Electronic Accessibility
eCourse Accessibility Checklist
Important Notes
Accessibility-related behavior in Storyline may differ, depending on which version of the product you are using, and we are not always able to update this resource immediately when new versions are released, new behaviors are discovered and/or old behaviors sunset. That is to say, the behavior described here may not always exactly match the behavior you encounter when using or testing eCourses, and regardless of the guidance offered here, you should always test each aspect of an eCourse before offering it to learners.
To help you evaluate whether guidance is currently applicable, each page within the eCourse Accessibility Checklist (a.k.a., "the Checklist") offers a "last updated" date.
Last updated: 5/26/2025
The Checklist reflects but does not represent the UC Information Technology Accessibility Policy (PDF) or an official effort toward policy compliance.
Articulate Rise guidance is linked to where appropriate within the Checklist and can be accessed in full on the Rise accessibility best practices page.
Using the Checklist
Each row within the Checklist consists of three parts:
- Standard: the eCourse accessibility standard or guideline in its most high-level form
- Brief Description: a brief description of the standard, including (for some standards) links to related pages within this Checklist that provide more detail and/or implementation recommendations or links to other, related resources
- Conformance: identifies whether the standard stems from certain WCAG success criterion (SC) (while linking to those SC within the WCAG website) or from broader accessibility and universal design best practices
- Note: the Checklist may exclude SC that are applicable to a standard but less applicable than the other SC provided for it
- Note: the Checklist may cite Level AAA WCAG criterion; this is done solely to facilitate access to the corresponding WCAG page where eCourse developers can find an explanation of how the standard benefits learners and is not intended to establish the expectation that Level AAA SC need be met
The Checklist
You can also download the eCourse Accessibility Checklist as a Checklist (DOCX) for use during development and testing.
| Standard | Brief Description | Conformance |
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| As universally accessible as possible, by default |
An eCourse’s default state should be its most universally accessible state. Users should have to actively choose settings that may introduce accessibility barriers. |
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| Default manual navigation |
By default, navigation within an eCourse — e.g., moving from one slide to another; opening and closing layers; etc. — should occur as a result of manually-input user commands, such as clicking a button, executing a keyboard shortcut or using a slide menu. Learn more about manual vs. automatic navigation, including exceptions and related techniques |
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| Assign the appropriate language(s) for your eCourse |
Ensure your eCourse is globally assigned the language most appropriate for its contents. If your eCourse allows you to assign different languages for certain words or phrases, do so as appropriate. |
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| Provide keyboard shortcuts for common in-course actions |
Keyboard shortcuts allow all learners to engage with eCourses more quickly and easily, but they especially help assistive technology users by reducing the number of key presses needed to perform certain functions and limiting the extent to which screen reader users have to read, or re-read, through certain slides and layers. When determining which keys to use in keyboard shortcuts, account for keys that may already be used for certain screen reader commands and inform users if they need to toggle their screen reader between modes in order to use keyboard shortcuts. (It can be assumed that one of the reasons Storyline uses Ctrl+Alt in its built-in keyboard shortcuts is that it allows screen reader users to use the shortcuts without it conflicting with screen reader commands or requiring them to toggle back and forth between screen reader modes). |
Best practice |
| Provide and/or inform learners of a mechanism to bypass blocks of content that are globally available within an eCourse or are repeated on each eCourse slide |
Mechanisms should be provided to allow learners to skip past content that is repeated throughout an eCourse. In many authoring tools, these mechanisms will be provided by the tool; you just have to inform learners of their function so they can be reliably used (though, in some circumstances, you may have to add the mechanism yourself). Examples of mechanisms to bypass blocks of repeated/global content |
2.4.1 Bypass Blocks (A) |
| Provide easy-to-access accessibility instructions (in addition to general user instructions) |
Accessibility instructions should be made available to learners before they open an eCourse (in case they encounter barriers opening the eCourse or reading far into it). Accessibility instructions should also be provided as early as possible within an eCourse and should be easy for learners to access from anywhere within an eCourse. General user instructions that benefit all learners should also be provided in these ways. |
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| Help learners know what to expect and/or do next in any given moment |
Provide clear instructions for interactivity and other unique engagement within an eCourse. Provide corrective feedback when learners fail to engage as intended (e.g., when learners submit a quiz question without selecting an answer choice first). Use headings, labels, notes and other approaches to help learners understand what they encounter and what they need to do within an eCourse. This standard pertains to more "micro" environments, like individual slides; whereas, the previous standard pertains to more "macro" environments, such as an eCourse as a whole. |
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| Allow for spacing and style customization, as well as robust assistive technology integration |
Learners must be able to customize spacing and other style properties using browser extensions or custom style rules. Learners also need to be able to use a broad array of assistive technologies and features, such as high contrast modes. Achieving spacing and style customization in Storyline through accessible text |
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| Allow for magnification |
Ensure learners can magnify text, so it can be read at larger sizes.
