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• Online Learning Accessibility during the COVID-19 Pandemic

  Shanna Russ, Foad Hamidi · 2021 · Proceedings of the 18th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This literature review examines 14 papers published over the past decade on e-learning accessibility, reframing their findings through the lens of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on K-12 education. During the pandemic, elementary, middle, and high schools made an emergency…

  education accessibility · online learning · universal design for learning · WCAG · digital accessibility

• Cognitive Function vs. Accessible Authentication: Insights from Dyslexia Research

  Jacques Ophoff, Graham Johnson, Karen Renaud · 2021 · Proceedings of the 18th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper explores the accessibility challenges that password-based authentication poses to people with dyslexia, arguing that accessibility is a neglected third dimension alongside the well-studied security and usability considerations. The authors recruited 13 participants…

  cognitive accessibility · dyslexia · authentication · security · passwords

• A Case for Making Web Accessibility Guidelines Accessible: Older Adult Content Creators and Web Accessibility Planning

  Aqueasha Martin-Hammond, Ulka Patil, Barsa Tandukar · 2021 · Proceedings of the 23rd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS '21)

  This short paper presents an experience report on partnering with older adult content creators at an independent living community to support web accessibility planning for their internal resident website. The website served as a civic participation tool where resident committees…

  web accessibility · older adults · content creators · WCAG · participatory research

• Adee: Bringing Accessibility Right Inside Design Tools

  Samine Hadadi · 2021 · The 23rd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2021)

  This extended abstract introduces Adee, an accessibility testing plugin that integrates directly into popular design platforms — Adobe XD, Figma, and Sketch — to make accessibility checking a seamless part of the design workflow rather than an afterthought. The paper argues that…

  design tools · color contrast · color blindness · touch target size · alternative text

• Accessibility Information Needs in the Enterprise

  Sharon Snider, Willie L. Scott II, Shari Trewin · 2020 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS)

  This paper from IBM presents the first empirical analysis of accessibility information needs within a large multinational enterprise, analyzing 439 unique accessibility questions and 362 unique keywords gathered over two years from FAQs, support channels, a chatbot, a glossary,…

  enterprise accessibility · ontology · knowledge management · accessibility conformance · chatbot

• The Compliance Mindset: Exploring Accessibility Adoption in Client-Based Settings

  Emma L. Holliday · 2020 · Proceedings of the 22nd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2020)

  This short paper investigates how web accessibility is adopted in client-based settings such as consultancies and freelance work, where practitioners must navigate the tension between their own accessibility knowledge and client priorities. The study was motivated by the…

  web accessibility · organizational accessibility · compliance · WCAG · automated testing

• Comparing Accessibility Evaluation Plug-ins

  Tânia Frazão, Carlos Duarte · 2020 · Proceedings of the 17th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper from the University of Lisbon systematically compares eight free Chrome browser extensions for automated accessibility evaluation: Microsoft Accessibility Insights, ACCESS Assistant Community, ARC Toolkit, aXe Chrome Plugin, Lighthouse, Tenon Check, TotalValidator,…

  automated testing · accessibility testing · WCAG · web accessibility · evaluation tools

• Comparative Analysis of Web Accessibility Standards and Regulations

  Shantanu D. Ladkat · 2019 · Proceedings of the 16th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper proposes a comparative analysis of web accessibility standards and regulations across different regions and organizations. The author identifies a practical problem facing the accessibility industry: there is no systematic tool for generating…

  accessibility standards · WCAG · Section 508 · accessibility compliance · accessibility policy

• Combining Semantic Tools for Automatic Evaluation of Alternative Texts

  Carlos Duarte, Carlos M. Duarte, Luís Carriço · 2019 · Proceedings of the 16th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents SCREW v2, an updated algorithm for automatically assessing the quality of alternative texts for images on web pages from an accessibility perspective. The work is motivated by the EU Directive 2016/2102, which requires monitoring the accessibility of public…

  alternative text · automated accessibility testing · image accessibility · semantic analysis · computer vision

