{"id":3004,"date":"2021-03-29T16:33:39","date_gmt":"2021-03-29T20:33:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/brightspace\/instructors\/?page_id=3004"},"modified":"2025-08-25T13:30:34","modified_gmt":"2025-08-25T17:30:34","slug":"accessibility-in-brightspace-2","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/brightspace\/instructors\/accessibility-in-brightspace-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Accessibility in Brightspace"},"content":{"rendered":"

Accessibility is a Key Value and Strategic Goal at Carleton<\/span><\/h2>\n

Faculty and instructors have a critical role to play in creating equitable access to education for learners of all abilities. D2L Brightspace has tools to assist <\/span>the design of<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>courses to ensure WCAG<\/a>\/AODA<\/a><\/span> standards are met on content pages created within Brightspace courses.<\/span><\/p>\n

Accessibility also means thoughtful course design, such as effective organization of co<\/span>ntent materials, chunking information into meaningful topics, creating accessible documents, adding alt text to images, and using Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

This help page outlines some of the feat<\/span>ures present in Brights<\/span>pace which\u00a0<\/span>will help you<\/span> create a more accessible and inclusive course experience for all learners.<\/span><\/p>\n

Configuring User Preferences for Accessibility<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

Each user in Brightspace can customize their particular experience in Brightspace. The user experience can be customized to meet the needs of a range of users with the ability to set the interface language, to choose the default font size, and to customize the interface for use with assistive technologies.<\/span><\/p>\n

To Access User Preferences<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Log into\u202f<\/span>Brightspace<\/span><\/a>\u202fwith your\u202f<\/span>MyCarletonOne<\/span><\/i>\u202fcredentials.<\/span>\u202f<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Select your name in the right-top corner of the screen.<\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Select Account Settings.<\/strong><\/li>\n
  4. Review the settings, and select the options that best fit your needs.<\/li>\n
  5. When you are done, select Save and Close<\/span><\/b>.<\/span> User preferences will be enabled.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    System Check<\/span><\/span> for Compatibility<\/span><\/h2>\n

    System Check scans and reports back on the browser’s compatibility with Brightspace. The system check reviews the browser’s version, settings, and configuration to confirm whether it will support all functionality of Brightspace.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

    \n

    NOTE: <\/strong>Third party tools are not part of the system check. Tools that plugin to Brightspace, such as Zoom, H5P, ARES, and Kaltura are not checked by the System Check.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

    <\/p>\n

    To Access the System Check Report<\/h3>\n
      \n
    1. Log into\u202f<\/span>Brightspace<\/span><\/a>\u202fwith your\u202f<\/span>MyCarletonOne<\/span><\/i>\u202fcredentials.<\/span><\/li>\n
    2. In the navbar, select Help<\/strong> to open the drop-down menu then select System Check.\u00a0<\/strong>Your browser will be reviewed and a report will show your browser’s compatibility. If the System Check reports failures, try updating your browser or switching to a different browser to see if the problem resolves.<\/span> If the problem persists, contact ITS by email: its.service.desk@carleton.ca<\/span><\/a>\u202f\u202for by<\/span>\u00a0phone<\/span>\u202f613-520-3700<\/span>.
      \n<\/span>\"Screenshot<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Accessibility in the HTML Editor<\/span><\/span><\/h2>\n

      The HTML editor appears in multiple tools and content areas within a Brightspace course. The HTML editor, with its associated tools, allows for customized content pages, such as Brightspace pages with specific heading levels, customized font sizes, added images, attached files, and hyperlinks.<\/p>\n

      Content in Brightspace can be made more accessible by using the<\/span> built in features within the HTML editor discussed below.\u00a0 <\/span>The HTML text editor is present in the following areas of Brightspace courses: Announcements, Course Details, Add a description, Create a File, and tool windows (i.e. Quizzes, Assignments, Discussions, etc.).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

      Ensuring accessibility of your content pages in Brightspace includes:<\/strong><\/p>\n