture, staging, costume, lighting, and spatial relationships. Captions provide access to speech; however, they don't necessarily capture everything students need for the learning activity.

• Describe significant movement, staging, gesture, or other visual information when it affects meaning.

• Provide transcripts for spoken or audio content.

• Use scores, scripts, lyrics, program notes, storyboards, or other supporting materials when they offer another useful route into the work.

If students are studying staging, they need access to staging. If they're analyzing rhythm, they need access to the relevant musical information. The support should follow the purpose.

See it in practice: Candoco Dance Company provides an audio-described performance, transcripts, a visual guide, and an interview with the creative cast. Which of these resources might help students notice, revisit, or analyze aspects of a performance they would otherwise miss?

4. Let Color Create Meaning, Not Gatekeep It

Color may be the content in fine arts. Students may be studying hue, value, contrast, palette, lighting, or the meanings attached to color. So the guidance, "don't rely on color," is too simplistic here. Instead, distinguish between color as something students are studying and color as the only way unrelated information is communicated.

• Use sufficient contrast for instructional text, labels, and functional information.

• When color identifies categories, steps, materials, or instructions, pair it with another cue.

• When color itself is the subject of study, provide another way to access relevant relationships when needed.

Accessibility doesn't mean taking color out of art. It means being intentional about what color is being asked to do.

See it in practice: Explore the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago's Color for All to consider how differences in color perception can shape the experience of artwork. How might you help students examine color relationships without assuming everyone perceives them in the same way?

5. Slow Critique Down Enough for Thinking

A critique may have no obvious technical accessibility problem and still create a barrier when it comes to students’ ability to use that content to meet the learning goal. Students may be asked to observe a work, develop an interpretation, connect it to disciplinary language, or respond publicly within seconds. Speed can become an unintended requirement.

• Share critique questions or criteria before discussion when possible.

• Give students time to observe, listen, annotate, sketch, or write before responding.

• Offer a written or annotated way to contribute alongside live critique.

Try this: Give students two minutes to record one thing they notice, one interpretation they're considering, and one question they want to ask the artist. How might this brief pause change the quality of observations and contributions during critique?

6. Teach Students to Create Accessibly, Too

Students aren't only consuming creative media. They're making it.

Portfolios, videos, performances, posters, exhibitions, presentations, websites, and other creative projects offer an opportunity to make accessibility and usability part of the creative process, rather than something added after the work is complete.

• Introduce relevant accessibility expectations when you introduce the assignment.

• Show examples of accessible creative work and discuss the choices behind them.

• Ask students to consider who can perceive, navigate, or participate in what they're creating, which supports the usability of that content to achieve desired learning. 

• Include accessibility in the rubric when it is an expected part of the work.

Consider this: When students create a portfolio, video, performance, or exhibition, how might accessibility become part of their creative decisions about audience, medium, and presentation rather than a correction made afterward?

Try One Purposeful Change

Choose one place where students look, listen, make, perform, or respond. Ask: What are students supposed to perceive, interpret, create, or communicate? What challenge should remain? Where might different learners be getting stuck?

Then try one manageable change while preserving the creative or disciplinary work. Look for one reasonable sign that it helped: more specific observations during critique; fewer procedural questions during demonstrations; stronger explanations of creative choices; broader participation or student feedback. Use what you notice to decide what to keep, adjust, or try next.

Keep Exploring

Find step-by-step guidance and additional resources for creating accessible course content on the Digital Accessibility website.

We'll work through strategies like these at Amplify Access to Creative Learning: Designing Accessible Fine Arts Experiences on October 21. Bring an image, demonstration, performance, creative assignment, or critique activity from your course.

A student opens the assigned dataset the night before discussion, ready to test a hypothesis about voting patterns in urban counties. But the chart won't resize, the color-coded legend is difficult to distinguish with her display settings, and there's no data table to fall back on. She isn't struggling with the statistics. She's struggling to get to them.

Fixing those barriers matters. But even when students can access a chart, dataset, map, interview, or other source, they may still struggle to navigate the information, identify relevant evidence, or understand how they're expected to use it. Technical access opens the door. Learning design considers what students need to do once they're through it.

That's where learning purpose becomes important. Before changing how evidence is presented, ask: What are students supposed to do with this evidence? What analytical challenge needs to remain? 

Access to the evidence can become easier without making the analysis easier.

1. Start With the Evidence Students Need to Reach

Before changing a chart, article, map, dataset, or recording, ask what students are expected to do with it. Are they identifying a trend? Comparing values? Evaluating a research method? Coding an interview? Interpreting geographic relationships?

Then, consider where different learners might get stuck.

• Can they access the information?

• Can they navigate and use it?

• Is it clear what they're supposed to examine?

• Do they have the background knowledge needed to begin?

