What is Manual Accessibility Testing?

Manual accessibility testing is an important part of making sure that our university’s digital environment is accessible to all. But what is manual accessibility testing?

Accessibility testing is a complex process, but at the highest level, it is a way to determine whether digital environments or materials are usable by people with disabilities. By “usable”, we mean that operation of the technology is convenient, consistent, and comfortable.

What does it mean for accessibility testing to be manual? In this context, “manual” refers to the fact that testing is conducted by a person rather than a computer program. (And the experience and knowledge of the person doing the testing makes a big difference in the quality of the information you get from the test – more on that later!)

In summary, manual accessibility testing is the process of having a person assess whether people with disabilities can successfully use a digital environment such as an application, document, or website, and then documenting any barriers that are identified.

Conducting manual accessibility testing is very different from using an automated accessibility checker tool. Automated checkers, such as the WAVE plugin or the accessibility checker in Microsoft Word, are computer programs that only check for certain accessibility features that are possible for a computer to evaluate. For example, an automated checker can tell whether an image has alt text. However, an automated tool cannot assess nuance and context, so it can’t tell you whether that alt text describes the image well.

At CU Boulder, we (the Digital Accessibility Office) offer manual accessibility testing of any digital technology that CU creates, buys, or maintains. Only human testers can perform certain types of accessibility assessment, which is why the DAO uses manual accessibility testing supplemented by automated testing. What makes us unique from many other institutions is that our testing is conducted by people with disabilities who use assistive technology. When manual accessibility testing is conducted by people with disabilities who use assistive technology in their everyday lives, the information gathered through the test is much more likely to be representative of the experiences of people using that assistive technology. The expertise of our testing team allows us to be more confident in knowing whether a software or program will actually be usable by people with disabilities.

Why Does Manual Accessibility Testing Matter?

Automated accessibility checkers simply cannot detect certain issues, so manual accessibility testing is essential to ensuring that we have a thorough understanding of the accessibility issues in an application or environment. While some issues may seem minor on their own, smaller issues can add up and create significant barriers for people with disabilities. Manual testing by people with disabilities can identify ways in which smaller issues can stack upon each other to create bigger barriers for users, and provides a more accurate evaluation of the holistic experience of using a piece of software or technology.

At CU Boulder, manual accessibility testing allows the university to have an accurate understanding of the accessibility of the tools and services used on campus. That knowledge then allows us to work with the developers of that content to fix access barriers, and sometimes can help identify a more accessible alternative that the campus can adopt instead.

What is CU Boulder’s Manual Accessibility Testing Process?

If you would like to have a digital environment or materials tested, here’s what you can expect from our process.

  1. Request testing: If you would like to have a digital tool, service, or document assessed for accessibility, contact us at AUL@Colorado.edu.
  2. Intake meeting: We will set up a meeting with you to understand the scope of the test, the types of users affected by the tool or digital service, and the tasks and functions that users should be able to accomplish. Once these questions are addressed, you will receive an estimate of how long the testing process will take. For some projects, testing may be an iterative process that spans the entire time that your team manages the application.
  3. Creating a test plan: A list of tasks and processes will be created in collaboration with us to identify all of the functions that should be evaluated.
  4. Reporting: Once testing is complete, we will produce a report with a list of all the accessibility issues encountered during the test and an explanation of their impact on the user experience. Please note that we do not provide or implement code-level fixes, although we can consult with developers to help them understand an issue in more depth.
  5. Follow up: We recommend following up with us over time as you build out an application. If you are working with a vendor, we encourage you to check in with us if the vendor makes accessibility improvements or implements a new release of their software.

Case Study: CU Buff Portal

The Buff Portal Team first connected with our office in 2018 to fulfill their commitment to developing an accessible student portal. Crucially, the Buff Portal Team brought us in during the early stages of development, rather than waiting for the portal to be built completely first. We highly recommend reaching out to us as early as possible in your development or procurement process. Doing so allows you to address accessibility as an integrated part of the application rather than as an afterthought or add-on that would require subsequent code modifications. This collaboration has spanned many years and has resulted in the creation of a productive relationship and an accessible student portal. Read more on our website about our work with the Buff Portal Team.

February Challenge

If you are currently developing a website or application, or if you are responsible for procuring new software for the university and would like to have it tested for accessibility, reach out at AUL@Colorado.edu to schedule a consultation. Please reach out to us as well if you want to have a digital document you’ve created evaluated for accessibility.

If you’d like to explore how automated checkers are unable to catch certain accessibility issues, you can try it yourself! Download this sample inaccessible Word document (without notes) from our website, run the Microsoft Word accessibilitychecker, then consult our sample inaccessible Word document (with notes) to discover all of the accessibility issues that were not caught by the checker.

Your Thoughts

We want to hear from you about any questions or issues you run into while trying out this accessibility practice this month! Please send us your thoughts on this month’s topic.

If you have questions or comments, or would like support with accessibility, please contact us at DigitalAccessibility@Colorado.edu.