1. MS PowerPoint Accessibility Tutorial

2. Creating accessible presentations is a matter of adapting how we work rather than learning something entirely new
Microsoft includes a number of built-in accessibility features which go a long way towards improving accessibility
We will discuss these built-in features as well as other recommended practices and then use the Office Accessibility checker
Overview
Creating accessible presentations is a matter of adapting how we work rather than learning something entirely new. Fortunately, a lot of the built-in features of powerpoint are already accessible: e.g. preset layouts already have proper structure, many themes make sure that text is large and contrasted enough to be legible

3. Examples

4. Templates and Themes Accessible presentations don’t have to be boring
Search the “Design” tab for themes with good contrast and simple backgrounds, to maximize readability
Themes can be further customized using the “Variants” and “Design Ideas” tools
You can find additional themes by selecting “File > New” and using the search bar labeled “Search for online templates and themes”
Include the term “accessible” to look for templates designed with accessibility in mind
Check out Microsoft’s Accessible Template Sampler

5. Templates and Themes - Screenshot
Accessible presentations don’t have to be boring
Search the “Design” tab for themes with good contrast and simple backgrounds, to maximize readability
Themes can be further customized using the “Variants” and “Design Ideas” tools
You can find additional themes by selecting “File > New” and using the search bar labeled “Search for online templates and themes”
Include the term “accessible” to look for templates designed with accessibility in mind
Check out Microsoft’s Accessible Template Sampler

6. Slide Layouts
Most layouts provide an accessible structure with a title object and at least one placeholder object
Screen readers will treat the title as a header, and assign a reading order to the placeholder objects
It is better to use a pre-built layout than to add objects to a blank slide
Moving the objects of a pre-built layout will preserve their structure, while manually-built slides may lack the proper structure
You can also let PowerPoint suggest alternate layout positions using the “Design Ideas” tool
You can use the “Slide Master” view to edit the slide layouts, or create new ones, with accessible structure

7. Slide Reading Order
Screen readers will read slides in the following order:
The slide title
Any preset objects, in the order defined in the slide master
Any additional objects, in the order that they were added
You can verify and change the reading order by Navigating to:
Home  Arrange  Selection Pane
This pane lists the reading order from last to first
Bringing an object Forward / to Front will move it up (later) in the list
Sending an object Backward / to Back will move it down (earlier) in the list
Clicking the eye icon will visually hide an object, but it will still be read by a screen reader
It is especially important to check reading order If you have moved anything around on your slides

8. Alt Text
Images convey non-verbal information to your readers. However, Screen Readers have no way of reading the image on its own. Fortunately, you can provide "alternative text" for images. Screen Readers will then read out the alt text instead of the image, allowing assistive technology users to get as much out of your document as sighted users
For all images, decide if you need alternative text or not
Provide alt text if:
The image conveys any type of meaning (even just an emotion)
The image contains text
The image serves a function, such as a button or icon
Do not provide alt text if:
The image is purely decorative, or just makes the slide look pretty
There is a text description close to the image in the body of your text
Alt text should convey the meaning or function of the image, not just describe the contents
Alt text should not be redundant to other text in your document, and does not need to use phrases such as “image of…”

9. Shapes and WordArt
You should also include alt text for shapes and other objects that you may not consider images
For complex tables and diagrams, consider providing a paragraph explaining the process, conclusion, etc., that you are trying to demonstrate
WordArt will not be read by screen readers if you convert to PDF. It is best to add alt text for WordArt just in case
Remember that alt text provides meaning:
E.g. “File  Save as” should be read as “File, then Save as”

10. Tables
Tables divide data into a grid, and usually include a header row or column to help explain these divisions
Under “Design,” the “Header Row” and/or “First Column” options must be checked for screen readers to benefit from these divisions

11. Table example
Color
Shape
Object 1
Blue
Square
Object 2
Red
Circle

12. Links
Links should use text that adequately describes what the link points to
Users will not always have the context clues of text before or after the link
Language such as “Click here” does not describe the link’s destination
URLs are not considered adequately descriptive and should not be used as link text

13. Avoid automatic transitions
There are various reasons why users may need more time to read slides than you anticipate
If a user cannot control when slides advance, the presentation may become frustrating or unreadable
By not using automatic transitions, you allow users to fully read and understand your information
This also applies to objects that move around the screen

14. If you have embedded audio, include a transcript
If your presentation includes a video, the video must have captioning, and should also provide a transcript in a separate file
If you’re unable to provide captioning for a video, at least include a link to a transcript
Include a transcript for audio files as well
University policy requires captioning for all videos
Transcriptions are different from captions; for instance, they can be read more easily by a screen reader.

15. Do not use color as the only way to convey information
Screen readers do not indicate if text is colored, bold, italicized, etc.
Color coding information is fine, but you should also provide an alternate method of understanding the information
For example, use words like “important: ” to denote important pieces of information

16. Provide your notes
If you provide the .pptx file, your audience will be able to see your notes in addition to the slides themselves
You can also create handouts with notes using:
File  Export  Create Handouts
You can also include notes when exporting to PDF
You are not obligated to share your lecture notes with students, but you should reflect on your reasons against doing so. Consider if and why you are withholding educational material from your students.
For instance, are your notes vague/cryptic, and only meant to jog your own memory? Or, would access to your notes genuinely aid your students?
Remember that there is no way to know if students have undisclosed needs, and it is their choice not to disclose.

17. Accessibility Checker
There are two possible ways to run the Accessibility checker:
File  Info  Check for Issues  Check Accessibility
Review  Check Accessibility
If you have used Design Ideas to use a different layout for a slide, the Accessibility Checker may tell you to add alt text to objects that make up the slide background. These objects do not actually require alt text
However, you should still examine each error to make sure that all objects which do require alt text are fixed

18. Converting to PDF
SmartArt text boxes and Design Ideas will produce inaccessible artifacts. Before exporting your presentation to PDF, you should revert the affected slides to their default layout
To save your presentation as a PDF:
File  Save As  Change “PowerPoint Presentation (*.pptx)” to “PDF (*.pdf)”  More options…  select “Optimize for: Standard”  Options…  check “Document structure tags for accessibility”
To include your notes in a PDF:
File  Save As  More options…  Options…  under “Publish what:” change “Slides” to “Notes Pages”
PowerPoint for Mac OS does not appear to create accessible PDFs To create an accessible PDF, open the presentation in PowerPoint on Windows and follow the instructions above