Identifying the barrier before choosing a solution helps keep the change purposeful.

If students need to identify a trend, they need access to the trend. If they need to calculate from individual values, they need the underlying data. The analytical work still belongs to them.

2. Make the Finding Available Beyond the Visualization

Charts and graphs compress large amounts of information into visual patterns. That's their strength, and why technical accessibility alone may not be enough.

• Pair a visualization with accessible data when students need individual values.

• Describe significant trends or relationships when that's what students need to examine.

• Use labels, patterns, shapes, or line styles in addition to color.

• Make alternative text meaningful rather than simply naming the chart type.

Additional representation depends on the purpose. Students may need a data table, a description, clearer labels, or another representation.

Image: A bar chart and accompanying data table present the same hypothetical student survey results, allowing learners to access and compare information in different ways.

The visualization can remain useful without being the only place the evidence exists.

3. Translate Spatial Patterns Into More Than Color

Maps communicate through position, boundaries, color, scale, and spatial relationships. A technically accessible description that merely repeats the legend may still leave the important pattern hidden.

• Describe significant geographic patterns when they matter to the activity.

• Use labels, patterns, boundaries, or other cues when color distinguishes categories.

• Provide underlying data when students need to compare individual locations or values.

Students should still have to interpret why the pattern exists or what it means. The purposeful change simply makes the pattern available for analysis.

4. Remove Barriers From Data Collection

When students design or complete surveys, accessibility becomes part of the research process itself. If some participants can't use an instrument, or don't understand how to respond, that can affect who participates and potentially the data collected.

• Choose survey tools and question types that support keyboard and assistive technology use.

• Avoid interactions such as drag-and-drop or sliders when a simpler response can collect the same information.

• Avoid timing unless timing is part of the research design.

• Determine whether directions and response expectations are clear to participants.

If some participants can't complete or understand our instrument, what might that mean for our sample or conclusions?

Accessibility and usability aren't separate from research design when they affect who can participate.

5. If the Recording Is Data, Treat the Transcript as Data

Interviews, oral histories, focus groups, and field recordings may be evidence students are expected to code, compare, quote, and interpret.

• Caption video and provide transcripts for audio.

• Check automated transcripts for names, places, terminology, and errors that could change meaning.

• Include relevant nonverbal or contextual information when it matters to the analysis.

• Use speaker labels or timestamps when students need to move between the transcript and recording.

A transcript doesn't merely make the recording accessible. It can make qualitative evidence easier to search, annotate, compare, and revisit.

6. Make Room for Analysis Before Discussion

A discussion can be technically accessible while still favoring whoever processes the evidence fastest and speaks first.

• Share data or prompts in advance when possible.

• Give students time to examine the evidence and record an observation before discussion.

• Offer a written way to contribute alongside live discussion when appropriate.

Try this: Ask students to identify one pattern, one piece of evidence supporting it, and one question the evidence raises. Then begin the group analysis.

The goal is to hear from students who did the analytical work—not just the ones comfortable speaking first.

Try One Purposeful Change

Choose one place where students encounter evidence and ask:

What do they need to do with this evidence? What analytical challenge needs to remain? Where might different learners be getting stuck?

Start with one manageable change that removes a barrier while preserving the analytical work students need to do. Then look for evidence that the change helped, whether that's fewer navigation questions, stronger use of evidence, more accurate interpretations, broader participation, or student feedback. Use what you learn to decide what to try next.

Keep Exploring

Find step-by-step guidance and additional resources for creating accessible course content on the Digital Accessibility website.

Join us on October 14 for Expand Access to Evidence and Inquiry: Designing Accessible Social Science Learning. Bring a dataset, article, map, survey, recording, or discussion activity from your course, and we'll explore where students encounter barriers and how purposeful changes can improve access without reducing the challenge.

Imagine you’ve created a table showing your weekly course schedule: dates in the first column, readings in the second, and assignments in the third. It looks organized and easy to scan. But a student using a screen reader may encounter those cells one after another without the visual relationships that make the table meaningful. A few small design choices can make the difference between a table that simply looks organized and one that students can actually navigate and understand.

Tables are a natural way to organize information -- schedules, grade breakdowns, comparison charts, data sets. They’re also one of the most common accessibility problems in course content and documents. 

1. Use Tables for Data, Not Layout

The most important rule for accessible tables: use them only to organize data with a clear relationship between rows and columns. 

• Use tables for: Schedules, grade scales, comparison charts, data sets, and contact information with categories.

• Avoid tables for: Multi-column text layouts, image placement, and decorative formatting.

• In Blackboard: Use the built-in column layout options in Ultra Documents for visual organization rather than inserting a table, or using a screenshot image that would require a description itself.

Tables used for visual layout in documents and websites -- to position images side by side, to create columns of text, or to format a page -- create serious problems for screen readers, which try to read each cell in sequence without any visual context.

