WebAIM - Web Accessibility In Mind

Accessible Documents:
Word, PowerPoint, & PhantomPDF

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 PhantomPDF Business for Windows.

This course is designed for adult learners that have experience creating Word & PowerPoint documents. Web development or design experience is not required.

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. 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, and exporting PDF documents.

  • Section 1: Evaluating Accessibility
  • Section 2: Practicing Evaluation & Repair
  • Section 3: Creating PDFs

Module Four: Optimizing PDFs in PhantomPDF

Objective: Review how to configure Foxit PhantomPDF Business, 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.

Course Enrollment and Pricing

The course fee is $125. The Canvas Catalog system allows individual participants to self-enroll in the next available cohort.

Ready to Enroll?

Enroll in the March cohort

Contact WebAIM with questions about this course