Instructor Resources

Texas A&M University is committed to creating a digital environment where all students, faculty, and staff can easily navigate and interact with online courses and digital course materials.

Spring 2026 Accessibility Plan

Are you ready for April 24, 2026?

Digital accessibility ensures that everyone, including people with disabilities, can access and use digital content and services. Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) solidifies the importance of digital accessibility and requires that all websites, mobile applications, documents made available online, and digital course materials be fully compliant with WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standards by April 24, 2026. These regulations formally shift accessibility from a reactive accommodation stance to a proactive, mandated requirement.

• Read ADA Title II FAQs (Requires Texas A&M University login credentials)
• Browse Digital Accessibility Knowledge Base Articles

Training and Workshops

Workshops, department training, office hours and on-demand training opportunities are available for Texas A&M instructors as they navigate ADA Title II requirements.

See all instructor training opportunities

Who to Contact for Course Assistance

• For individual consultations or questions, contact the Center for Teaching Excellence.
• For assistance making course content accessible, contact Distance and Digital Education.

Creating Accessible Courses in Canvas

Creating accessible course content in the Canvas Learning Management System (LMS) is essential to making sure everyone can access course materials. YuJa Panorama can help you identify and remediate accessibility issues in your Canvas course, while Anthology Ally can pinpoint accessibility issues for remediation outside the LMS.

Canvas LMS- Our enterprise-supported Learning Management System which is used to create, manage, and deliver course content, assignments and communication for students and instructors.

YuJa Panorama (Panorama) - An accessibility tool integrated within Canvas that provides real-time feedback and remediation guidance to improve the accessibility of course content.

Anthology Ally (Ally) - An accessibility tool that evaluates course materials, generates alternative formats (such as audio or tagged PDFs) and provides instructors with guidance to improve content accessibility.

Mediasite - A video platform used to host, stream and manage lecture recordings and media content, with features that support captioning and accessible video delivery.

• Panorama Resource Guide (PDF)
  Learn more about how Panorama aims to ensure that digital content is accessible to all users. 
• Panorama Instructional Video
  View how to use Panorama on your Canvas course.
• Panorama Resource Guide - Convert PDF to a Canvas Page (PDF)
  Learn how to convert PDF files from your course into Canvas pages using Panorama.
• Ally Remediation Guide (PDF)
  Learn how Ally can help remediate your Canvas course through digital content accessibility reports and generating alternative formats to support diverse student needs.
• Canvas Course Accessibility Checklist
  Use this checklist when establishing or remediating a Canvas course to ensure digital accessibility.
• Captioning with Mediasite
  Learn how to record, upload and caption videos on Canvas with Mediasite.
• Ally and Panorama Scoring (PDF)
  Ensure your Canvas course meets accessibility requirements by understanding accessibility scoring in Ally and Panorama. 

Resources for Creating Accessible Documents

Creating accessible content is a vital part of cultivating a digital environment where all students, faculty, and staff can easily navigate and interact with online courses and digital course materials.

Before starting any remediation work, make sure you have the latest version of Microsoft Office 365 installed. If you need to update your software, open a new Technology Services ticket to request it. 

The following resources can be helpful as you strive to make your course accessible to everyone, including individuals with disabilities.

Creating Accessible Content with Microsoft Word

• Windows Version: Microsoft Word Remediation Guide (PDF)
• Mac Version: Microsoft Word Remediation Guide (PDF)
• Converting Full Accessible Word File to PDF (PDF)
• Using Microsoft Word Accessibility Checker (PDF)

Creating Accessible Content with Microsoft PowerPoint

• Windows Version: Microsoft PowerPoint Remediation Guide (PDF)
• Mac Version: Microsoft PowerPoint Remediation Guide (PDF)
• Convert Accessible PowerPoint files to PDF (PDF)

Creating Accessible PDFs 

• PDF Remediation Guide (PDF) 

Learn how to use the Adobe Acrobat Pro DC cloud‑based auto‑tagging feature to improve PDF accessibility with accurate, detailed tags for screen readers. This feature must be explicitly enabled in Acrobat Pro DC settings before it can be used. Once enabled, Acrobat analyzes document structure and layout to identify headings, tables, lists (including nested lists), scanned text, and proper reading order in multicolumn layouts—helping produce more accessible PDFs efficiently.

How-tos, Checklists, and Demos

• Digital Accessibility Knowledge Base Articles
  Learn more about digital accessibility requirements, standards, and best practices by using this Technology Services Knowledge Base.
  • Conforming Alternate Versions (CAV)
    Discover when CAV usage is appropriate to facilitate course or digital resource access.
  • TAMU Libraries Digital Accessibility Info Sheet
    Learn how Texas A&M Libraries can assist you with accessibility and ADA Title II compliance. 
• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1AA Checklist - Digital Content Only
  Review this checklist as a guide for accessible web content.
• Screen Reader Demo (University of California San Francisco)
  Watch how a screen reader deciphers content so you can better understand how to make your own content accessible.