2. Always Include a Header Row

A header row tells screen readers -- and all readers -- what each column contains. Without it, a student using a screen reader hears a string of data values with no way to know what they represent. This is especially critical when a table has many columns.

• In Word: Select your top row → right-click → Table Properties → Row tab → check “Repeat as header row at the top of each page.” Then go to the Table Design tab and check “Header Row.”

• In Google Docs: Click in the top row → Format → Table → Table properties → enable “Header rows.”

• In Blackboard: When inserting a table, check the “Header column” or “Header row” option in the table properties dialog.

3. Keep Your Structure Simple

Complex table structures -- merged cells, split cells, nested tables, or cells that span multiple rows and columns -- are difficult for screen readers to interpret correctly. When in doubt, simpler is better.

• Avoid merging cells across rows or columns when possible. If you need to show a grouping, use a heading above the table instead.

• Avoid nested tables (a table inside a table cell).

• If your table requires a complex structure to make sense, consider whether the data can be presented differently -- for example, as a list, a paragraph, or broken into multiple simpler tables.

4. Add a Title or Caption Above Your Table

Every table should have a brief title or caption that tells students what the table contains before they encounter it. Screen reader users often navigate by jumping between tables, and a table title helps them decide whether to engage with the content.

• In Word: Click on the table → References → Insert Caption, or simply type a descriptive heading above the table using Heading 3 style.

• In Google Docs: Type a descriptive label above the table and apply a heading style.

• In Blackboard: Add a line of text above the table in your content editor describing what it contains.

A title like “Grade Scale for HIST 301” or “Weekly Office Hours by Instructor” makes the table immediately useful to every student.

5. Check Your Tables with the Accessibility Checker

Before uploading a Word document or PowerPoint with tables, run the built-in Accessibility Checker to catch common table structure problems.

• In Word: Review → Check Accessibility. Look for warnings about missing header rows or tables used for layout.

• In PowerPoint: Same path. Tables in presentations are frequently missing header row markup.

• In Blackboard: Tables created in the rich text editor should not require a separate accessibility check if you use the header row option when you build the table.

6. Ask Whether You Need a Table at All

Before you spend time making a table accessible, ask whether a table is really the best way to present the information. Tables work best when readers need to understand relationships between rows and columns. If those relationships aren't important, another format may be simpler and easier for everyone to navigate.

• Try a list when you're presenting a sequence, set of resources, or collection of items.

• Use headings and paragraphs when you're organizing related sections of information.

• Break a complex table into smaller tables when students don't need to compare all of the information at once.

• Keep the table when the relationship between rows and columns is important to understanding the information.

The goal isn't to eliminate tables. It's to choose the format that communicates the information most clearly with the least unnecessary complexity.

Accessible information starts with choosing the right structure. When a table is the best choice, clear headers, simple organization, and a logical reading order help every student understand the relationships in the data. And when a list, paragraph, or other format communicates the information more clearly, choosing not to use a table can be an accessibility improvement, too.

Most faculty design course materials thinking about how they look. But for a significant number of students, how course content looks is only part of the picture -- or not the picture at all. Students with disabilities may experience your course through a screen reader that reads text aloud, a magnification tool that enlarges content, voice control software that lets them navigate without a mouse or keyboard, or captions that make lecture videos accessible without sound. 

Understanding how these tools work -- and more so, what gets in their way -- is one of the most useful things you can do to improve your course experience for every student.

1. Screen Readers: Your Course as Sound

Screen readers are software applications that convert on-screen text into synthesized speech or Braille output. Common screen readers include JAWS (license required), NVDA (free, Windows), Narrator (free, Windows), ChromeVox (free, Chromebooks) and VoiceOver (free, Mac). Students who are blind or have low vision rely on screen readers to access course content. Screen readers can also benefit students with learning disabilities, limited mobility, and other disabilities in their interactions with digital content in different ways. 

Watch: Screen Reader Demo for Digital Accessibility (4:44)

Here’s what that means for course materials:

• A screen reader reads content in the order it appears in the document structure, not necessarily in the order it looks onscreen. For example, a visually organized two-column layout might be read as all left-column content, followed by all right-column content. Documents that lack proper heading structure will be read in a jumbled order -- or not read at all. 

• Images without alt text are announced as “image” or are read aloud by the file name. A screen reader user who hears “image001.jpg” as the file name learns nothing from that image.

• Links are often navigated as a list. A list of “click here” links has no meaning without context. Choose action verbs such as “complete survey,” “download article,” or “review before class” as these provide the what and why of the link to screen readers. 

• Heading styles allow screen reader users to jump to sections of a document the way sighted readers can scan headers. A document without proper heading styles, however, must be read in its entirety from beginning to end.