• Evaluating Instructor Strategy and Student Learning Through Digital Accessibility Course Enhancements

  Claire Ferrari, Devorah Kletenik, Kate Sonka, Deborah Sturm, Amy Hurst · 2019 · Proceedings of the 21st International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2019)

  This paper evaluates the Teach Access Curriculum Development Awards program, an initiative by the Teach Access consortium (comprising 10 industry partners including Google, Microsoft, and Facebook, 5 advocacy groups, and 20 university partners) to integrate digital accessibility…

  accessibility education · higher education · curriculum development · WCAG · universal design

• How to Develop Accessible Web Interfaces for Deaf People?

  Gênesis Medeiros do Carmo, Débora Maria Barroso Paiva, Maria Istela Cagnin · 2019 · Proceedings of the 18th Brazilian Symposium on Human Factors in Computing Systems (IHC)

  This paper presents a systematic mapping study examining how web interfaces are being designed and implemented for deaf and hard of hearing users. The authors searched six databases and 17 conferences from 2005-2018, screening 469 publications to select 29 primary studies. The…

  deaf accessibility · hard of hearing · web accessibility · systematic mapping · sign language

• Artificial Intelligence (AI) for Web Accessibility: Is Conformance Evaluation a Way Forward?

  Shadi Abou-Zahra, Judy Brewer, Michael Cooper · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018)

  This short paper from three W3C/WAI staff members explores the potential and limitations of applying artificial intelligence to improve web accessibility, proposing accessibility conformance evaluation as a strategic pathway to accelerate AI adoption in this domain. The authors…

  artificial intelligence · web accessibility · WCAG · automated testing · machine learning

• On Accessibility Policies for Higher Education Institutions

  Giorgio Brajnik, Sanela Graca · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018)

  This short paper analyses the web accessibility policies of twenty universities across Europe, the USA, Canada, and Australia to identify what constitutes an effective accessibility policy and provide guidance for institutions creating or revising their own. The authors argue…

  web accessibility · higher education · accessibility policy · WCAG · organizational accessibility

• Web Accessibility Evaluation in a Crowdsourcing-Based System with Expertise-Based Decision Strategy

  Shuyi Song, Jiajun Bu, Ye Wang, Zhi Yu, Andreas Artmeier, Lianjun Dai, Can Wang · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018)

  This short paper presents a crowdsourcing-based web accessibility evaluation system that addresses the scalability bottleneck in manual accessibility evaluation: expert evaluators are scarce (training takes years) and expensive, yet many WCAG checkpoints cannot be evaluated…

  web accessibility · crowdsourcing · accessibility evaluation · WCAG · automated testing

• Arabic web accessibility guidelines: Understanding and use by web developers in Kuwait

  Muhammad Saleem · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018)

  This extended abstract describes a doctoral research project aimed at developing and implementing Arabic-language web accessibility resources for developers, web content managers, and designers in Kuwait and the broader Middle East. The paper highlights a significant gap: while…

  web accessibility · Arabic · Kuwait · Middle East · WCAG

• Automatic Role Detection of Visual Elements of Web Pages for Automatic Accessibility Evaluation

  Carlos Duarte, Ana Salvado, M. Elgin Akpinar, Yeliz Yeşilada, Luís Carriço · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018)

  This short paper presents an approach to automatically detect the visual roles of web page elements — specifically menus and lists — to enable automated accessibility evaluation tools to assess WCAG techniques that require understanding an element’s semantic role, not just its…

  automated testing · web accessibility · WCAG · web page segmentation · navigation

• Using Ontologies as a Foundation for Web Accessibility Tools

  Jens Pelzetter · 2018 · Proceedings of the 15th International Web for All Conference (W4A 2018)

  This extended abstract proposes using formal ontologies — machine-readable knowledge representations using languages like OWL (Web Ontology Language) — as the foundation for web accessibility tools, addressing two major problems: supporting developers in creating accessible…

  web accessibility · ontologies · WCAG · knowledge representation · automated testing

