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What is programmatically determinable structure and why is it important?
Adding structural elements such as section headings, spacing, and breaks can enhance the readability of a document. However without Programmatically Determinable elements, the structure will only have visual value making the document inaccessible to screen readers. Programmatically Determinable means information has been programmed into the document for use by screen readers. A fully accessible document has an effective visual structure that is Programmatically Determinable.
This page provides steps for creating structure in Microsoft Word that is both visually accessible and Programmatically Determinable.
Step by Step Instructions for Building Accessible Structure
- Select the text you want to make a heading.
- Locate the Styles Group; it is on the Home Tab.
- Select the appropriate heading style; see Overview of Document Accessibility for more information on leveled headings.
- Right-click a heading style and select “Modify” from the context menu.
- From here, the visual appearance of the heading can be adjusted
- Heading levels should be used in order (i.e. use Heading 1, then Heading 2, then Heading 3, and so on). Heading levels should not be skipped.
- Select the Insert Tab and locate the Pages Group.
- Select the appropriate break:
- Page Breaks start a new page by dividing the body content while leaving the headers and footers.
- Section Breaks start a new section on the same page, a new page, or the next odd/even page by dividing all content including headers and footers,
- Select the Home Tab
- In the Paragraph Group select either the Bullet or Numbering button.
- Bullets should be used for information that has no specific order.
- Numbering should be used when there is a hierarchy or process associated with the order.