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1.4.4 Resize Text (AA) |
| Ensure assistive technology users can operate all aspects of the eCourse |
Screen reader users and learners who rely on their keyboard or other adaptive control devices (instead of using a mouse/trackpad) must be able to equivalently operate all aspects of an eCourse, including controls for embedded media. Ensure all interactive elements can receive tab focus, can be controlled equivalently through assistive technologies and are properly announced by commonly-used screen readers in all ways they can be accessed (e.g., accessed by reading linearly, accessed by tabbing through interactive elements and accessed through structure type-specific commands). Do not employ elements or processes that rely on use of a mouse/trackpad and sight (e.g., a drag-and-drop interaction that cannot also be operated by selecting drag objects and then drop locations; hover states that reveal essential information; hotspots that lack pre-defined selection areas; etc.). |
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| Provide equivalent information, structure and relationships |
Any information, structure and/or relationships that can be perceived visually need to be programmed, or captured in text, in a way that allows assistive technology users to access and interpret the same information, structure and/or relationships. |
1.3.1 Info and Relationships (A) |
| Proper reading order / tab order / focus order |
Ensure content is sequenced for assistive technologies in the order that best enables learners to understand the content and engage with it. |
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| Ensure screen reader users are alerted to important changes within a slide/environment |
In order to ensure they have an equivalent experience, screen reader users need to be alerted to certain events occurring within a slide, such as layers opening, content being revealed, buttons becoming available or changing state, etc. These alerts can be provided in the form of automatic screen reader announcements or audio cues. |
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| When a layer or modal opens, move focus to the first element in the layer/modal (as applicable) |
Often, when a layer or modal opens, it does so as the result of learner action, such as clicking on a button or submitting an answer choice for evaluation. In these situations, it's often appropriate to have focus move to the first element in the layer, as this best situates learners to engage with the content most applicable in that moment and may help to ensure screen reader users are alerted that the layer has opened. |
2.4.3 Focus Order (A) |
| Temporarily hide from assistive technologies content that is not actionable in a given moment |
Often, when a layer or modal opens within a slide, learners will just be expected to engage with the content in that layer and will not need to engage with content in other layers (including the base layer) while the layer is open. In these situations, it's best to temporarily hide content in other layers so that assistive technology users don't have to expend time/energy reading or tabbing through it in order to read or engage with the layer and/or so assistive technology users don't become disoriented as to what layers are open and what is expected from them in a given moment. Note however, this standard does not advocate for hiding player controls in these situations, as that may disorient or impede learners in its own way. |
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| Avoid time limits |
Do not impose time limits on activities (as it may naturally take longer for assistive technology users and/or learners with certain disabilities to engage with parts of an eCourse). If a time limit enhances an experience for certain learners, provide it as a option learners can self-select. If a time limit is essential to an activity, learners should be informed of the time limit before beginning the activity and, ideally, should be able to access accommodations within the eCourse itself, such as by having the option of choosing a version of the activity that does not have a time limit and possibly, as well, additional versions with longer time limits (e.g., 2x or 4x the default time limit) or time limits that learners can assign themselves. |
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| Ensure assistive technology users can reliably and/or equivalently access timed content |
Content that is programmed to appear/disappear at certain times during a slide's duration may be problematic for assistive technology users: screen reader users may not choose to explore the slide during the exact moment that content is displayed, and thus, they may never know that content was there; keyboard-only users may not be able to reach and engage with that content before it disappears. Strategies for providing access to timed content for assistive technology users |
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| Allow learners to easily restart slides and pop-ups/layers that contain media |
Due to the time-consuming nature of scrubbing media backwards using keyboard controls (compared with the relative ease of doing so with mouse), learners should be able to easily restart, from their beginning, slides and slide pop-ups/layers that contain audio, video or timed events. |
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| Give each slide a unique title that matches the slide name used elsewhere in the eCourse and is programmed as a heading of the level that would be appropriate given the title's position in the reading order |
