The document describes a 7-minute accessibility assessment and rating system for apps. It involves launching an app, exploring core tasks and screens using a screen reader, identifying accessibility issues, and assigning a rating from 1 to 5 stars based on issue severity. The rating and a brief summary are provided without a full issue list. The process requires accessibility testing experience but can be completed quickly with minimal resources.

1. The 7 Minute
Accessibility Assessment
& App Rating System
AIDAN TIERNEY
@AIDANA11Y
ɱ

2. ‘Is it accessible?’

3. No budget
No time
WCAG
What?

4. No budget
No time
7 minute
assessment
WCAG
What?
5 star rating
system

5. An accessibility rating
system non-specialists
will understand
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6. How long does it
take your users to
rate your apps?

7. Rapid vs. comprehensive

8. full assessment 7 minute assessment
output
rating
list of every issue
rating
few word summary
no issue list
skill needed intermediate advanced or expert
time days minutes
cost significant minimal

9. 7 minute assessment output is only a rating,
with a few sentence summary.
No list of issues.

10. Things you'll need

11. Advanced skills in WCAG conformance testing:
• screen reader testing experience
• colour contrast testing
• assessing severity or user impact of issues
Understand rating system and severity/user impact scales
Ability to imagine another user's experience
Login details and test data, if necessary

12. The 7 minute
assessment procedure

13. Launch app

14. Explore - push, trigger, grab

15. Media

16. Identify up to 4 test screens and
a core task

17. Run Android Accessibility Scanner
(if applicable - it's not for Health)

18. Screen reader: read from top
Listen for:
name, role, state
Note any issues
Repeat for all
test screens

19. Screen reader: complete a core task,
trigger errors

20. Send to workstation:
Screenshots & Scanner results

21. On workstation: colour contrast
Can be skipped on Android (Scanner finds these)

22. Review issues: severity & impact
Issue Severity
Profile button missing accessible name
Colour contrast issues

23. Severity & User Impact

24. Blocks: total? task? with workaround?
Annoyances
Trivial and technical non-conformance
User context influences impact

25. Severity User impact of issue Examples
1 Crash or total block
Cannot log in
Inaccessible CAPTCHA
No screens reads in screen reader
2 Cannot complete core task
Unlabelled items - no context
No captions on video
Items don't work in screen reader
Severe colour contrast/use colour
3
User may experience difficulty,
confusion, irritation but issue
would not prevent a user from
completing a task
Unlabelled control, clear in context
Items read twice
Error presentment non-fatal issues
Minor colour contrast
4
Minor inconvenience or
Technical non-conformance
with no user impact
Spelling mistakes in alt text or
captions (meaning preserved)

26. Review issues: severity & impact
Issue Severity
Profile button missing accessible name 3
Colour contrast issues 3

27. Assign rating,
Write very brief summary
(no defect list)
You'll also send a 'key' to rating and severity scales
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28. 5 Star
Accessibility Rating System
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30. Rating
Level of
accessibility
Tolerance for issues
5 star Very high
No Severity 1 or 2.
Some minor impact issues may exist.
No issues prevent user completing a core task.
Low incidence of issues.
4 star High
No Severity 1 or 2.
Some minor impact issues may exist.
No issues prevent user completing core task.
Users could get through tasks, despite annoyances.
3 star Moderate
No Severity 1. May contain Severity 2.
Issues may prevent users completing non-core tasks.
Users experience many annoyances, confusion.
Lack of attention to detail across the application.
2 star Low
Issues will prevent users completing core tasks.
Poor overall accessibility quality.
1 star Very low Severe issues and overall inattention to accessibility.

31. You could modify the degree of
tolerance for your own scale.
The point is to have a rating scale
that a non-specialist will understand.

32. Assign rating, write summary
⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆
"Five stars. Very accessible.
Unlabelled button on home screen.
Minor colour contrast issues"

33. Demo: iOS Health App

34. Lab: let's try it out

35. Review issues: severity & impact
Issue Severity

36. Assign rating,
Write very brief summary
(no defect list)
You'll also send a 'key' to rating and severity scales
⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆ ⋆

37. Lastly

38. Not a substitute for full testing
Subjective, yes, but imagine other
users
No list of issues
Requires accessibility experience
Can use ratings to summarize full
assessments too

39. “What do you think?
Could you use this?
What would you change?”
ɳ

40. The 7 Minute
Accessibility Assessment
& App Rating System
AIDAN TIERNEY
@AIDANA11Y
ɱ