What Are the Four Major Categories of Accessibility?

Disabilities in the U.S. are plentiful and varying. So plentiful, in fact, that according to the CDC, one in every four adults are living with a disability. The Americans with Disabilities Act, or the ADA for short, came into action in July of 1990. The ADA states in its third title that accomodations accessible to the public, as well as commercial facilities, must make their establishments accessible to those with disabilities. In addition to this, due to the advancement in technology and communications, this applies to websites as well. This has then given rise to services provided by websites like ADA compliance pros who help businesses and other public entities help their differently abled customers and clients.

While in 1990 the use of websites and social media was not as prevalent for businesses as they are now, the Department of Justice still sees that accessibility is still a requirement for businesses and such public entities to be deemed as ADA compliant. With this in mind, the World Wide Web Consortium has published guidelines that may help businesses and services providers like ADA compliance pros with the appropriate knowledge. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) is currently seen as the global standard for internet accessibility. This version of the guidelines was released on June 5, 2018. Currently there is a draft for the WCAG 2.2 version.

The WCAG is guided by what has come to be known as the P.O.U.R. Principles. These four principles are Perceivable, Operable, Understandable, and Robust. These are the four boxes that need to be checked off in order to be ADA compliant in the eyes of the WCAG. Here is a breakdown of these principles.

Perceivable: For those with visual and auditory challenges, this is quite sensitive. This principle makes sure that text is readable by adhering to a specific range of sizes, colors, or contrasts. It also makes sure that closed captioning is available for any videos present on the pages. Additionally, alt text must be present for photos.
Operable: A website’s navigation must be accessible not only to those without disabilities. Persons with physical disabilities do not make use of a computer in the usual ways or may use gadgets catering to them specifically. This means that there must be alternative ways to navigate a website like key commands instead of the usual clicking and scrolling.
Understandable: A website that cannot be understandable even if it is perceivable is still not WCAG compliant. This means that even if the content is formatted correctly, if the content itself cannot be understood, it does not meet the accessibility guidelines,
Robust: Having a robust website sort of means working smarter, than harder. It means that one must have the foresight to be able to cater to clients or customers who access your content through different devices or means. Developers and businesses must be mindful that pages must always be accommodating regardless of what assistive technologies or screen readers are used to go through the content.

The WCAG may be daunting to many, but by taking a look and understanding these four principles, it may be easier to help your differently abled customers.

What Are the Four Major Categories of Accessibility?

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