2. Voice Control: Navigating Without Hands

Voice control software (such as Windows Voice Access or Apple’s Voice Control) allows students with motor disabilities to navigate and interact with content using spoken commands. Students might say “click Download Syllabus” to activate a link -- which only works if the link has clear, descriptive text.

• Vague link text cannot be reliably targeted by voice commands. Choose action verbs for web links, avoiding “click here” or “this guide.” 

• Forms and interactive elements without visible labels cannot be activated by voice.

• Accessible,descriptive text throughout your course makes voice navigation faster and less frustrating.

Image: Screen magnification software, such as ZoomText, allow users to enlarge on-screen content to support accessibility and comprehension. 

3. Magnification Tools: Your Course at 4x Original Size

Students with low vision may use screen magnification software (such as ZoomText or Windows Magnifier) to enlarge content to two, four, or even 10 times its original size. At high magnification levels, only a small portion of the screen is visible at once.

• Text that is embedded in images cannot be magnified without becoming blurry. If your content contains images of text instead of real text, that content becomes illegible when enlarged. 

• Low-contrast color combinations (light gray on white, yellow on white) are difficult to read at normal size and become even harder to read at high magnification.

• PDFs that are image-based rather than text-based do not magnify clearly. Tagged, text-based PDFs reflow much better.

Magnification software can have its limits, however, as low vision varies widely from student to student and some tools may not meet every student’s needs. If a student using magnification tools reports issues when accessing physical materials such as handouts, textbooks, or lab worksheets you can refer them to Disability Access and Resources (DAR) for additional assistive technology support. DAR can provide document cameras or mirror-cams which help students magnify physical materials in real time. 

4. Captions and Transcripts: Your Course Without Sound

Students who are deaf or hard of hearing cannot access audio unless it’s captioned or transcribed. Yet captions benefit a much wider group: students in noisy environments; students who process text more easily than audio; multilingual learners; and students who use captions as a study aid.

• Auto-captions are a starting point, not a finished product. Errors in auto-captions (e.g., wrong names, missed phrases or words, misheard sentences) are common and can significantly impact clarity and comprehension. If a video announcement in Blackboard isn’t captioned, for example, students who need them will miss your message entirely.

• Transcripts make audio content searchable and accessible to students who cannot play video at all.

• Audio descriptions, which verbally describe essential visual information in a video, extend access to students who are blind or have low vision.

5. What This Means for Building Your Course

You don’t need to become an assistive technology expert to make a meaningful difference in your students’ experience. Creating accessible content can take only a few minutes using established best practices along with UMBC supported tools. Oftentimes, the barrier is awareness of these methods, not lack of effort. A few consistent habits can go a long way:

• Use heading styles so screen reader users can navigate your documents.

• Write alt text that describes what an image communicates, not just what it depicts.

• Make link text descriptive and self-contained.

• Review and correct auto-captions on your videos.

• Choose real text over images of text whenever possible.

• Check your work using built-in tools like the Accessibility Checker in Word and PowerPoint, Adobe Acrobat's accessibility checker, or Blackboard’s Ally.

Accessible course design isn’t about designing for a hypothetical “typical” student. It’s about recognizing all students arrive with a range of needs, preferences, devices, and ways of interacting with digital content -- and ensuring you offer flexible and usable materials across those differences.

You launched the Ally course accessibility report, worked through the flagged issues, and watched your score climb to 85% or higher. Green across the board! It feels like the job is done.

But a few weeks into the semester, a student reaches out and tells you they couldn't get through to the reading you linked from the library database, or the lecture video you just posted had no usable captions. How is that possible if Ally said everything was great?

Ally is a powerful tool, but not a complete accessibility audit. It's built to catch specific, well-defined accessibility issues in specific kinds of content uploaded to your course. Ally is transparent about the fact that a lot falls outside that scope. Knowing where those edges are is just as important as knowing how to use the tool itself. Here's what Ally can't see, can't fix, or doesn't fully resolve, and what you can do about each one.

1. Anything Linked or Stored Outside Blackboard

Ally only scans files that actually live inside the course, content you've uploaded or built directly in Blackboard. If you've linked out to a file in Google Drive, OneDrive, or Box, Ally has no way to see inside it. That means those linked files don’t get a meter, a score, or a fix suggestion no matter how inaccessible it is. 

• For linked or external files, the fix has to happen at the source. Use accessibility checkers built into Microsoft Word or PowerPoint before sharing. 

• Google Docs and Slides do not have an accessibility checker; however, activate Gemini and run this prompt: “Please check this file for accessibility using WCAG 2.1 AA as the guiding standard.” The result should give you some feedback and guidance for improvements.

2. Publisher and Library-Integrated Content

Course materials delivered through a publisher's LTI tool, a textbook platform, or a library database link are similarly invisible to Ally. These integrations pull content into your course from outside systems that Ally doesn't have access to.