• A4U - An Approach to Evaluation Considering Accessibility and Usability Guidelines

  Leandro Agostini do Amaral, Renata Pontin de Mattos Fortes, Thiago Jabur Bittar · 2018 · Proceedings of the 24th Brazilian Symposium on Multimedia and the Web (WebMedia 2018)

  This short paper presents A4U (Ambiente de Analise de Avaliacoes de Acessibilidade e Usabilidade), a web-based environment that integrates accessibility and usability evaluation into a single workflow. The authors argue that the relationship between usability and accessibility…

  accessibility testing · usability testing · integrated evaluation · WCAG · HHS guidelines

• Technology, Education and Access: A "Fair Go" for People with Disabilities

  Scott Hollier · 2017 · Proceedings of the 14th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This keynote is a personal narrative by Dr. Scott Hollier, a digital access specialist diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa at age five, tracing how technology and education have shaped his life and career in accessibility. Hollier frames the talk around the Australian concept of…

  lived experience · visual impairment · retinitis pigmentosa · assistive technology · consumer technology

• Do Web Users with Autism Experience Barriers When Searching for Information Within Web Pages?

  Sukru Eraslan, Victoria Yaneva, Yeliz Yesilada, Simon Harper · 2017 · Proceedings of the 14th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper provides empirical evidence that adults with high-functioning autism experience real barriers when searching for information on web pages, using eye tracking to reveal the underlying differences in visual attention patterns. The study employed a between-group…

  autism · eye tracking · web accessibility · cognitive accessibility · scanpath analysis

• ACE: A Colour Palette Design Tool for Balancing Aesthetics and Accessibility

  Garreth W. Tigwell, David R. Flatla, Neil D. Archibald · 2017 · ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing

  This paper presents ACE (Accessible Colour Evaluator), an online tool designed to help web developers and designers balance aesthetic preferences with accessibility requirements when choosing website color palettes. The research addresses a significant gap: existing color…

  color accessibility · colour vision deficiency · color blindness · web design · design tools

• Web Accessibility Guidelines for the 2020s

  Michael Cooper · 2016 · Proceedings of the 13th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  Written by W3C/WAI staff member Michael Cooper, this paper provides an insider perspective on the strategic direction of web accessibility guidelines following the completion of the 2.0 suite — WCAG 2.0 (finalized 2008), ATAG 2.0 (2015), and UAAG 2.0 (2015). Cooper describes the…

  web accessibility · WCAG · WAI-ARIA · standards · guidelines

• CAN: Composable Accessibility Infrastructure via Data-Driven Crowdsourcing

  Yun Huang, Brian Dobreski, Bijay Bhaskar Deo, Jiahang Xin, Natã Miccael Barbosa, Yang Wang, Jeffrey P. Bigham · 2015 · Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This paper presents CAN (Composable Accessibility Infrastructure), a crowdsourcing platform that collects web accessibility issues from real websites and their open-source fixes, dynamically composes solutions on-the-fly, and delivers the crowdsourced content as both immediate…

  crowdsourcing · web accessibility · accessibility education · automated testing · screen readers

• Semiotics Contributions to Accessible Interface Design

  María Inés Laitano · 2015 · Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This extended abstract argues that semiotic theory — the study of signs and meaning-making — can complement WCAG-based approaches to produce more meaningfully accessible interfaces. Laitano contrasts the WAI model, which centres on content (information plus markup) accessed…

  semiotics · interface design · WCAG · alt text · communication strategy

• A4TV: Assessing and Ameliorating the Accessibility of the Ascending Connected TV Platforms

  Daniel Costa · 2015 · Proceedings of the 12th International Web for All Conference (W4A)

  This doctoral consortium paper proposes a two-stage research programme to study and improve the accessibility of connected TV platforms for visually impaired users. Connected TVs — smart TVs and set-top boxes with internet connectivity — use web technologies (HTML5, JavaScript)…

  connected TV · blindness · visual impairment · accessibility evaluation · multimodal interaction