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STEM Accessibility

STEM content presents unique accessibility challenges. We're growing our expertise and resources; check out the latest here.

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Accessible Math Expressions

Foundations of Accessible Math Expressions

Why is math accessibility uniquely challenging? What features make math expressions accessible vs. inaccessible? How can you test them for accessibility? These resources address these questions and preview some tools and workflows that we dive more deeply into in other resources.

Making Existing Math More Accessible

In this session, participants learned how to take existing, inaccessible math expressions and make them accessible to all learners. Examples included handwritten pages of worked examples, scanned PDFs and images of equations. We talked about cleaning up math that has been converted from one format to another and tradeoffs of speed vs. accuracy for given workflows.

Authoring Accessible Math Content (Session coming April 29)

In this session, participants will explore workflows for making math accessible in a digital form from the time of authoring / creating the content. We’ll talk about equation editors, LaTeX, embedding math in Moodle, documents and slides and more. Specialized tools that we’ll include are Beamer, Overleaf, ltx-talk, Equatio, Pandoc and more. Register for Session 3.

Accessible Math: More tools, Workflows and Decision-making (Session coming May 6)

In this session, we’ll tie the information from the previous three sessions together to help instructors develop sustainable workflows and strategies for their courses. We’ll talk about utilizing TA’s and students in the process. We’ll have time for participant questions about their own course challenges. Register for Session 4.

Glossary

  • LaTeX: A typesetting system commonly used for technical and scientific documents. With the right packages, settings, and workflow, LaTeX can be used to produce accessible PDFs, though accessibility is not enabled by default.
  • LuaLaTeX: A LaTeX compiling engine that supports modern accessibility features, including tagged PDF. It is commonly used in workflows designed to produce more accessible PDFs.
  • MathML (Mathematical Markup Language): An XML-based markup language for describing mathematical notation, designed for use in web pages and digital documents. MathML encodes the structure of an expression so assistive technologies can interpret how its components relate to one another.
  • OCR (Optical Character Recognition): Technology that converts images of text (such as scanned documents or screenshots) into machine-readable text. OCR is often used to make scanned PDFs searchable and more accessible, though accuracy can vary.
  • PDF/UA-2: An international standard (ISO 14289-2) for accessible PDF documents. It builds on Tagged PDF (ISO 32005) to ensure content is structured and usable with assistive technologies, including support for complex content such as mathematics.
  • Preamble: The section at the beginning of a LaTeX file where document settings and packages are defined. In accessible workflows, the preamble is used to include tools and configurations that support proper structure, tagging, and other accessibility features in the output.
  • R Markdown: An authoring framework that combines narrative text, mathematical notation, and executable code. It can generate multiple output formats (such as HTML, PDF, and Word), and when configured appropriately, can support accessible publishing workflows.
  • WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines): Internationally recognized technical standards for making web content accessible. WCAG 2.1 Level AA is widely adopted as the baseline standard for compliance, including in U.S. regulations such as ADA Title II.

Tools

Authoring tools

  • Beamer: A LaTeX document class used to create presentation slides. Additional tools or workflows are typically needed to make Beamer-generated PDFs accessible.
  • LaTeX templates: Pre-configured .tex files that include packages and settings designed to support accessible PDF output. These templates can help standardize accessible authoring practices.
    • ltx-talk: A LaTeX package (and emerging alternative to Beamer) designed to support the creation of accessible, properly tagged PDFs for presentations and documents.
    • Overleaf: A collaborative, web-based LaTeX editor. It allows multiple users to write and compile LaTeX documents in the browser and is available for free to NC State users. Note that accessibility depends on the workflow used, not Overleaf itself

    Conversion tools

    • GrindEQ Math Utility: A conversion tool that translates between LaTeX and Microsoft Word formats. It can support accessibility workflows by enabling content to be edited or structured in environments with stronger accessibility support.
    • JamA11y: A tool designed to convert scanned and STEM-focused PDFs into more accessible documents. This is a newer product and is still evolving, particularly in its support for complex mathematical content.
    • MathPix: An AI-powered document conversion platform designed to handle complex scientific and mathematical content. It uses OCR to convert images, PDFs, and handwriting into editable formats such as LaTeX, Markdown, or MathML. Browse the Conversion Gallery.
    • PanDoc: A document conversion tool that transforms files between formats (e.g., Markdown, HTML, Word, LaTeX). It can be part of accessibility workflows when converting to formats that better support structured, accessible content.

    Math accessibility tools

    • EquatiO: A desktop and browser-based tool that allows users to create, edit, and convert mathematical expressions into accessible formats. It supports input methods like speech, handwriting, and LaTeX, and can export math to formats such as MathML.
    • MathCAT (Math Capable Assistive Technology): A tool and library that converts MathML into speech and braille. It is commonly used with screen readers and is useful for testing how mathematical content will be interpreted by assistive technologies. See Introducing the MathCAT Initiative – The DAISY Consortium
    • MathJax: A JavaScript display engine that renders mathematical notation in web browsers. It allows LaTeX, MathML, and AsciiMath to be displayed accessibly and works with assistive technologies to improve how math is read aloud.

    Testing and validation

    • VeraPDF: An open-source tool used to validate PDFs against standards such as PDF/A and PDF/UA. It is useful for checking whether a PDF meets accessibility requirements, including proper tagging.

    Example files and templates

    Resources

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