Activity

For this activity, you will be asked to use a free online automated Accessibility checking tool to “audit” a web page.

Step 1: Choosing an Accessibility Checker

If you are completing this activity outside of a live class session, feel free to try any number of the resources linked below.

If you are completing this activity as part of a breakout session during a live class, you and your group members will be asked to try out any two (2) of the following automated Accessibility Checking tools:

• Inclusive Design.ca. (2023). AChecker Web Accessibility Checker. [Web page]. https://achecks.org/checker/index.php
• WebAIM (2024). WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool. [Web page]. https://wave.webaim.org/

Or, any of the free Accessibility auditing tools curated by the World Wide Web Consortium:

• W3C (2024). Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools List. [Web page]. https://www.w3.org/WAI/test-evaluate/tools/list/

Step 2: Choosing What to Audit

Select one (or more!) of the following web pages to test out the automated Accessibility checker you (or your group) have chosen:

• The Power Learning Solutions (2024) Digital Accessibility resources page.
• Your school or organization’s website home page.
• Your group’s Assignment 4 presentation resources website home page.
• Digital Education Solutions’ (2019) Web Accessibility Auditing Showcase mock website.
• Digital Education Solutions (2019) Lulu’s Lollipops mock website.

Step 3: Comparing the Audits

Compare the reports generated by the automated Accessibility checkers you (or your group) selected. Answer the following questions:

1. How many known accessibility issues does each checker identify on each test site’s homepage?
2. Comparing each report, what did each checker miss that one of the others may have caught?
3. How many manual checks did each checker suggest?
4. Were there any false positives? (Examples of false positives include: identifying barriers that are not barriers or identifying barriers that have an accessible alternative available.)
5. Does the checker list the checks it runs?
6. Based on your experience with the checkers, what are your overall thoughts on their accuracy and coverage?