Forum Discussion
Assistance with Focus order on a FreeForm Pick one
Hi there, I found many discussions on focus order, but not my specific question. I watched a great video on articulate's site on how to add multiple fill in the blank fields and turn it into a pick one question. My issue is I am not 100% on my focus order.
I have attached the one slide here and I have put in the focus order in the order I think it should be.
My main confusion, is do I have to keep the Pick one object in the focus order and if yes where does it go - should it be first, or just before the buttons for example? And I assume the correct/incorrect buttons that are off the screen need to be in the focus order, as they are attached to the variables...but again not sure if Pick One, buttons or text entries come first, second or third.
Appreciate any help, our organization is really focused on accessibility these days and just want to ensure I have it right.
And just an add one: I still would love to see focus order on your road map, as layers always default at the top so you spend so much time re-ordering things :) and would be nice to move them in bulk :)
14 Replies
Hi Teresa!
The Focus Order should be ordered in the way that a learner would navigate through the content. For example, a sighted learner would see the heading first, then a subheading, a paragraph, etc.
You'll want to customize your Focus Order to do the same with your Pick One question slide.
I'm excited to hear what our accessibility experts share about the focus order!
Hi Lauren, are you able to do a Peek recording showing me my focus order and what would happen, I don't have access to a screen reader so makes it very hard to test as I am not able to download. I am just curious about the quiz questions as they always have the "Pick One" or "Multiple Choice" object in the focus order list. I learned from Phil below that it sounds like all quiz questions feedback popups I should hide the base layer as well.
You wouldn't need the pick one in the focus order or any of the objects
I hear your pain about layers always being at the top.
But, for these layers in a question you should be setting them to prevent user clicking on base layer if not it will cycle through the layers. It doesn't matter then if they are at the top or bottom of the focus order just that they are in the correct order for the layers as when a layer opens it will automatically have focus for those objects.
Hi Phil, so to confirm whenever you have a quiz question your "correct" "incorrect" layers should always have the check box selected to Hide base layer?
Also, sorry still not sure about the focus order re: Pick one object and the correct/incorrect buttons....are you saying the Pick One object can be deleted from the focus order?
For the type of question (multiple text entry) you can remove all of the pick one bits as the users doesn't not need to see these.
For the layers should be prevent user from clicking on the base layer, then you do not need to drag the layers below just put them in order where they are as they take focus as soon as the layer opens
@Phil, that is so good to know, that will save a ton of time. I have had non quiz questions with up to eight layers and I can spend 20 minutes just re-ordering so the base layer is at the top. Thank you for this tip!!
ONly works when you prevent the user clicking on the baselayer otherwise you still need to put them in order
Great, I had done that technique on regular slides (hiding the base layer) when I have pop up layers created that cover the base layer, but I sadly still put them in focus order with layers at the bottom. So this is very helpful. And now I will remember to do this for all Feedback boxes on quiz questions. Appreciate the quick replies :)
Hi Phil and Lauren,
I have another Freeform that hoping I can clarify information on the focus order. I built a table, the text on the left in the first column is within the table. Then the buttons are just over top of the cells of the table so technically those two columns are not being used. So in the focus order I had a ton of objects for the two columns I am not using so I deleted them and kept the buttons. Just wondering do I need the two items in the Focus Order picture to be listed? The Pick Many and the actual full table? Otherwise I think I have the focus order correct.
Thanks so much
I know this is an old thread but coming up against similar issues and CoPilot is giving conflicting answers.
I have a freeform quiz slide, with either 2 or 3 options. In last year's version of the course, I've checked and the 'Pick one' element was not part of the focus order, just the actual images (along with an Alternative Text explanation of what the choice represents).
Copilot suggests I should remove the individual images, and just have the 'Pick one' in the focus order.
I don't have access to a screen reader so I'm just previewing and using tab/space, and not getting very far. Added compliation is that I'm using .SVG images which I know from past experience don't always play nicely.
Hi JoeBoss-fb8b9fe,
This is a common question, especially with freeform interactions.
For accessibility, the focus order should follow what a learner actually needs to navigate and interact with. In a Freeform Pick One setup, that means including the question text and the selectable objects (like your images or buttons with alt text), and ordering them in a logical sequence.
The “Pick One” container doesn’t need to be included in the focus order, since it isn’t something the learner interacts with directly. So your earlier setup focusing on the individual choices is the right approach.
One thing to keep in mind is that in pick-one interactions, screen reader navigation using arrow keys may not always move between options as expected. A reliable workaround is to use the Tab key to move between choices, which is how many learners will navigate these interactions.
Regarding SVGs, they generally shouldn’t affect focus order. As long as your images are set up as interactive objects with proper alt text, they should behave the same as other image types. If you’re using SVGs as answer choices, the key is to identify the SVG objects as selectable choices in Form View.
For feedback layers (like correct/incorrect), setting them to prevent users from clicking the base layer is a good approach, since focus will move to the layer when it appears.
Hi Eric,
Many thanks, that's helpful.
I have made the two objects themselves visible in the focus order, and added an additional state of selected (replacing the SVG in that state for one with a highlight).
Have removed 'Pick one' from the focus order, interesting that CoPilot is incorrectly flagging that as necessary!
I went back to last year's course and found that I had added a custom trigger for the 'pick one' items, of 'Set state of X to Selected, when the user presses Space after clicking on X'. That patched up the tabbing and space issue. Then found/remembered that you mustn't use that for a multi response otherwise it instantly undoes them. All seems to be working well now.
Noted on the prevent users from clicking the base layer, wasn't aware of that, though we do ensure that the layer items are also in a logical sequence in focus order.
