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PDF Accessibility How-To Guide

Purpose: 

The guide will assist faculty in creating accessible PDF documents so all students—including those using screen readers or other assistive technologies—can access and navigate course materials. 

Accessible PDFs ensure that document structure, reading order, headings, tables, links, and images are correctly interpreted by assistive technologies. In most cases, the best way to create an accessible PDF is to build accessibility into the original document (Word, PowerPoint, or other source files) before exporting to PDF. 

 1. Start with an Accessible Source Document 

Why: PDF accessibility depends heavily on the structure of the original file. Documents created with proper headings, lists, and alt text will produce more accessible PDFs when exported correctly. 

Creating accessibility in the source document significantly reduces the need for later remediation. 

 How: 

Before exporting to PDF: 

  1. Use built-in heading styles (Heading 1, Heading 2, etc.). 
  2. Ensure images include alternative text (alt text). 
  3. Create tables using built-in table tools with header rows. 
  4. Use descriptive hyperlinks rather than raw URLs. 
  5. Ensure sufficient color contrast. 

Tips: 

Avoid creating PDFs from documents that rely on: 

  • Manually formatted headings 
  • Images of text 
  • Screenshots of tables or diagrams 

These elements are difficult to remediate later. 

For more information, please review the Accessible PDFs Checklist. 

 2. Export the Document Correctly 

Why: Improper export settings can remove accessibility features from the document. Using the correct export method ensures that document structure and tags are preserved. 

How: 

When exporting from Word: 

  1. Select File → Save As. 
  2. Choose PDF as the file type. 
  3. Select Options. 
  4. Ensure Document structure tags for accessibility is checked. 
  5. Save the file. 

Tips: 

Do not use Print to PDF, as this often removes structural information required for accessibility. 

For more information, please review the Accessible PDFs Checklist document. 

3. Ensure the PDF Contains Selectable Text 

Why: Screen readers cannot read scanned images of text. 

Accessible PDFs must contain selectable, searchable text rather than image-only content. 

How: 

If a PDF was created from a scan: 

  1. Upload the document to Canvas. 
  2. Open the Panorama Accessibility Report. 
  3. Select OCR Reconstructed PDF to convert the scanned document into searchable text.  

Tips: 

After OCR processing, review the document to ensure that text recognition was accurate. 

For more information, please visit Accessibility Checkers. 

4. Verify Document Structure and Reading Order 

Why: Screen readers rely on logical reading order and structural tags to navigate documents. Incorrect reading order can cause content to be read out of sequence. 

How: 

Using Panorama in Canvas: 

  1. Open the Accessibility Report. 
  2. Select Structural Remediation. 
  3. Review tagged elements such as: 
    1. Headings 
    2. Paragraphs 
    3. Lists 
    4. Tables 
  4. Adjust reading order if needed by dragging elements into the correct sequence and clicking on elements to update their properties and type. 

Tips: 

Ensure the document reads logically from top to bottom and left to right. 

For more information, please review the PDF Remediation Using Panorama document. 

5. Confirm Headings and Navigation Structure 

Why: Headings allow screen readers to navigate through sections of the document quickly. Without headings, users may need to listen to the entire document sequentially. 

How: 

Verify that headings appear correctly in the PDF’s structure tags. 

Headings should follow a logical hierarchy: 

  • Heading 1 – Document title 
  • Heading 2 – Major sections 
  • Heading 3 – Subsections 

Tips: 

Avoid skipping heading levels (for example, Heading 1 directly to Heading 3). 

For more information, please review the Consistent Navigation in PDFs document.  

6. Ensure Tables are Accessible 

Why: Tables require header rows and logical structure so screen readers can interpret relationships between data. 

How: 

When reviewing a table in PDF: 

  • Confirm that header rows are correctly identified 
  • Ensure table cells follow a logical reading order 
  • Avoid merged or split cells when possible 

Tips: 

Tables should clearly identify the relationship between headers and data. 

For more information, please review the Accessible Tables document. 

 

7. Verify Images and Alt Text 

Why: Images without alt text cannot be interpreted by screen readers. 

Alt text provides a text description of the image’s meaning. 

How: 

During remediation: 

  1. Review images in the document. 
  2. Confirm each meaningful image includes alt text. 
  3. Mark decorative images as artifacts so screen readers ignore them. 

Tips: 

Alt text should describe the instructional purpose of the image, not every visual detail. 

For more information, please visit Alt Text. 

8. Use Panorama to Fix Accessibility Issues 

Why: Panorama identifies accessibility issues and provides tools to fix them directly within Canvas. 

How: 

  1. Upload the PDF to Canvas. 
  2. Open the Panorama Accessibility Score icon. 
  3. Review identified issues. 
  4. Apply fixes directly within the remediation panel. 

Common issues may include: 

  • Missing tags 
  • Missing alt text 
  • Incorrect reading order 
  • Image-only documents 

Tips: 

Panorama also provides alternative formats such as: 

  • Audio versions 
  • HTML 
  • Braille-ready formats 

These formats help students access content using their preferred tools. 

For more information, please visit Accessibility Checkers. 

9. Determine Whether the PDF Should be Remediated 

Why: In some cases, remediating a PDF may not be necessary if a more accessible version already exists. 

How: 

Before remediating a PDF, consider whether: 

  • The original Word or PowerPoint is available 
  • An HTML version exists 
  • The material can be linked through Temple Libraries 
  • An Open Educational Resource (OER) version exists 

Using these alternatives may provide better accessibility than remediating a static PDF. 

Tips: 

Always prioritize accessible source documents or web versions when available. 

For more information, please review the PDF Remediation Workflow document. 

 Quick Reference / Checklist 

 

Task Done?
Create document using accessible source file 

☐ 
Export PDF with structure tags enabled 

☐ 
Ensure text is selectable (not image-only) 

☐ 
Verify reading order and structure 

☐ 
Confirm headings are correctly tagged 

☐ 
Ensure tables include header rows 

☐ 
Add alt text to images 

☐ 
Run Panorama accessibility report 

☐ 
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