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en-dash, dash and minus

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From: Isabel Holdsworth
Date: Jul 27, 2018 6:18AM

Hi all,

Yet another niggly accessibility issue I could do with your thoughts on.

I'm working on some eAssessment software that allows teachers to
upload maths questions and their pupils to answer them online.

Some of the teachers are using the en-dash (–) character instead of
the minus (−) sign, because it's wider and easier to see. But we feel
that en-dash doesn't convey the subtraction operation to screenreader
users.

Since there's no easy way to enter a minus sign using the keyboard,
we're trying to come up with a compromise that makes the content more
accessible.

I think the dash (-) character is a good alternative, and it's widely
available and IMO widely understood to denote subtraction.

What do you guys think?

We really want to offer the best experience we can to kids sitting
tests using our software, so I'd appreciate your thoughts.

Thanks as always, Lynn