Giving each slide a unique slide title/name helps learners differentiate slides. Using the same title/name for a slide consistently throughout an eCourse helps learners find that slide and avoid potential confusion. Programming slide titles as headings is likely necessary per WCAG 1.3.1 and will provide screen reader users with a valuable means for quickly moving focus back to the start of the slide. |
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| Use descriptive link text |
Learners should be able to understand a link's purpose from the link text alone. Avoid using "click here" or "learn more" on their own as link text or similarly generic or ambiguous phrases that don't convey a link's purpose or destination. Avoid using URLs as link text, and do not use the same exact link text for more than one link within a slide/environment unless all links using that link text direct to the same destination. If a link directs to a file, include the file type in the link text: e.g., UC IT Accessibility policy (PDF) |
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| Ensure buttons are presented in a way that makes clear their purpose/function and, if applicable, status |
When using buttons, make sure their purpose/function is clearly communicated, especially to screen reader users. For some buttons, the button text alone can achieve this standard, but with other buttons, you may need to utilize button alt text or a text label encountered before the button. If buttons have multiple states/statuses — like unselected/selected, unvisited/visited, etc. — those statuses must also be conveyed, to screen reader users and visually by a means other than just color. |
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| Do not use color as the sole means of conveying information |
Make sure to incorporate at least one other easily perceivable visual characteristic (e.g., text, icons, etc.) that conveys the same information you're conveying through use of color. Techniques for conveying information (other than using color) |
1.4.1 Use of Color (A) |
| Ensure sufficient contrast between foreground content intended to be read or used and the background behind it |
"Large text" (at least 14pt/19px in size and bold; or at least 18pt/24px in size) and non-text elements must achieve 3:1 contrast. "Normal text" (any text that is not large text) must achieve 4.5:1 contrast. Ensure these contrast requirements are met for all element states: e.g., hover, down, selected, visited, etc. |
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| Ensure that learners' ability to understand and operate an eCourse does not solely rely on sensory characteristics |
Learners should be able to fully operate an eCourse and fully understand its instructions and material even if they have difficulty perceiving sensory characteristics like shape, color, size, visual location, orientation and sound. If you incorporate any such sensory characteristics into an eCourse's instructions, material or operations, make sure to simultaneously provide another means for perceiving, understanding and, if necessary, operating the eCourse that does not rely on sensory characteristics. Examples of relying and not relying on sensory characteristics |
1.3.3 Sensory Characteristics (A) |
| Provide descriptions of non-decorative visual elements |
Assign succinct, descriptive alt text to non-decorative visual elements. If a slide has audio, it's recommended that the audio describe important visuals and/or their key takeaways so visually impaired learners can have a more equivalent experience (i.e., learners without vision disabilities can simultaneously consume both the audio information and the information conveyed through the graphic's visual appearance, so learners with vision disabilities should also be able to access both types of information simultaneously). However, keep in mind that alt text is not a good method for sharing large amounts of information (e.g., 150-300 characters or more), as screen readers are limited in the ways they can read alt text, compared to body text. If a longer alt text description is needed for graphs, diagrams and other complex graphics, use one of the strategies described on the page linked below. |
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| Hide decorative or duplicative content from assistive technologies (a.k.a., "accessibility tools" in Storyline) |
Assistive technology users should not have to encounter content that is decorative, duplicative or in other ways does not contribute to their learning and/or user experience within an eCourse, as doing so forces them to expend time and energy for no purpose and may create confusion and/or aggravate an existing condition. |
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| Do not convey information through hover or down states | Assistive technologies cannot activate hover and down states, so they should not be used to provide information. | 2.1 Keyboard Accessible (A) |
| Avoid autoplayed media, a.k.a. non-consensual audio or media |
