WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

E-mail List Archives

Re: Scope-Attribute necessary for TH-Element?

for

From: Birkir R. Gunnarsson
Date: Jul 9, 2017 1:09PM

Jonathan described it well.
If your <th> cells span a single column and are in the first row
scope="col" is not needed.
Ditto <th> cells in first column spanning a single row, scope="row" is
generally not needed.

If a <th> cell spans multiple rows/columns you need to use
scope="colgroup"/"rowgroup" along with the colspan/rowspan attribute.
If the <th> cell is not the first row or column in the table you need
the scope attribute.



On 7/9/17, Jonathan Avila < <EMAIL REMOVED> > wrote:
>> But I read on w3scholls <https://www.w3schools.com/tags/att_td_scope.asp>
>> that the attribute is not supported in HTML5.
>
> According to the HTML 5 spec scope is not valid on TD elements but it is on
> TH elements.
>
> FYI W3schools is not affiliated with the W3C.
>
> Technically when scope is not set it defaults to "auto" which sets the
> header cell to apply to cells in context.
>
> The general rule of thumb is that scope is likely not needed for column
> header cells in the first row of a table but would be needed in other
> situations where lack of scope would be ambiguous how the header is scoped.
> Assistive technology support should generally be good but may need to be
> checked for the technology stack you are trying to support.
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Jonathan
>
> Jonathan Avila
> Chief Accessibility Officer
> Level Access, inc. (formerly SSB BART Group, inc.)
> (703) 637-8957
> <EMAIL REMOVED>
> Visit us online: Website | Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Blog
> Looking to boost your accessibility knowledge? Check out our free webinars!
>
> The information contained in this transmission may be attorney privileged
> and/or confidential information intended for the use of the individual or
> entity named above. If the reader of this message is not the intended
> recipient, you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, distribution
> or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: WebAIM-Forum [mailto: <EMAIL REMOVED> ] On Behalf
> Of Wolfgang Berndorfer
> Sent: Sunday, July 9, 2017 12:47 PM
> To: 'WebAIM Discussion List' < <EMAIL REMOVED> >
> Subject: [WebAIM] Scope-Attribute necessary for TH-Element?
>
> Hi!
>
> Are scope-attributes still considered as necessary for <th>-elements in data
> tables?
>
> webaim <http://webaim.org/techniques/tables/data#th>; says Yes. But I read
> on w3scholls <https://www.w3schools.com/tags/att_td_scope.asp> that the
> attribute is not supported in HTML5.
>
> And: I just tested a simple data table (with no nested headings for columns
> or rows): Jaws 17 showed no information or navigation problems, when <th>
> was implemented correctly.
>
> Opinions?
>
> Wolfgang Berndorfer
>
> > > http://webaim.org/discussion/archives
> > > > > >


--
Work hard. Have fun. Make history.