I often hear how accessibility can help everyone. One

of the most common examples I’ve heard is that sidewalk ramps not only help people in wheel chairs but they also help people rolling luggage, strollers, hot dog carts, grocery carts, etc. Along the same lines the WCAG 2.0 guidelines listed below are by far some of my favorite because they can improve content in a web site for everyone. These guidelines should not only be applied to accessibility, they should also be applied to style guidelines and user interface guidelines for a site.

3.1.3 Unusual words: A mechanism is available for identifying specific definitions or words or phrases used in an unusual or restricted way, including idioms and jargon. This can be done by providing a link to a glossary where the word is defined or by providing the definition of the word in the same sentence that the word occurs.

3.1.4 Abbreviations: A mechanism for identifying the expanded form or meaning of abbreviations is available. This can also be done by providing the expanded form and the abbreviation immediately after it the first time it occurs or by providing a link to the definition of the abbreviation.

3.1.5 Reading Level: When text requires reading ability more advanced than the lower secondary education level after removal of proper names and titles, supplemental content, or a version that does not require reading ability more advanced that the lower secondary education level, is available. This can be done by providing a text level summary that has a reading level lower than the secondary education level, proving visuals to explain the text, or by simply making the text easier to read.

3.1.6 Pronunciation: A mechanism is available for identifying specific pronunciation of words where meaning of words, in context, is ambiguous without knowing the pronunciation. This can be done by proving the pronunciation right after the word in parenthesis or by providing a link to the pronunciation.

These four guidelines are Level AAA (Levels A and AA are considered more critical) and are not required because ‘[i]t is not possible to satisfy all Level AAA Success Criteria for some content”, striving to meet these guidelines will improve the readability of any site for all audiences.

See How to meet WCAG 2.0 for more information.

Tags: Accessibility, W3C, wcag, WCAG 2.0, wcag guidelines, website readability