1. Understand the Scope of UDOIT Scans
Under the ADA Title II ruling, all files and pages in a student-facing Canvas course must be accessible. The UDOIT Accessibility Checker scans all material in a course and not just the published components. ;Canvas courses can and do accumulate a duplicative, out-of-date pile of presentations, PDFs, and documents. This includes old announcements, answer keys, scanned notes, presentations, and videos.
2. Identify Duplicate and Old Course Files
Because accessibility scores include unpublished content, it is vital to pare down your files. If the file, page, or module isn't used, you wouldn't want to devote time to remediation.
Automate the process using Unused Content Scan service provided by the Office of Digital Accessibility. They will email you a report of the publication and usage status for all files, pages, and assignments. Use this list to confidently delete or move duplicate or unused files.
3. Use a Canvas Development Site for Storage
Nervous about deleting files, or seeking a closed space to store and edit content? We suggest creating Canvas Development sites and migrating your course materials to these locatations.
Benefits:
- Development sites are outside the scope of Title II and accessibility scans
- They provide a private "sandbox" environment to edit and store quizzes, pages, and documents.
- There is no limit to the number of development courses you can create.
- Moving content back into a live course is easy.
4. Resolve the "Easy" Stuff
Once you have reduced unused count, use UDOIT to fix the low hanging fruit in your course. Click the "Check Accessibility with UDOIT" button in your Canvas navigation. Once there look for the "Easiest to fix" menu. Through this tool, you can quickly:
- improve link text,
- add alternative text to images,
- ensure color and contrast are good,
- incorporate headings into the document, and
- Use numbered and dotted lists
These errors can be solved relatively quickly, as opposed to questions about PowerPoints and video captions. If you have questions about how to fix any of the above, take a look at our "Additional Support" section below! We want to help!
5. Selectively Import Content
Instead of copying your course as whole, be deliberate and choosy. Use the "Select specific content" option during the import process to choose only the modules, files, or pages you know you will use for the upcoming year.
You can also use the "Copy To" feature to send individual modules or files to a specific course.