Answers

Accessibility tools and considerations for work and study

__________________

Using accessibility tools in Microsoft products can help increase your efficiency when completing work. Similarly, when working with others, we need to consider any accessibility needs they may have.

This resource pack will help you to understand some key accessibility tools available to you, as well as some of the essential considerations and adjustments that should be made to embed accessibility into anything you create. 

1) Learn to use the 'dictate' and 'read aloud' tools in MS Word

If you think you would benefit from being able to speak your ideas when working in MS Word (rather than typing), then the 'dictate' tool could be very helpful to you.

You may also enjoy having your work read out loud by the software to help you process the words better or to help you revise your work. 

This short video shows you how to get started with these tools. 

Important: If you would like to try using dictation for your work, take a look at these helpful voice commands to use with the dictate tool. 

If you would like to learn more about the dictate tool, you can watch this Microsoft training video. 

2) Learn to use Microsoft's Immersive Reader tool

Immersive Reader helps you to read emails, webpages, and online PDFs aloud. If you think you would benefit from this tool in your own work, watch this short video for guidance. 

If you want to learn more about Immersive Reader, you may find this Microsoft video useful. 

3) Make your MS Word documents accessible

Use this guide to help you create MS Word documents that are easy for those with screen readers and/or visual differences to process.

If you would like to learn more about accessibility tools available to you as an Arden student, visit the Learning Success Hub's Accessibility Tools page, or contact Library@arden.ac.uk for more information.