7 open source modules to make your website accessible

As website accessibility continues to be a growing concern, website owners and developers need to ensure that their websites comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Drupal, a popular open source content management system (CMS), offers various tools and modules to ensure your website is accessible to all users, regardless of their abilities. This article discusses the importance of website accessibility, the basic requirements of ADA compliance, and how Drupal can help you achieve compliance.

Why website accessibility is important

Website accessibility is important for several reasons. First, it ensures that people with disabilities can access and use your website. This includes people with visual, auditory, physical, and cognitive disabilities. By making your website accessible, you are not only complying with the law but also providing a better experience for all users.

In addition, website accessibility can improve your website’s search engine optimization (SEO) and increase your website’s usability. Search engines prioritize websites that are accessible, and users are more likely to stay on your website longer and engage with your content if it is easy to use.

Basic requirements for ADA compliance

The ADA requires all websites and digital content to be accessible to people with disabilities. Some of the basic requirements for ADA compliance include the following:

• Providing alternative text descriptions for all images and non-text content.
• Ensuring that all videos have captions and transcripts.
• Using color contrast and other design elements to make your website more readable.
• Providing alternative ways to access content, such as audio descriptions and keyboard navigation.
• Ensuring that your website is compatible with assistive technologies, such as screen readers and braille displays.

How Drupal can help you achieve compliance

Drupal offers various tools and modules to help you achieve website accessibility and ADA compliance. Here are the seven I find most useful:

1. Accessibility Checker: Scans your website for common accessibility issues and suggests improvements.

2. Color Contrast Analyzer: Analyzes the color contrast of your website and makes changes to improve readability.

3. Block ARIA Landmark Roles: Enhances WAI-ARIA use in your site’s markup. This module allows you to assign ARIA landmark roles and/or ARIA labels directly to every block in your site’s layout through the block configuration form.

4. Civic Accessibility Toolbar: Provides accessibility tools to help users with disabilities navigate and interact with websites.

5. htmLawed: Ensures compliance with web standards and admin policies by limiting and purifying HTML.

6. Text Resize: Enhances web accessibility by displaying an adjustable text size changer or a zoom function on the page.

7. Automatic Alternative Text: Leverages the Microsoft Azure Cognitive Services API to create an image caption when there’s no Alternative Text (alt text).

Wrap up

Ensuring website accessibility and ADA compliance is important for legal reasons and for providing a better user experience for all users. From the Accessibility Checker to the Color Contrast Analyzer, Drupal offers various ways to ensure your website is ADA-compliant. Using Drupal’s tools and modules, you can make your website accessible to everyone, regardless of their abilities, and offer a better user experience.