How to Report Canvas Accessibility Issues via Email

[mtuten]

Hey all,

I posted this a few days ago in a different topic and it is getting some likes, so I thought it might be good to move the information to a separate topic so that it might be easier to find. (To hopefully be clear--since this message was marked as spam almost immediately after it was posted--I'm not posting this for the likes. I used the likes to measure the potential that this information would be useful to others) 

If you have an accessibility issue you would like to report, it is my understanding (and it has been my experience) that this is the best way to report it.

• If you have multiple concerns or the concern applies to components in Canvas, be prepared to submit separate emails for each concern or component type.
• Send the email to support_a11y@instructure.com.
  • Consider also CCing your institution's IT support department and/or accessibility support department so that they are also informed and may be able to assist in keeping track of the outcome of your email
• Briefly summarize the issue covered in the email's subject line. 
  • I recommend including a description of the issue's location (e.g. New Quizzes, RCE, Calendar) and "Accessibility" somewhere in the subject line
• Include as much of the following information as possible in the body of the email as possible:
  
  • If you have a disability where the issue you are reporting creates a negative impact on your experience, consider disclosing the disability. Disclosing your disability may help the support staff take your report more seriously and/or help them prioritize it. 
  • A brief description of the issue
  • A brief description of the expected behavior
  • A link to the page where you encountered the issue
  • The type and (if possible) version of operating system (ie. Windows, MacOS, iOS, Android, Chromebook) on the device where you encountered the issue.
    • You can usually find the operating system information in the "System" or "About" section of the "Settings" app. You can also (sometimes) see if the information is available on the "Software Update/Check for Updates" section of the "Settings" app.
  • The browser version (and screen reader, if applicable) used. If you are a screen reader user, be sure that you can replicate the issue on one of Canvas's screen reader supported browsers before submitting tickets. Also, it is strongly recommended that you report whether the behavior occurred on both supported browsers. 
    • Directions for checking your browser version or ask the internet to check your browser version for you.
    • How to check your screen reader's version:
      • JAWS - Open JAWS, activate the JAWS window, open the "Help" menu and select "About" (Alt + H then A), and listen without pressing any other keys. The version number will be the third thing JAWS reads.
      • NVDA - Open NVDA, hold the NVDA modifier key and press N to open the NVDA menu, open Help (H), select "About," and listen. The version number will be the second or third thing NVDA reads.
      • VoiceOver - Open System Preferences, open "Accessibility," open the "VoiceOver" tab, click "Open VoiceOver Utility," navigate away from the utility's window to the menu bar across the top of the screen, open the "VoiceOver Utility" menu, select "About VoiceOver Utility," and listen. The version number is the second thing VoiceOver reads.
      • Read & Write - R&W is technically not a screen reader but is included here due to its common use. 
        • On Windows - Open the menu button, select "Show more settings," and then open the "About Read&Write" tab.
        • On Mac - In the menu bar across the very top of the screen, open the "Read&Write" menu, and then select "About Read&Write." 
  • Any additional information that could be helpful (screenshots, screen recordings, WCAG criterion, etc)

If you need to submit issues to a different vendor (maybe for your textbook publisher's tool, proctoring tool, or other LTI), you will, of course, need to submit to a different email address but otherwise, providing much of this same information tends to help their support staff too.

Special notes for students and faculty members:

First, before you submit a report, I consider it a good idea to ask your IT and disability/accessibility departments if they are okay with you submitting the reports directly to the vendor. Sometimes (though maybe not for Canvas), your IT department or Accessibility support office may need or want to be the ones who submit the report. In some cases, this may be due to contract constraints. In some cases, this is because they expect the vendor to reply with a technical response or with directions that only an admin of the tool can achieve. In some cases, it has to do with the relations those staff have with the support staff of the vendor. In some cases, the issue being reported does not have an easy-to-identify source and multiple support centers will need to be contacted. And, in some cases, they have other reasons. 

Second, please know that just because you see it in Canvas does not necessarily mean that the issue you are experiencing is one that is caused by something that Canvas has the power to fix. This is especially true if the issue is actually in a tool that was added to Canvas by the instructor or school. Perhaps a good rule of thumb for determining if you are looking at an issue in a tool that an instructor or school has added is to look through the "Table of Contents" section of the Instructor Guides, and see if the tool you were using when you experience the problem is listed there. If it is not listed there, then there is a significant chance that the issue is not something Canvas can fix.

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I hope this helps.