Forum Discussion
RISE - accessibility features
One year ago there was a discussion around accessibility - WCAG AA, WAI-ARIA Labels, Section 508, DDA, Equality Act and Screen Reader Supports.
It was noted that Articulate were working on this and that there would be further developments in this regard. Have the accessibility issues been addressed. This is important for me as I am about to develop a course and would like to use RISE rather than Storyline.
Thank you
124 Replies
This is a great conversation on an important topic.
Could an audio clip be added at the top of a lesson's page to enable a person with a visual impairment to listen to the content?
Would a screen reader see the audio clip and provide a prompt for the individual to click to listen to the audio?
Sharon or anyone else who has tested accessibility in Rise, do you happen to know if Storyline blocks that are built to standard maintain their usability when imported to Rise?
Hi Elizabeth,
Rise doesn't currently fully support screen readers, so the Storyline blocks likely won't work either. There's some more information about accessibility here.
If there's anything else I can do to help, please let me know!
You could push for full accessibility... 😊
Hi Elizabeth - whilst Rise does not fully support screen readers, testing we've done with JAWS does (for the most part) work. Even if an authoring tool is classified as accessible, poor design can still result in a finished product that is not. For example, drag and drop activities. It is also important to remember that accessibility is for all disability types, not just for visual impairment. So Rise can work, you just need to really consider the design. The main issue in Rise is the lack of Heading styles (eg H1, H2 etc) which screen readers use for navigation purposes, and there are certain functions that screen readers tend to get stuck in (from memory, labelled diagram is one).
To answer your question in relation to Storyline blocks- the integrity of the block functionality has been maintained in all the testing we have done.
So adjustments to tab order and use of alt tags "sticks" in the Storyline block? That's the bulk of what I was thinking about.
Just jumping on to be alerted as well when there are any new Rise accessibility features added.
We are still waiting for developments in the Rise accessibility.
Does anybody add a comment on their Rise course alerting about accessibility standards to alert the user?
Hi there. Is there any update or timeline for accessibility features in Rise? 🙏
It's great to see that Rise is working on becoming more accessible! This is timely, as we were about to abandon use of it for this reason!
I noticed more keyboard features than before so I looked into it and found this article https://articulate.com/support/article/Rise-Keyboard-Accessible-Navigation . I don't have JAWS installed right now for testing, but can I assume that a screen reader reads the text as it is 'tabbed-to'? What about the body text and headings? It doesn't appear to function the way Storyline does in that the in-focus element is visible when using the keyboard so I can't anticipate what the screen reader will be reading in the same way that I can with Storyline. It appears as though it isn't possible to tab to the body text or header - just images and interactive elements. Does that mean that body text won't be read by a screen-reader?
Hi Fiona,
Rise 360 doesn't have full screen reader support just yet, but we're working on it! We'll let you know when that's ready.
Is there any rough timeline around screen reader support (weeks, months, years, etc.) This has become a priority for my organization and knowing even a rough ballpark will be the deciding factor in whether we can use Rise or not. Thanks,
I am interested in finding out as activities/blocks in Rise are made accessible. Thanks.
since it has been a while, I'm wondering if naviation buttons will ever become accessible by readers, right now I cannot use the continue nor buttons stack blocks, thank you
Hey there, Mylene. We are working toward full screen reader support of Rise 360 content. I can't be specific about a timeline, but you'll be notified by email if we post new information here!
I agree - a consolidated document of the features mentioned above would be very useful. We have a number of clients who are public sector and this is part of the contract. I believe there is new legislation coming in to the UK soon, too, that will increase the accessibility requirements for public sector bodies.
I really appreciate Sharon's list (above) of what worked well with a screen reader and what didn't, but it's concerning to think that many of the exciting interactive features of Rise 360 may not be WCAG compliant. I'm working on a staff training course that contains flash cards, sorting activities and scenario blocks; I'm hoping to include labelled graphics, too, and arrived here while searching for info on alt text. Can anyone direct me to Rise-specific WCAG guidance, please? Thank you!
