Making Your Course Accessible
Digital accessibility is the practice of creating digital content so that all people can access and use the materials, including individuals with disabilities who utilize assistive technology. In the context of instruction, digital accessibility considerations impact the design and delivery of course material, as well as the structure of learning activities involving educational technology.
Overview
The Teaching and Learning Center (TLC), Bruin Learn Center of Excellence (CoE), Disabilities and Computing Program (DCP), and additional campus partners are working to enhance our digital accessibility resources for instructors in alignment with UCLA and UC commitments to inclusive excellence. The U.S. Department of Justice has mandated that state and local government institutions, including UCLA, meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards by April 24, 2026, to ensure compliance with accessibility laws and regulations (see final rule). To meet these guidelines, instructors may need to adjust some course materials for digital accessibility, such as adding alternate text to images, confirming that captions or transcripts are available for video and audio content, and ensuring documents such as PDFs are shared in a format that all students can access and understand. Making course materials accessible supports the university’s ongoing commitment to elevate teaching and create learning environments where all students can thrive.
The following video provides an introduction to a screenreader – one form of assistive technology – that relies on content to be created in alignment with digital accessibility standards. As you review the video reflect on the following: Why is it important to you as an instructor to remove barriers to accessing your course materials?
Making Courses Digitally Accessible
Heading Structure
Descriptive Links
Images with Alt-Text
Media
Color Contrast & Fonts
Tables
This guide provides an introduction on how to improve accessibility of digital materials in your courses.
Course Accessibility Accelerator
April 13–May 24 | Zoom and in-person sessions | Application due March 9
Get support for developing digitally accessible instructional materials. The program will walk UCLA instructors through a structured process for updating and creating materials for online, hybrid, and in-person courses.
Learn How to Make Course Materials Accessible
Get Training & Support
Accessibility Check: Sourcing Course Readings for Accessibility
- Work with the UCLA library to find accessible versions of your course readings.
- When downloading articles from a journal (publisher website), view the different formats available. Sometimes the default is the smallest file size, but not fully accessible. Once downloaded, use the accessibility checker in Adobe.
- If needed, contact the publisher and request an accessible version.
- When saving PDFs, do NOT save using the “print” feature. This creates a flattened image-like version that is not accessible. Instead, use “File” –> “Save As”.
- Remove duplicate or outdated course materials from your Bruin Learn Course site. All inaccessible files in Bruin Learn impact accessibility metrics for your course and UCLA.
Standards and Guidelines
ADA Ruling on Digital Accessibility
On April 24, 2024, the Department of Justice (DOJ) published a new rule on digital accessibility under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). This rule requires the University’s web content, including academic course content, to be accessible starting on April 24, 2026.
Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 outline the requirements for web accessibility. See also: Video Introduction to Web Accessibility and W3C Standards
UCOP IT Accessibility Policy
The University of California Information Technology Accessibility Policy requires compliance with the WCAG 2.0 level AA standards for all web-based information, but an update is in progress to change the policy standard to WCAG 2.1 level AA to align with federal accessibility regulations before they take effect. You can view standards and best practices on the UCOP website on electronic accessibility.
Campus Partners
Disability and Computing Programs
The mission of UCLA’s Disabilities and Computing Program at the Office of Advanced Research Computing is two-fold. The first goal is to facilitate the integration of adaptive computing technology into the areas of instruction, study, research, and employment at UCLA. The second goal is to make information – including electronic text and multimedia – accessible to all students, faculty, and staff.
Digital & Technology Solutions
DTS is the central IT department at UCLA and is home to the Bruin Learn Center of Excellence (CoE). DTS provides support to instructors on digital technology broadly and CoE supports course instruction through the learning management system, Bruin Learn.
Center for Accessible Education
The mission of the Center for Accessible Education (CAE) is to create an accessible, inclusive, and supportive learning environment. Through a collaborative effort with faculty, staff, and students, the CAE facilitates academic accommodations, disability advocacy, and serves as an educational resource for the campus community.
Are you an instructor with a disability? Connect with the UCLA Disability Management Office for resources, and visit the TLC’s Instructor Wellbeing Initiative webpage for additional campus support.