Microsoft Word documents can be made accessible with proper headings, built-in numbered or bulleted lists, descriptive links, adding alternative text to images and adding headings to tables. This will help provide a consistent layout and make the document easier for users of assistive technologies to navigate (NC State University, n.d.).

Word also has a built-in Accessibility Checker that will check for common accessibility issues (NC State University, n.d.).

Note: your instructions will vary depending on which version of Office you have.

Creating accessible headings

Microsoft Word will not recognize text that is bolded or has a larger font size as a heading (Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018). Use the built-in heading formats like Heading 1, Heading 2, etc. to provide a semantic structure to your document (NC State University, n.d.).

To create a heading

(NC State University, n.d.; Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018.)

1. Select the text you want to make into a heading.
2. Go to the Home ribbon and find the Styles group.
3. Select the appropriate heading level. As you go to each style, your text will change so you can see how it will look in your document.
4. You can also customize or create new heading styles in Microsoft Word.

Watch Purdue's video on how to make headings accessible in Microsoft Word.

Creating lists

(NC State University, n.d.; Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018.)

If lists are created by manually inserting asterisks, numbers, or dashes, Microsoft Word will not recognize them as lists (Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018). Use the built-in bulleted or numbered list format instead.

1. Position the cursor anywhere in your document.
2. Go to the Home ribbon and find the Paragraph group.
3. If the order of items is important:
   1. Select the Numbering
   2. From the Numbering Library, select the numbering style you want to use.
4. If the order of items doesn’t matter:
   1. Select the Bullets
   2. From the Bullet Library, select the bullet style you want to use.

Watch Purdue's video on how to make lists accessible in Microsoft Word.

Adding alternative text to images

(NC State University, n.d.; Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018.)

As discussed in Web Accessibility: Images, alternative text (or alt text), provides a text alternative to the image. It is shown to visual users if the image doesn’t load or read to people using a screen reader.

How to add alt text

1. Right-click on an image, icon, chart, or shape and select Edit Alt Text.
2. This opens the Alt Text sidebar, with three options:
   1. Description field: type 1-2 succinct sentences describing the image.
   2. Generate a description for me button: upon selecting this, the text will be auto-generated. Always review this to make sure it conveys the right information. If necessary, edit the text.
   3. Mark as decorative checkbox: decorative objects add interest but aren’t informative (such as stylistic borders).
3. Save your changes.

Watch Purdue's video on how to make images accessible in Microsoft Word.

Creating accessible links

(Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018.)

Refer to the Web Accessibility: Controls webpage for tips on how to create descriptive links.

1. If a link doesn’t exist yet:
   1. Select the text and right-click it.
   2. Select Link → Insert Link.
2. If the link already exists:
   1. Right-click the link and select Edit Hyperlink.
3. The Hyperlink dialog box will open, with two fields:
   1. Text to display: make the text descriptive. Do not use “click here” or “read more” as that doesn’t help people know what they’re clicking on.
   2. Address: put the website link here. Make sure to include the "http://" or "https://" portion of the link.
4. Select OK.

Watch Purdue's video on how to make links accessible in Microsoft Word.

Creating tables

Sighted users can quickly identify a table’s column headers and use them to interpret the table information. For those who can’t see the table, however, we need to include nonvisual formatting so they can interpret the table too (Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018).

Column headers that are properly formatted provide structure in tables in the same way that heading styles provide structure to text. This benefits both sighted and non-sighted users (Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018).

Refer to the Web Accessibility: Text webpage on correct table usage.

To create a table heading

(NC State University, n.d.; Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018.)

1. Select the Insert ribbon (see the image above) and then select Table → Insert Table.
2. Select the number of columns and rows you need. Click OK.
3. Look for the Table Design section that’s been added to the ribbon. Select the Layout tab.
4. Look for the Data group and choose the Repeat Header Rows option. Nothing will look different, but the table formatting has been added.

Watch Purdue's video on how to make tables accessible in Microsoft Word.

Office Accessibility Checker

Use Office’s built-in Accessibility Checker to check for common accessibility issues. The checker will not find all accessibility errors and some of the warnings it gives will be subjective, so use your best judgment (NC State University, n.d.).

How to use the Accessibility Checker

(Purdue University Innovative Learning, 2018.)

1. On the ribbon of the application, select the Review tab.
2. In the Accessibility group, select Check Accessibility.
3. This opens the Accessibility sidebar.
4. Results will be grouped into three categories: errors, warnings, and tips. Errors are the most important issues to fix, with warnings the next most important.
5. When an item in the results is clicked on, the checker will indicate where the problem is in the document. It will also give you additional information and tips on how to fix the issue.

Watch Purdue’s video on how to use the Accessibility Checker in Microsoft Word.

References:

1. NC State University. (n.d.). Microsoft Word. Retrieved March 18, 2019, from https://accessibility.oit.ncsu.edu/microsoft-word/.
2. Purdue University Innovative Learning. (2018, July 9). Making Microsoft Word Documents More Accessible [Video playlist]. Kaltura. https://mediaspace.itap.purdue.edu/playlist/details/1_6j6w9h4k/categoryid/86584511.