• If a student reports a problem with a publisher's homework platform or an e-reserve reading, that's a conversation with the publisher or the library, not something Ally will flag or fix.

• If you need additional information about the accessibility of a specific tool we license, please ask DoIT or Instructional Technology. 

3. Content Outside the Main Course Area

Depending on how your course is structured, Ally's scanning focuses on uploaded files and content created in the course content area, not necessarily everything you build in Blackboard. Announcements, discussion prompts, and assignment instructions may not get the same scrutiny as an uploaded PDF or Word document. Yet they still require a close review to ensure accuracy, accessibility, and readability.

• If you're writing a long, image-heavy announcement or a detailed set of assignment instructions directly in Blackboard's editor, treat it with the same care as an uploaded file. This includes clear headings, real alt text, and no walls of unbroken text (i.e., consider shorter paragraphs, bulleted lists, and white space).

• When in doubt, check whether that piece of content has an Ally indicator next to it at all. If not, it's likely not being scanned.

Image: When editing in YuJa, request auto-captions and ensure the Language Set selected is English. 

4. Video, Audio Content and “Fixed” Captions That Aren’t Really Fixed

With the exception of linked YouTube videos, Ally does not check the accessibility of video or audio content. At UMBC, that responsibility lives with YuJa, our video platform, not with Ally. YuJa provides its own AI-based captioning, typically in the 90 to 95% accuracy range.

• Auto-generated captions are a starting point, not a finish line; they need a human review to catch misheard names, technical terms, and punctuation before they're reliable and usable.

• If embedding a YuJa video into Blackboard, don't assume a good Ally score on the surrounding content means the video is accessible. It's a separate check, in a separate system.

When it comes to captioning and Ally flags an issue, having an available caption (even auto-generated) doesn't mean it’s an accessible caption. 

• Auto-generated captions are not considered valid on their own because they're not reliably accurate enough to meet accessibility standards.

• Budget time to review, correct, or clarify auto-captions, especially for technical vocabulary, names, or acronyms specific to a discipline.

5. Very Short or Unusual Files

Some of Ally's checks only apply above a certain file size or in certain formats. For example, one common PDF accessibility check -- headings -- only applies to PDFs with at least three pages, while the same check in Word documents applies only to files with at least 12 paragraphs. As a result, Ally may not flag missing headings in shorter PDFs or Word documents.

• Don't assume a shorter document is fine simply because Ally didn't flag anything. 

• Give those shorter files and images the same manual glance you'd give longer files.

None of this means Ally isn't worth using. It catches a huge share of the most common issues, automatically, without asking you to become an accessibility expert. But "green meter" and "fully accessible" aren't quite the same thing. The most reliable and accessible courses combine what Ally flags with a critical human review of content, tools, and areas it can't reach.

If you’ve followed the guidance and the issue persists, or if you’re working with a complex document type you’re not sure how to fix, Instructional Technology is here to help. You can reach us via RT to submit a ticket or schedule a 1:1 consultation.

Blackboard Ally is one of the most useful tools in your course accessibility toolkit. It scans your content, flags potential barriers, and offers step-by-step guidance for fixing them. However,  sometimes the guidance can be unclear, the fix doesn’t seem to work, or you’re not sure whether what Ally flagged is actually a problem. This article walks through the most common Ally errors faculty encounter, and what to do when the built-in guidance doesn’t get you all the way there.

1. Missing or Poor Alt Text on Images

Ally flags images that are missing alt text or have alt text that may not be meaningful (for example, a filename like “image001.jpg” used as alt text).

• Fix it in Blackboard: Click the Ally indicator next to the content item and follow the AI Alt Text Assistant prompts. You can accept an AI-generated suggestion or write your own. If it truly doesn’t contribute meaning or purpose to the content, you can mark it as decorative.

• Fix it in the source file: If the image is inside an uploaded Word, PowerPoint, or PDF, update the alt text in the original file and re-upload as a new version to replace the old file

When Ally’s guidance isn’t enough: Ally’s AI Alt Text Assistant is fairly sophisticated and provides an excellent starting point for complex images. However, if the image is a chart, diagram, or map, and your learning outcome requires more detail, a one-sentence description may not be sufficient. A long description, typically linked in a separate document, helps provide additional information or context.

2. Untagged or Poorly Tagged PDFs

Untagged PDFs are one of Ally’s most common and most frustrating flags. A PDF without accessibility tags cannot be read in order by a screen reader. Scanned PDFs are almost always untagged.

Image: Ally generates suggested tags for review and approval.

• Use Ally’s new auto-tagging feature: Ally will scan your PDF and generate tags based on the content in the PDF. You can review the suggested tags and approve the document to apply the tags. At this time, you cannot edit the tags or selectively approve the tags. 

