Accessible Documents: Word, PowerPoint, & Acrobat
Course Overview
This independent-study online training covers principles and processes for:
- Creating accessible document content and structure in Word & PowerPoint.
- Evaluating the accessibility of well-structured Word & PowerPoint documents.
- Optimizing the accessibility of PDFs exported from well-structured Word & PowerPoint documents with Acrobat.
This course is designed for adult learners that have experience creating Word & PowerPoint documents. Web development or design experience is not required.
New cohorts start on the first Monday of each month unless there is a U.S. holiday that week. For details, visit WebAIM's Online Course page.
Course Format
This video-based training is delivered through the Canvas Catalog learning management system. The course features 33 Learning Activities with an average video length of five minutes.
I liked that you provide both a video and text version of each lesson. I could watch the video then easily find the information in the text if I needed a refresher.
October 2020 Training Participant
The course is structured into four Modules:
Module 1: Document Content
Objective: Review basic principles and processes for creating accessible document content in Microsoft Word and PowerPoint documents.
- Section 1: Overview of Document Accessibility
- Section 2: Images
- Section 3: Hyperlinks
- Section 4: Contrast & Color Reliance
- Section 5: Simple and Clear Writing, Readability, & Legibility
Module Two: Document Structure
Objective: Review basic principles and processes for creating accessible document structure in Microsoft Word and PowerPoint documents.
- Section 1: Headings in Word
- Section 2: Layouts, Reading Order, & Principles of Accessibility in PowerPoint
- Section 3: Lists & Columns
- Section 4: Tables
Module Three: Evaluating Accessibility & Creating PDFs
Objective: Review processes for utilizing built-in accessibility checkers and an evaluation checklist, installing Adobe PDF Maker, and exporting PDF documents.
- Section 1: Evaluating Accessibility
- Section 2: Practicing Evaluation & Repair
- Section 3: Creating PDFs
Module Four: Optimizing PDFs in Acrobat
Objective: Review how to configure Adobe Acrobat Professional, and how to use it to optimize a PDF exported from a well-structured Microsoft Word or PowerPoint document.
- Section 1: Introduction to Optimizing PDFs
- Section 2: Check Accessibility
- Section 3: Reading Order Tool
- Section 4: Content and Tags Reading Order
One new Module is opened each week, and participants have 60 business days (excluding weekends & US holidays) to complete the course.
Course Assessments
Participants demonstrate their mastery of the course materials through multiple-choice assessments. Each Section of the course has a Quiz with between four and eight questions based on its objectives. Each Module has a ten-question Exam that randomly selects questions from each of the Module's Section Quizzes.
Certificate of Completion
Participants can earn a Certificate of Completion by meeting the following requirements:
- All Section Quiz scores are 100% (with unlimited retakes).
- All Module Exam scores are 80% or better (with one retake per Exam).
These certificates allow individuals and/or organizations to document training and proficiency in creating accessible web documents in common formats.
This course was excellent. I have been struggling alone for almost a year teaching myself how to do accessible documents. This course taught me so much more! Thank you for the easy-to-understand training, complete with pictures. I enjoyed working through it at my own pace.
October 2020 Training Participant
Course Enrollment and Pricing
The course fee is $125. The Canvas Catalog system allows individual participants to self-enroll in the next available cohort.
People with disabilities may enroll in the course without cost through our Scholarship Program.
Group Training Options
Group Enrollments
Organizations qualify for a discount when they purchase enrollments for groups of 100 or more participants. WebAIM provides these groups with pre-paid enrollment codes, allowing individual participants to self-enroll in a public cohort over a twelve-month period. WebAIM will also directly enroll a group of 20 more participants in a private cohort.
Group Pricing
| Group Size | Enrollment Fee | Discount |
|---|---|---|
| 100 to 250 | $100 each | 20% |
| 251 to 500 | $75 each | 40% |
| Over 500* | $50 each | 60% |
*Clients that purchase over 500 enrollments receive additional support services:
- Enrollment period extended from twelve to eighteen months.
- Direct enrollment of participants into public and/or private cohorts.
- Reporting on participant outcomes available online.
Visit WebAIM's Online Course page.