Updates to the Mobile Accessibility Testing Guidelines

Presented at 2:15pm in Colorado G-H on Thursday, November 17, 2022.

#36333

Speaker(s)

Gian Wild, Ms, AccessibilityOz

Session Details

Length of Session: 1-hr
Format: Lecture
Expertise Level: Beginner
Type of session: General Conference

Summary

The ICT Mobile Testing Guidelines for Mobile Sites and Native Apps were developed in 2018 and 2019 by members of a committee of volunteers from the ICT Accessibility Testing community. These guidelines and related documentation are now hosted on the web by AccessibilityOz . Mobile technology moves quickly, and two years has passed, so inevitably there have been important changes. While the mobile guidelines are still relevant, there will be gaps once WCAG2.2 is released. After two years of using the testing guidelines, Gian will talk about what is missing, what needs updating, and, most importantly, what needs to be done now.

Abstract

Unfortunately, when developing WCAG2, the Working Group did not envision the current world where mobile is almost ubiquitous. For example, on a mobile device there is no continual access to a keyboard (unless someone is using it as an add-on to the device – or using a Blackberry Classic!). WCAG2 requires that all content be accessible to the keyboard interface, but it does not require that all content be accessible to a mouse or to a touchscreen user – which is essential on a mobile device. WCAG2.1 does include some mobile accessibility requirements, but doesn’t go far enough. As a result, Gian Wild chaired the Mobile Site Sub-Committee to develop a set of Mobile Site Testing Guidelines that are available under Creative Commons which were released in 2019. These guidelines are meant to be used in conjunction with WCAG2 (and WCAG2.1) to ensure that sites are accessible to people with disabilities using mobile and tablet devices.

It's two years on from the release of the mobile guidelines (although with COVID it seems both much longer and much shorter!) and there have been great steps made in web accessibility. Is an independent set of mobile testing guidelines still needed? Will they be relevant when WCAG2.2 is released later this year? Gian Wild argues yes, and explains why these guidelines are still very important and what needs to be done to keep them up-to-date.

Keypoints

Learn about mobile testing concepts and methods.
How to test mobile sites and native apps to ensure they can be used by people with disabilities
Why WCAG is not enough for mobile accessibility

Disability Areas

Cognitive/Learning, Deaf/Hard of Hearing, Mobility, Vision

Topic Areas

Accessible Course Design, Accessible Educational Materials, Alternate Format, Assistive Technology, Other, Uncategorized, Web/Media Access

Speaker Bio(s)

Gian Wild

Gian works in the area of web accessibility: making sure web sites and mobile apps can be used by people with disabilities. She spent six years contributing to the international set of web accessibility guidelines used around the world and is also the CEO and Founder of AccessibilityOz. With offices in Australia and the United States, AccessibilityOz has been operating for five years. Its clients include the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, Optus, Seek and Foxtel. A 2017 Australian of the Year award nominee, Gian splits her time between Australia the US. A regular speaker at conferences around the world, in 2015 she presented to the United Nations on the importance of web accessibility at the Conference of State Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Handout(s)

Mobile Accessibility - AHG
PowerPoint, 51 MB
Mobile Accessibility - AHG
PDF, 5 MB

These links have been updated since the presentation. You can also access this content on pz.tt/AHG22-mobile.