• If you need to modify the tags and you have the original source file: Go back to Word, Google Docs, or PowerPoint, ensure the document is structured with headings and proper formatting, and re-export as a tagged PDF using “Save as PDF” (not print-to-PDF).

• If you need to modify the tags and you only have the PDF: Use Adobe Acrobat’s Accessibility Checker (Tools → Accessibility → Full Check) to identify and repair tagging issues. This takes more time, but is doable for shorter documents.

When Ally’s guidance isn’t enough: Consider whether the PDF can be replaced with content built directly in Blackboard, which is accessible by design. Blackboard can convert many files, including Microsoft Word and PowerPoint, to an accessible-friendly web format.

3. Document Language Not Set

Ally sometimes flags that a document’s language is not specified. This matters because screen readers use language metadata to apply the correct pronunciation rules.

• Using Ally: Ally will allow you to set the language per PDF from a simple dropdown menu at the time the issue is flagged. Ally will scan your document and suggest the language. Most languages are available.

When Ally’s guidance isn’t enough: If Ally does not have your document’s language, you can set the language in the source file within Word, Google Docs, and Adobe Acrobat.

4. Low Color Contrast

Ally flags content where text color does not have sufficient contrast against its background -- a barrier for students with low vision or color blindness. A contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for normal text is ideal.

• When Ally flags a file: Open the original document, update the text or background color, and re-upload.

• In Blackboard’s rich text editor, stick to the default text colors, which are already color contrast-compliant. 

• Avoid light gray text on white backgrounds, yellow text on white, or red text on green.

When Ally’s guidance isn’t enough: Use WebAIM’s free Contrast Checker to test any color combination before using it in course materials.

5. Missing or Skipped Heading Structure

Headings are essential navigation landmarks for screen reader users. Ally flags documents that lack headings or use heading levels out of order (for example, jumping from Heading 1 to Heading 3). 

• In Word and Google Docs: Apply heading styles from the Styles panel -- Heading 1 for your title, Heading 2 for major sections, Heading 3 for subsections. Don’t skip levels.

• In PowerPoint: Use the default slide title field for each slide’s title rather than inserting a text box.

• In Blackboard: Use the paragraph format dropdown in the rich text editor to apply heading levels to your content.

6. Missing Document Title

Ally may flag a document with a missing title, which is different from the document name. Instructors can set a title using Ally and quickly save this change. Titles may not have the following:

• use special characters or end in a period

• end with a file extensions (e.g., pdf, xls, doc)

• match the file name exactly

Ally’s built-in guidance covers most common scenarios, but some files require more hands-on support. If you’ve followed the guidance and the issue persists, or if you’re working with a complex document type you’re not sure how to fix, Instructional Technology is here to help. You can also reach us via RT to submit a ticket or schedule a 1:1 consultation.

You just finished uploading a PDF - a syllabus, lecture notes, or a set of slides exported for printing. It looks fine to you, but how does it perform for a student relying on a screen reader? Would those scanned pages you dropped in actually be readable at all?

That is the exact gap Blackboard Ally is built to close. Running quietly in the background of every course and organization, Ally checks your files and gives you quick, actionable ways to fix what it finds. Here is a refresher on how Ally helps you save time, improve readability, and create a better learning experience for every student.

1. See Accessibility at a Glance with Color-Coded Meters

Every file you upload and link in Blackboard is scanned by Ally. Next to each piece of content is a color-coded accessibility meter that resembles a gauge. These color-coded gauges are visible only to you, never to students. The color coding can tell you at a quick glance the level of accessibility -- ranging from green or orange (high to perfect) to yellow or red (low to medium). 

Image: Ally scores range from Low to Perfect. 

• Low, medium, high, and perfect ratings give you an immediate sense of priority without opening the file.

• Click any meter to see exactly what's wrong and how to fix it, right where the content lives in your course.

2. Use the Course Report to Prioritize Your Time

Rather than checking every file one by one, Ally’s Course Accessibility Report (accessed and launched from Books & Tools -> Ally) gives you a course-wide score, a breakdown by content type, and a list of issues sorted by severity.

• Start with "Easy issues to fix" -- these are often the fastest way to raise your score.

• Many easy fixes turn out to be missing image descriptions, so that one filter can knock out a lot of ground quickly.

3. Fix PDF Problems Without Leaving Blackboard

Ally's "quick fixes" handle some of the most common PDF issues, such as missing titles, missing language settings, and scanned-only pages. All are visible right inside the Instructor Feedback panel.

• Add a title or set the document language in seconds through a simple field or dropdown.

• Convert a scanned PDF to readable text with built-in OCR, with the option to preview and download the original first.

4. Let Ally Auto-Tag Your PDFs

With Ally's Auto-Tagging feature, UMBC instructors can now generate a full tag structure for an untagged PDF automatically. 

