Accessible Word (implementation guide)
The implementation aid Word barrier-free serves as support for the Word barrier-free checklist. The order of the aspects and the structure according to categories are the same.
Each aspect is divided into three sections in the implementation guide:
Under the heading "What is meant by this? " you will find a detailed description of the aspect to be ticked off. The section "Why is it important?" describes which barriers you are removing with the respective aspect and for which groups of people this is essential. Finally, under the heading "How can I implement/check this?" you will find detailed instructions on how to implement or check the respective aspect.
2. Document
2.4. Headers and footers
The header and footer are created using appropriate styles and are free of relevant information (page numbers are permitted).
What is meant by this?
The header, footer and slide numbers in Word are important elements for orientation, but should not contain any relevant information. Instead, they should be provided with placeholders such as "Date" or "Title".
If headers and footers are used, they should be created with appropriate styles to ensure that all headers and footers in the document have the same properties such as font, size and colour.
Why is it important?
It is important to keep headers and footers free of relevant information, as screen readers and voice output devices often do not read out information from headers and footers and important information could therefore be overlooked. If headers and footers are read out by screen readers and voice output devices, this disrupts the reading flow because they are read out again on every page.
The use of style sheets for headers and footers is an important aspect, as the use of style sheets can ensure that headers and footers can be found quickly and easily. The use of style sheets can also ensure that changes to the header or footer are applied to all pages of the document on which this style sheet is used. If the headers are different on each page, this could be confusing for the screen reader and speech output.
How can I implement/test it?
Styles should be used to set headers and footers in Word documents. To do this, proceed as follows:
- Click on "Insert" and then "Header" or "Footer"
- Now select the option "Edit header" or "Edit footer". You should receive approval for the information stored in the header or footer and be able to edit it.
- If this is not the case, this indicates that no style sheets were used to create the header or footer.
In addition, it is also possible to design the header and footer by double-clicking on the corresponding line at the start date or end of the document and entering the desired text.
When editing the header or footer, make sure that it does not contain any information that is important for understanding the document content.
In addition, use the functions offered by Word under "References" (see 2.5).