Ally / For Canvas instructors

Objective

  • To provide Miami University instructors with a guide to Ally, a tool that allows you to enhance the usability and accessibility of course documents in Canvas

User

  • Canvas Instructors

Environment

  • 902339: Ally
  • 10185: Canvas

Guidelines

  • Ally is a tool that helps enhance the usability and accessibility of course documents
  • Ally's two main functions are to:
  1. Evaluate the accessibility of all documents that are uploaded to Canvas and, for those documents which do not comply with accessibility guidelines, lead the instructor through the steps needed to improve the accessibility of the document
  2. Provide students with the option of an alternative format of the original document so they can select the one that best fits their unique needs
  • After a document is uploaded into Canvas, an automated accessibility evaluation is performed and a small accessibility indicator will appear next to the document name indicating the overall accessibility of the document. These scores range from Low to Perfect — the higher the score, the fewer the accessibility issues

 

Ratings

  • The colors and ratings are as follows:

Ally gauge ratings. Red is low and needs help. Orange is medium and a little better. Light green is high and almost there. Dark green is perfect.

  • Red is Low (0-33%): Needs help! There are severe accessibility issues
  • Orange is Medium (34-66%): A little better. The file is somewhat accessible and needs improvement
  • Light Green is High (67-99%): Almost there. The file is accessible but more improvements are possible
  • Dark Green is Perfect (100%): Perfect! Ally didn't identify any accessibility issues

NOTE: Students will not see these gauges in your Canvas course unless you share your screen

 

Formats

  • Currently, Ally checks files in these formats:
    • PDF
    • Microsoft® Word
    • Microsoft® PowerPoint
    • OpenOffice/LibreOffice
    • Uploaded HTML
    • Image formats (JPG, JPEG, GIF, PNG, BPM, TIFF)
    • WYSIWYG/VTBE content

NOTE: The quality of the conversion results depends upon the quality and formatting of the original document. Results are best for documents that are primarily text. Documents less suited for conversion are those with non-textual content (i.e. scanned images of STEM content, complex mathematical equations, and graphs)

  • Clicking on or selecting the accessibility indicator will provide a series of steps designed to lead instructors through the process of revising the document to improve accessibility
  • Once the steps are complete, the final version can be uploaded to Canvas to replace the original document, giving students a more usable and more accessible document
  • The new, revised document should then display a green indicator representing a high accessibility score
  • Ally does not discard the original version of the document. It is retained within the Ally system and can be retrieved if necessary

 

Additional information for instructors

 

Notes

 

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