Web Standards/Accessibility

XHTML is an acronym that stands for eXtensible HyperText Markup Language. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has developed several standards for markup languages used on the web, so that pages render correctly regardless of the display being used. In terms of accessibility, this means that pages developed within these standards will be accessible across the widest range of browsers, including text browsers and screen readers.

The MVLE website has been developed and validated against the XHTML 1.0 Strict standard. More information is available at the W3C website.

CSS is an acronym for Cascading Style Sheets. Standards established by the W3C state that style and appearance of a website should be handled separately from structure and markup. From a design standpoint, this allows for easy modification of color schemes, layout and appearance. From an accessibility standpoint, this allows alternative browsers to supplement or replace the existing style with one that provides more accessibility, such as reversing light and dark colors to allow for higher contrast, or for displaying content correctly when using a text-only browser.

The MVLE website has been developed and validated against the CSS 2.0 standard. More information is available at the W3C website.

WCAG is an acronym for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. These guidelines were put in place by the WAI to help web developers create pages that are accessible to the widest range of users. The guidelines are broken down into three levels, called "Priorities".

• Level A provides guidelines for areas that will prevent most users with disabilities from successfully accessing a page.
• Level AA provides guidelines for areas that developers should incorporate, or some users with disabilities may not be able to successfully access the site.
• Level AAA includes the previous two levels, and provides guidelines for areas that a developer can incorporate, to ensure that the widest number of user with disabilities are able to successfully access the site.

Due to the unique nature of the guidelines, the validation process is a combination of automated and manual testing. The MVLE website has been developed and validated against the Level AAA standard, in order to ensure that all users are able to access the information presented, regardless of access method. Additionally, the MVLE website has been validated against the CynthiaSays automated validation tool, and the WebXact automated validator. More information on the WCAG is available at the W3C WCAG site.

WAI is an acronym for Web Accessibility Initiative. The WAI is a working group of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), whose mission is to develop standard practices which will enable increased accessibility of content on the Internet. The WAI places a strong emphasis on standards compliance and web development best practices.

More information on the WAI can be found here.

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requires that when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, they shall ensure that this technology allows:

• Federal employees with disabilities to have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that by Federal employees who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency, and
• Individuals with disabilities, who are members of the public seeking information or services from a Federal agency, to have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities.

While not required, Section 508 provides a strong template for accessibility for all websites. Section 508 is composed of 15 criteria, against which websites are validated. More information on Section 508 is available here.