Excel workbooks can be created in a way to make them more accessible. Below are some barriers and four main tips to follow. In addition there are links to additional online resources to help you create and present excel documents within our online course.
Barriers
- The ribbon style menu layout may make navigation difficult for screen reader users.
- Graphs and charts are inaccessible to screen reader users.
- Large data sets with undefined parameters are not accessible to blind users, low vision users or users with cognitive impairments.
- External data sources may be inaccessible.
Tips
- Do not use blank cells for formatting purposes. It's better to densely pack the data in the workbook and then use Excel's native formatting techniques. Avoid the use of white space with lots of blank cells or blank rows and columns.
- Use row and column headers extensively and avoid ambiguity within these headers. Make them clear and self-explanatory.
- Use descriptive text to explain what is in the spreadsheet or workbook. This can be embedded into the worksheet and you can create a region called "information" or "instructions" that people can move to easily and read. Telling someone that there are two or three regions in the worksheet and the region names will make it easier for a person to navigate to them. Describing what the row headers and column headers for a particular region represent will go a long way towards making the worksheet easier to use.
- Name regions and use the Go-To command CTRL+G (or F5) to make it easier to move from place to place within spreadsheets. (Highlight the block of cells, press ALT+I to open the Insert menu, N for Name, and D for Define.)
Additional Help Resources
- UVic Software Assistance for UVic instructors
- Creating Accessible Excel Files: Microsoft online documentation
- Find and fix accessibility issues in a Workbook: Microsoft Video
- Adding ALT text to graphics and tables: Microsoft online documentation
