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Overview
Anthology Ally is an accessibility tool available in Blackboard Ultra that helps instructors create more accessible course content. Ally automatically evaluates files and content within a course and assigns an accessibility score to indicate how accessible the content is.
These scores help instructors identify accessibility issues and prioritize improvements that will benefit all learners.
What Are Accessibility Scores?
Accessibility scores are indicators (displayed as icons) next to course content that reflect the accessibility of a file or item. Scores are based on the number and severity of accessibility issues detected.
Scores are presented on a percentage scale (0% - 100%) and are also color-coded to make them easy to interpret.
- Higher scores indicate more accessible content
- Lower scores indicate more significant accessibility barriers
Accessibility is measured on a spectrum, meaning most content can be improved even if it has a high score.
Accessibility Score Indicators
Ally groups accessibility scores into 4 categories
- Low (0%-33%) - Red
- Content has severe accessibility issues and requires immediate attention
- Medium (34% - 66%) - Orange
- Content is partially accessible but needs improvement
- High (67% - 99%) - Light Green
- Content is mostly accessible with mi
nor issues
- Perfect (100%) - Dark Green
- No accessibility issues were identified.
These indicators appear directly next to files and content items in your course.
What Content is Evaluated?
Ally automatically checks many common types of course content, including:
- PDF Files
- Microsoft Word documents
- PowerPoint presentations
- HTML content (pages created in the LMS)
- Image files (JPG, PNG, GIF)
- OpenOffice/LibreOffice files
- Embedded videos (for captioning checks)
Only content uploaded or created within the course is evaluated.
How Accessibility Scores Are Determined
Accessibility scores are calculated based on the severity and impact of issues identified in a file.
Examples of common accessibility issues include:
- Missing alternative (alt) text for images
- Poor or missing heading structure
- Insufficient color contrast
- Untagged or improperly formatted PDFs
More severe issues (those that significantly limit access for users with disabilities) have a greater negative impact on the score.
Using the Instructor Feedback Panel
Instructors can select the accessibility score icon next to any item to open the Instructor Feedback Panel.
This panel provides:
- A list of identified accessibility issues
- An explanation of why each issue matters
- Step-by-step guidance for fixing the issue
- The ability to upload a revised file
The panel also shows how fixing specific issues can improve the accessibility score.
Course Accessibility Report
In addition to individual item scores, Ally provides a Course Accessibility Report that gives an overall view of accessibility across your course.
The report includes:
- An overall course accessibility score
- A breakdown of content by type
- A prioritized list of issues to address
This report helps instructors focus on improvements that will have the greatest impact.
Key Points
- Accessibility scores help identify and prioritize accessibility improvements
- Scores are based on the severity of detected issues
- A higher score means fewer accessibility barriers
- Ally provides step-by-step guidance to improve content
- Accessibility should be viewed as an ongoing improvement process
Need Help?
For assistance with improving accessibility in your course content, please email ttc@bridgew.edu or join our virtual office hours.
Helpful Resources