Accessibility statement for websites created with the website builder of Tampere Universities

Publication date: 31 January 2020
Organisation: Tampere Universities

Websites created with the website building platform:

research.tuni.fi (research communities)
projects.tuni.fi (projects)
sites.tuni.fi (other separate sites)
blogs.tuni.fi (blogs)
events.tuni.fi (event sites)

The accessibility of the digital service has been assessed by third party.This statement is based on the assessment conducted by third party and will be updated as the identified issues are resolved.

The digital service referred to herein partly meets the critical Level A and AA requirements.

The digital service contains non-accessible content as listed below

Images with missing alt text

On the photo gallery page, images are missing alternative text that describes the same essential information as the images. As the images work as links to enlarged images, screen readers will read their file name or download path out loud (example on page https://research.tuni.fi/spm/gallery/).

The content and function of these images is thus not accessible to people with a visual impairment.

WCAG2: 1.1.1 Non-text Content: All non-text content that is presented to the user has a text alternative that serves the equivalent purpose, except for the situations listed below. (Level A)

The service contains files that do not meet the accessibility requirements

Forms and files in PFD format are not compatible with screen readers.

WCAG2: 4.1.2 Name, Role, Value: For all user interface components (including but not limited to: form elements, links and components generated by scripts), the name and role can be programmatically determined; states, properties, and values that can be set by the user can be programmatically set; and notification of changes to these items is available to user agents, including assistive technologies. (Level A)
WCAG2: 2.4.3 Focus Order: If a Web page can be navigated sequentially and the navigation sequences affect meaning or operation, focusable components receive focus in an order that preserves meaning and operability. (Level A)

Missing language markup

The page where blogs are listed at https://blogs.tuni.fi/ contains text written both Finnish and English. However, the latter is missing the correct HTML language markup, meaning that the markup language for the entire page is Finnish.

The HTML markup language determines the language selected by text-to-speech synthesisers. If this markup is missing or does not match the language of the interface and the textual page content, it is practically impossible for screen reader users to access the website because the text-to-speech synthesiser will pronounce the words according to the conventions of the wrong language.

If a web page includes content written in different languages, the HTML language markup must be separately added to each section.

WCAG2: 3.1.2 Language of Parts: The human language of each passage or phrase in the content can be programmatically determined except for proper names, technical terms, words of indeterminate language, and words or phrases that have become part of the vernacular of the immediately surrounding text. (Level AA)

Cursor position in the navigation menu on mobile devices

When screen reader users open the navigation menu on a mobile device, the selected menu item is not displayed immediately after the button the opens the menu.

This makes it virtually impossible for screen reader users to find the selected menu item on the page, because screen readers will continue reading the page content as usual after a menu item has been selected. From the perspective of screen reader users, the navigation menu does not seem to be working, because the menu items are not made immediately available after they are clicked on.

Screen readers read page content based on the order that content appears in the source code, so it is important that dynamic content is placed in the correct position in the user interface.

WCAG2: 2.4.3 Focus Order: If a Web page can be navigated sequentially and the navigation sequences affect meaning or operation, focusable components receive focus in an order that preserves meaning and operability. (Level A)

Alternative text for images used as links

For example, on page https://projects.tuni.fi/bcfootprint/ there are images that work as links, but no alternative text is provided.

An alternative text is required for all visual elements. The alt text is read by screen readers in place of images to allow people with a visual impairment to access the content and function of the image. The alt text is especially important when an image works as a link. If alt text is missing, understanding the purpose of the link becomes difficult or in some cases impossible.

WCAG2: 1.1.1 Non-text Content: All non-text content that is presented to the user has a text alternative that serves the equivalent purpose, except for the situations listed below. (Level A)

Links take users to an external site without advance warning

There are links on the web pages that open in a new tab or take the user to an external site, but users are not warned of this in advance. This is a problem especially for users with a visual impairment or a cognitive disability. Opening new windows automatically when a link is activated may cause confusion for people who have difficulty perceiving visual content; if they are not given an advance warning, they will suddenly encounter a changed interface. It can also be disorienting for people with a learning disability or a cognitive disability.

WCAG2: 3.2.4 Consistent Identification: Components that have the same functionality within a set of Web pages are identified consistently. (Level AA)

Unclear heading structures

All the headings do not strictly comply with the WCAG requirements concerning the logical and hierarchical structure of headings. For example, on page https://projects.tuni.fi/bcfootprint/team/, an H2 heading is followed by an H5 heading instead of H3.

Many screen reader users navigate a page according to its headings, so the logical use of headings helps them to easily find the content they are looking for. In addition, screen reader users with a visual impairment rely on headings as their only mechanism for finding information on page content. If heading levels are skipped, non-sighted users may have difficulty understanding the structure of the page and navigating the website effectively with the help of screen reader shortcuts. In addition, it may seem to them that they have missed some hidden content.

WCAG2: 1.3.1 Info and Relationships: Information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text. (Level A

Social media content

Different social media content is embedded on the web pages. Some accessibility issues are associated with this content. The issues arise from the accessibility problems of the individual social media platforms. The problems concern, for example, some links and other elements that are not clearly described to assistive technologies, or the description is in English or missing altogether.
As set out in the Web Accessibility Directive, site owners are responsible for ensuring the accessibility of any third-party content that is made available on their site. If embedding social media content on the website is necessary, the site owner must look into the possibility of only embedding content that is not connected to any functionalities that are commonly affected by accessibility issues.

Unclear link texts

There are links that do not meet the requirements of the WCAG standard, for example, on page https://events.tuni.fi/avajaisviikko2019/infoa-osallistujille/saapuminen. The purpose and function of a link must be conveyed by the link text alone or the link text together with its programmatically determined link context. There are several instances where a single word or a phrase serves as the link text.

WCAG2: 2.4.4 Link Purpose (In Context): The purpose of each link can be determined from the link text alone or from the link text together with its programmatically determined link context, except where the purpose of the link would be ambiguous to users in general. (Level A)

Schedule

The majority of the issues listed above will be resolved before the end of 2021.

The website contains content not covered by the legislation

• Live video or audio streams not recorded for storage or reissue.
• Video or audio recordings published before 23 September 2020.

Feedback

You can give feedback on accessibility by email to verkkosaavutettavuus (at) tuni.fi. Name the message "Accessibility feedback".

If you find accessibility problems on the site, first give feedback to the person maintaining the page. Depending on the workload, getting a response may take up to two weeks. If you are not happy with the response or get no response within two weeks, you can notify the supervisory authority.

Contact details of the supervisory authority:

Regional State Administrative Agency of Southern Finland
Unit for supervising accessibility

https://www.saavutettavuusvaatimukset.fi
saavutettavuus [at] avi.fi
telephone switchboard 0295 016 000