By default, audio and/or video should not automatically play in a slide as soon as a learner navigates to that slide — by default, audio and/or video should only play as the result of the learner's direct consent, as is exercised by clicking a play button or engaging in such a way that can reasonably result in media being played (e.g., hearing feedback audio after clicking a quiz question's submit button). Choosing to go to the next slide does not sufficiently constitute consent to have audio/video automatically play in the next slide, even if learners are informed of this behavior via instructions. However, it is permissible to provide an "autoplay option" that learners can select for themselves, resulting in media playing automatically as soon as the learner navigates to a slide, but you must ensure that learners can change this setting within any slide or easily reach from any slide the mechanism through which they can change this setting. |
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| Videos and eCourse slide audio must be captioned |
Audio descriptions must be captioned as well, with speaker labels to convey which captions represent audio description content and which captions represent video content. You may still provide transcripts of videos and slide audio — which may benefit learners in other ways — so long as the means for doing so is accessible to and can be equivalently experienced by all learners; but, providing just transcripts will not suffice to achieve the required technical standard. Captions are a must. |
1.2.2 Captions (Prerecorded) (A) |
| Caption text should be large enough to easily read |
Learners should be able to read caption text with as much ease as they can read other text or visual content presented within an eCourse. That is, learners should not have to lean forward, squint, employ text-enlargement techniques or otherwise engage with the eCourse in a unique way just to read caption text. |
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| Captions should not obstruct non-decorative video content or slide content |
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| Provide audio descriptions for video content (and other time-based synchronized media) that contain information that is only offered visually |
Non-decorative visual information offered in videos, and other time-based synchronized media, must be relayed to learners while the video/media plays. It is not sufficient to provide an alternative for time-based media; though, providing one may benefit learners in other ways. Often, the simplest way to achieve this standard is to ensure that videos and time-based synchronized media do not offer any information solely through visuals; instead, ensure that all information that is offered visually is simultaneously offered through the video or media's audio, as well. |
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| Avoid flicker or strobe effects |
Strobing, flickering or flashing effects can trigger seizures or discomfort, so ensure that no content flashes more than three times per second or otherwise violates WCAG 2.3.1. Keep in mind that certain animated content, even if it doesn't exceed the WCAG 2.3.1 thresholds, may impede the experience of learners who have certain cognitive disabilities, vision disabilities and vestibular disorders (e.g., vertigo), so be mindful in how you deploy such effects, and avoid utilizing them during moments when critical information is being shared. |
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| Strive for consistency in functionality and presentation |
Consistency helps learners better understand and operate digital environments, while mitigating confusion and anxiety. |
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| Avoid particularly dense or complex layouts |
Use simple, well-organized designs with easily identifiable components and ample spacing between elements, especially text. Disperse content across more layers or slides if needed to mitigate potential cognitive overload. |
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| Use plain language |
Strive to convey ideas clearly and concisely, with simple sentence structure that facilitates readability and comprehension. Explain any jargon, acronyms or abbreviations used. Explain, or avoid using, figures of speech, idioms, slang and other sayings that might not be understood by broad audiences that include individuals who have different first languages and/or cultural backgrounds. |
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| Prepare a conforming alternate version and, if applicable, make it available to your location's UC Learning Center administrator |
Prepare a fully accessible "conforming alternate version" that:
Keep in mind, even though you're preparing a conforming alternate version, policy and law still require you to ensure an eCourse is as compliant as possible with the required technical standards. |
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| Test thoroughly before launch |
Before launching an eCourse, test it thoroughly for WCAG failures and other accessibility barriers, using keyboard navigation and, if possible, multiple screen readers. Stress test all the ways learners can engage with slides and eCourses — such as scrubbing slide seekbars, leaving slides before they've concluded, revisiting slides, navigating away from slides using the Menu, etc. — as custom, accessibility-oriented programming may initially have gaps that can be resolved with additional programming. Keep in mind that while automated accessibility checkers can assist in testing, they aren't capable of detecting all accessibility issues, and they sometimes falsely flag things that aren't really issues. So, they should be used in tandem with other testing methods rather than being relied upon fully as the only testing method. |
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