• You review and approve the tag structure before anything is applied, and you can download the original file first.

• It won't fix everything (image descriptions, tables, and contrast still need separate attention), but it removes the heaviest lift.

5. Give Every Student a Format That Works for Them

Ally can also generate alternative versions of your files, including audio, mobile-friendly HTML/ePub, Immersive Reader, and BeeLine Reader, which lets students choose what fits their needs, device, or moment.

• A student might listen to the audio version on a commute, or use the HTML version to read comfortably on a phone.

• Framing these as options for any student, not just those with accommodations, helps normalize their use.

6. Get AI-Assisted Suggestions for Image Descriptions

Missing alt text is one of the most common issues Ally flags. When it finds an image without a description, Ally can now generate a suggested one automatically.

• You always review and approve the suggestion before it's saved; nothing is applied automatically.

• For complex images or diagrams, tools like Gemini, Copilot, or ChatGPT can help you write a more detailed long description when Ally's suggestion isn't quite enough. 

Coming Soon: AI Alt Text for Images Inside PDFs

Ally's next update extends AI-generated image descriptions into PDFs, so images embedded inside PDF files, not just standalone uploads, will be eligible for AI-suggested alt text. As with existing AI suggestions, instructors will review and approve every description before it's applied. We'll share more as this rolls out.

Picture a student pulling up your syllabus before the first day of class. If they're using a screen reader and your document contains unstructured text, complex tables, and images without adequate descriptions, they may not be able to find your office hours, your late work policy, or even what textbook to buy. An accessible syllabus makes sure that each student gets the same information, at the same time, as everyone else in the room.

The good news: none of these fixes require rebuilding your syllabus from scratch. Here are five quick wins, whether you're working in Blackboard, Word, or Google Docs.

1. Use Real Headings, Not Just Bold Text

A heading that's just bold, larger text tells a sighted reader "this is a section title," but it tells a screen reader nothing. Screen reader users often navigate by jumping from heading to heading, and that navigation breaks entirely if headings aren't marked as actual headings.

Try this:

• Apply your platform's built-in heading styles (Heading 1, Heading 2, etc.) instead of manually resizing or bolding text.
• Keep headings in logical, nested order — don't skip from a Heading 2 straight to a Heading 4.

2. Add Alt Text to Every Image

A photo, logo, or chart without alt text is invisible to a screen reader user, even though it may carry information every other student can see at a glance.

Try this:

• Describe what the image is and why it's there, not just what it looks like.
• If an image is purely decorative, mark it as decorative rather than skipping it — leaving it unmarked forces screen readers to read a meaningless filename aloud.

3. Link to the Current Official Syllabus Statements

Retyping or paraphrasing UMBC's standard syllabus language from memory risks distributing outdated wording. Linking directly means students always see the accurate, current version.

Try this:

• Replace any pasted-in or remembered policy text with a link to UMBC Syllabus Language.
• Check this each semester — the source updates, so your link should point there rather than to a saved copy.

4. State Your Schedule and Late Work Policy Plainly

A vague policy or a schedule listed only by week number forces students to guess or infer — especially hard for students cross-referencing accommodation plans or juggling outside responsibilities.

Try this:

• List specific dates, not just "Week 3," so students can check deadlines against their own calendars.
• Spell out your late work and extension policy directly, rather than leaving it to be asked about.

5. Write Descriptive Link Text

"Click here" tells a screen reader nothing about where a link goes. Screen readers frequently pull up a list of all links on a page, out of context, so the link text itself has to describe the destination.

Try this:

• Replace bare URLs and generic phrases with a descriptive label, like "Course Withdrawal Policy" instead of "click here."
• Do this pass right before you post the syllabus — it's easy to forget once pasted links pile up.

Want the full picture? For platform-specific instructions, including tables, contrast, and exporting accessible PDFs, visit Accessible Syllabi on the Digital Accessibility website.

The USM Kirwan Center for Academic Innovation shared the resources from the Ready, Set, Accessible! Fall Course Prep Day.

Held on August 3rd, this half-day virtual event was designed to help faculty take practical, manageable steps to improve the accessibility of their courses before classes begin. Whether you're updating an existing course, preparing new materials, or looking for a realistic place to begin, these resources offer concrete strategies, examples, and tools you can apply right away

Session 1: Digital Accessibility 101: A Coffee Chat Refresher 

Nancy O’Neill, Executive Director, Kirwan Center for Academic Innovation, University System of Maryland

• Digital Accessibility 101 (YouTube recording) 
• Digital Accessibility 101​​ ​(slide deck)Digital Accessibility 101

Resources Shared: 

• Accessible by Design: PDF Practices that Promote Digital Accessibility
• Boosting Course Accessibility Faculty Fellows Call for Applicants
• Course Accessibility Self-Paced Guide
• WCAG 2.1 Guidelines 
• USM Digital Accessibility Checklist 

