Making "External" Docs Accessible

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The Best Solution: Turn Files into Canvas Pages

You may have course content that is currently in a format created outside of Canvas: Word, PDF, PowerPoint, etc. Keep in mind, any content that is a required part of your course material needs to be made accessible and that applies to these "external" files as well.

HTML is the best environment for screen readers  and for students using  mobile devices. 

One way to easily achieve this is to turn external documents into Canvas (HTML format) pages. Create a new page in your course and then copy and paste the content from the external file to the Canvas page.

It is much simpler to manage the accessibility of your Canvas pages using the Rich Content Editor than it is to remediate other file formats. Not to mention, the fewer steps/clicks your students need to take to reach your content, the better. By incorporating your content directly into Canvas pages, you help facilitate your students' learning process more effectively.

To PDF or Not To PDF - Its Intention is the Question

While presenting your course content on Canvas pages is optimum, at times there may be a valid reason to include external files. (I'm sorry to have to break it to you, but leaving content in Word, PDF or PPT format because it's easier for you doesn't count as a valid reason. ;-))

When is it best to keep a document in its original form, instead of turning it into a Canvas page? That will depend on how you want students to interact with the content.

For example, you may want to keep legal documents or scientific papers in their original format if the intent of the assignment is to help students become familiar with the structure and layout of those documents.

Or perhaps you have an assignment that's set up as a fillable form that can't be replicated in Canvas.

These are some examples where form follows function—if part of the learning objective is based on how a document is formatted (and that formatting can't be replicated in Canvas), the document should be in its original form, which you will then need to make accessible. 

The National Center on Disability and Access to Education (NCDAE) has a variety of helpful cheatsheets (Links to an external site.) for developing and remediating (making accessible) external files that you might be using in your course.

Google Docs

Google provides some general guidelines on making your document or presentation more accessible Links to an external site..

The Chrome browser offers an extension called "Grackle Docs" that checks for accessibility issues in Google Docs and Google Sheets. You can find it in the Chrome Web Store.