Accessibility at CourseHouse

Science is visual, but learning it should not depend only on vision. Every figure in a CourseHouse-published course — molecular structures, reaction schemes, plots, apparatus and anatomical diagrams — has alt text or a long description; complex figures also get a text or table equivalent, and structures get a spoken, atom-by-atom reading where the ChemIllusion tools are in use.

Authoring tools flag figures whose accessible representation is missing and offer a replacement or an omit option, so nothing reaches students silently inaccessible.

The online reader uses semantic headings, landmark regions, a persistent table of contents and visible focus. Text reflows to 400% zoom; color is never the only carrier of meaning; contrast meets AA in both light and dark modes. Chapter and section navigation is keyboard-operable, and every page states its license and attribution in the same place.

• EPUB files carry the reading order, headings, alt text and MathML of the online reader and open in mainstream reading systems.
• PDFs are tagged, with a document title, language, bookmarks and alt text; they are the same free book, not a lesser copy.
• Slide decks include speaker notes and alt text for figures.

Questions are delivered as accessible forms: labeled inputs, clear error and feedback messages announced to assistive technology, no time limit unless the instructor sets one, and extra time honored when the institution requests it. Where a question type has a visual component, an equivalent non-visual response path is provided or the item is flagged for the instructor.

All controls are reachable and operable with a keyboard, including drag operations on timelines and canvases, which have arrow-key and menu equivalents. Focus is visible, never trapped, and skip links move past repeated regions.

Video ships with captions and a transcript, or is marked as missing them so an instructor can decide before students do. Audio-only material has a transcript.

Pages use one h1 and nested headings, landmarks for navigation and main content, tables with header cells, and live regions for status changes such as saving or grading. We test with NVDA, JAWS and VoiceOver on current browsers.

Animations respect the operating system's reduced-motion setting. Light and dark modes both meet contrast requirements, text can be resized without loss, and nothing flashes.

Reading and homework work on phones and tablets with touch targets of at least 44 px and content that reflows. Authoring tools are desktop-first; mobile progress is tracked in release notes.

Assignments launched from an LMS open in an accessible frame, inherit the student's browser settings, and return grades to the LMS so students are not asked to work in two places.

Every reading, figure, video and practice set carries an accessibility badge in the authoring tools. Anything needing attention is listed with a one-click fix or an omit option, so a course can be checked before it is published or delivered to an LMS.

Open material we import is reviewed and, where needed, remediated before it is published. Its accessibility status is recorded alongside its rights in Rights & Provenance, so instructors can see what has been fixed and what is pending.

Where a course uses ChemIllusion scientific tools, molecular structures and reaction schemes come with specialized accessibility, contributed by ChemIllusion:

• Speak Molecule reads structures on the canvas atom by atom on hover, as a plain-language description of functional groups and connectivity, or as an IUPAC name.
• Keyboard-first drawing in the embedded Ketcher editor: atoms, bonds, templates, charge and stereo tools all have single-key or modifier shortcuts.
• Braille export (BRF) produces a draft Grade-1 UEB, text-only description of canvas objects, labels and layout for transcriber review.
• Adjustable icon density and tap targets for motor difficulties or small screens, without changing the drawing skill level.

CourseHouse provides the accessible learning environment; ChemIllusion contributes the specialized accessibility for molecular structures. The ChemIllusion statement is at chemillusion.com/accessibility and the CourseHouse statement at coursehouse.org/accessibility.

• A WCAG 2.2 AA audit is in progress across all surfaces; known gaps are concentrated in complex spatial drawing tools, where we prioritize practical alternatives (voice, text, fragment editing) over keyboard coverage of every gesture.
• Synchronized narration and captions for molecule and reaction animations are being added release by release.
• ACR / VPAT documentation is in progress for institutions that require formal conformance documentation for procurement and LMS integration.
• Braille export is draft material and should be reviewed by a qualified transcriber before classroom use.

If something does not work for you, tell us through the contact page. Include the page and what happened; we respond within five business days and will provide the material in another format while we fix it.