Session 2: Before You Assign It: Checking Course Materials for Accessibility

Haley Cristea, Instructional Designer, Salisbury University

• Before You Assign It (YouTube recording) 

Links Shared: 

• How to Create Accessible PDFs (when necessary) 
• Color & Contrast Quick Fix Guide 
• Coloring for Colorblindness 
• WebAIM Color Contrast Checker 
• YouDescribe (Audio Description for YouTube) 

Session 3: The 10-Minute Assignment Makeover 

Teresa Valais, Senior Instructional Designer, Towson University

• The 10-Minute Assignment Makeover (YouTube video recording) 
• The 10-Minute Assignment Makeover (Presentation Slides) 

Links Shared: 

• CAST UDL Guidelines 
• TILT Higher Ed Website 
• AI Prompt Template for Assignment Redesign 
• UMBC Academic AI Resource 
• TILT Resources for Teachers 

Session 4: Sense-Sational Design: A Full Spectrum Approach to Accessible, Inclusive and Interactive Learning 

Karen Silverstrim, Instructional Designer, Salisbury University

• Sense-Sational Design: A Full Spectrum Approach (YouTube video recording) 
• Sense-Sational Design: A Full Spectrum Approach Presentation Materials 

Links Shared: 

• CAST UDL Chart 
• Karen Silverstrim’s Website/Portfolio 

All recordings will also be available on the Digital Accessibility Hub in the coming days.

You've probably uploaded a PDF to your course or website dozens of times without a second thought: a syllabus, an article, a set of lecture notes. 

PDFs are everywhere in higher ed. For years they have functioned as the safe, universal choice to prevent editing a file once it’s shared; however, PDFs are often the format most likely to create barriers for students, particularly those using assistive technology. What happens when a student using a screen reader opens that file and the reading order is scrambled, or the text isn’t recognized?  

The good news: in many cases, you can share the same content in its original format - while preserving accessibility, simplifying updates, and still maintaining control over who can view or edit it. 

When sharing content, here are five considerations that don't depend on a PDF.

1. PDFs Preserve Content Exactly the Way It’s Designed

One of the biggest reasons people choose PDFs is that they preserve formatting. Fonts, spacing, images, and page layout appear exactly as intended, regardless of the device or software a student might use. For documents where visual presentation is essential - such as official forms, archival records, or publisher materials - that consistency can be valuable.

But preserving appearance isn't the same as preserving accessibility. A PDF can look perfect on screen, yet may still be difficult or impossible for a screen reader to interpret if headings, reading order, image descriptions, or searchable text are missing. 

2. Share Word Documents & PowerPoint Presentations
A well-structured accessible document, with headings, lists, alt text, and descriptive hyperlinks, is easier for every student to navigate than a scanned or exported PDF. It’s also far easier for you to update next semester. Structure is what makes a document work with a screen reader in the first place: without accurate headings, there's no way to jump between sections or understand how content is organized.

The same structural principles apply to slides: use built-in layouts instead of freeform text boxes, add alt text to images, and maintain a logical reading order so screen readers announce content in the right sequence.

Before exporting a document or presentation as a PDF, ask if students really need that fixed-layout file - or whether sharing the original document, presentation, or Blackboard content would provide the same information in a format that's easier to access, navigate, and update.

Related readings:

• 5 Tips for Accessible Word Documents

• 10 Ways to Make Your Slide Decks More Accessible 

• 5 Ways to Create "Born Accessible" Course Materials 

3. Share View-Only Files Instead of PDFs
Worried about users editing your original file? You don't need to convert to PDF to protect it.

• In Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel), use Share → Can view to send a live, view-only link instead of a flattened export. Recipients still get a fully accessible, screen-reader-friendly document — just without edit access.

• In Google Drive, set sharing permissions to Viewer so students can read but not edit or comment. Because the file stays in its native Google Docs or Slides format, it keeps its accessibility structure — no PDF export needed.

4. Let Blackboard Permissions Do the Work
Blackboard already has built-in tools for controlling access without ever touching a PDF.

• Post content as an Ultra Document or in a Content Area, and use role-based permissions to control who can view, edit, or download.

• This keeps materials in accessible, native web format while still restricting student access to editing.

5. Reconsider the Legacy of PDFs
This mindset isn't just for new content. Before you fix a PDF that's already in your course, ask the same question you'd ask about a new one: do you still need it? If the content has been replaced elsewhere, is redundant, or is simply out of date, removing it is the fastest way to improve accessibility - no reformatting required.

Sometimes a PDF really is the only option - a signed form, a publisher file, an archival document. When that happens, our 4 Strategies for Creating Accessible PDFs walks through how to remake or remediate it properly.

Visit UMBC's Digital Accessibility resource to learn more about managing PDF files.