When using a screen reader, it is quite typical that you will access websites and applications. On webpages and within apps, you will hear special coding and terms while navigating. In this post, we will take a look at how VoiceOver reads background information on webpages and within apps. This information is essential for Visually Impaired students to be able to understand functions, how and when to enter information in a form, or what is being heard/read on a webpage.
The following video is of a student utilizing a Google form along with the Refreshabraille 18 and an iPad running voiceover. On this video, you will hear the words heading level, list start, text field, radio button, insertion point, and combo box. You will also hear some words that will indicate the way the elements function.
Accessing Google Forms Using an ipad and Refreshabraille 18* video.
What you are hearing is coding language involved in webpage development. It includes coding, layout, and scripting just to scratch the surface. This language is written by web developers.
Here is a brief overview of web platforms that one might encounter online, as created by web developers:
“Web Developers… take website design and actually make a functioning website from it. Web developers use HTML, CSS, Javascript, PHP and other programming languages.”
For details, view Web Design or Development What’s the difference article.
With that in mind, it is important to become familiar with the common terms that will be encountered when engaging with a Google form using voice over.
Vision teachers would benefit from briefly explaining some of the terminology and functions of the web language your students will encounter while using voice over on various websites.
For details, view Web Development 101: What is a Web Developer?
“HTML defines six levels of headings. A heading element implies all the font changes, paragraph breaks before and after, and any white space necessary to render the heading. The heading elements are H1, H2, H3, H4, H5, and H6 with H1 being the highest (or most important) level and H6 the least.
For example:
Additional Heading levels information.
“The start attribute specifies the start value of the first list item in an ordered list.”
Additional List Start information.
“The HTML