Assessment Report

Assessment Information

eResource Title Vendor Overall Grade
Career Cruising Xello A-

Assessment for Career Cruising by St. Clair - Module 1: Interface Appearance | Status: Complete | Grade: A

Images

Positioning of Images
Question Answer Notes Images
Are the images positioned prominently and easy to find? Always
Functional images embedded in the background
Question Answer Notes Images
Are there functional images embedded in the background? Always The functional image of a printer is present on all the career pages.
Presence of Icons
Question Answer Notes Images
Are there icons where appropriate, such as icons to indicate PDF Full Text, Download, Folder, Citation, etc? Sometimes Many links have an icon image of what the link is such as the resume beside the "build my resume" and magnify-glass beside "job search". However, there are no icons for PDF documents, download icon, folder icon or citation icon.
Alt Text
Question Answer Notes Images
Do informative images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Sometimes Not all informational images contained alt text.
Do functional images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Always Functional images such as the printer icon in the career descriptions do have "printer friendly" as the alt text
Do images used as text contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Never The only images that are used as text is the logo for the database. Does not contain any alt text.

Content Scaling

Question Answer Notes Images
When zoomed in at 200%, is text intact, readable, and not cut off? Always Text is intact and readable, but on some pages, it is not centred.
Are images clear and unpixelated at 200%? Sometimes Most of the images are clear. Though, some get blurry and unpixellated at 200%
Is horizontal scrolling minimized at 200%? Sometimes On some pages where the text is not centred, the horizontal line is not minimized at 200%

Colour and Contrast

Question Answer Notes Images
Do text and images have a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1? Always At first glance, every page is 8:5:1 contrast ratio. The text is always above the 3:1 ratio. However, every page sampled had contrast errors for very low contrast between text and background colors.

Colour

Question Answer Notes Images
Do colour coded graphs have text equivalents? Not Applicable There are no coloured graphs on any of the sample pages.
Are blocks of content separated from one another using visual separation (such as whitespace or borders)? Always
Are text alternatives provided where colour is used to indicate an action? Not Applicable

Text to speech

Question Answer Notes Images
Is there a choice embedded within the database that offers text to speech or read aloud options? Not Applicable The only option that has text to speech is in the PDF documents read out loud in the Help section.

Clustered Links

Question Answer Notes Images
Using your mouse, is the clickable area around links and buttons large enough for users to see and activate easily? Always
Using your mouse to test links, are links and buttons far enough apart for users to accurately activate? Always
Using any method to test links, are all links and buttons functional (i.e., not dead)? Always No dead links found.
Are links or buttons accessible via keyboard navigation? Always However, on the menu button at the top of every page by the search bar, does not drop down or accessible by keyboard. But you can get to the drop-down links further down on the page.

Dynamic content

Question Answer Notes Images
Can users pause carousel movement? Always The carousel movement is not on the home page, but the career information pages as an image carousel.
Is all functionality, including navigating between carousel items, operable by keyboard? Always

Liquid layout

Question Answer Notes Images
Is the order of the text preserved at all screen resolutions, without overlap? Always
Do images avoid overlapping at all screen resolutions? Sometimes There is overlapping of the pics and earning range on the career information pages.
Is the overall reading experience preserved at all screen resolutions? Sometimes Mostly all content and pics reformat well at different screen resolutions. However, screen resolutions below 1280 x 1084, the career information pages have overcrowding. Though it depends on what device you are accessing it from.

Assessment for Career Cruising by St. Clair - Module 2: Interface Navigation | Status: Complete | Grade: A+

Labels and Instructions for Interactive Elements

Question Answer Notes Images
Are user input fields accompanied by clear instructions on what the user needs to do to successfully complete the form? Always Not all input fields have labels within the field. For example, all forms will have what is required to go in the field titled above such as first name, category, city, title of position. Some forms have drop-down menus with lists to choose from but not all boxes include labels in the boxes of the forms.
Do user input fields contain labels in addition to overall instructions mentioned above? Sometimes Not all input fields contain labels. However, they do contain labels above the input fields.
Are descriptions for fields and boxes easy to understand? Always
Are labels placed above the user input fields and clearly associated with each field? Always Though, it is missing in the main search bar that appears on every page.
Are text cues for coloured form control labels available? Never
Are other visual indicators provided consistently, such as an asterisk for required form fields? Always In the Create my Plan Account, there are asterisks for all the fields that need to be filled out.

Error Prevention

Question Answer Notes Images
Are user input fields either reversible, checked, or confirmed? One of the three is acceptable. Always There is a combination of reversible and confirmed for these fields. You can go back to undo/redo or edit selections in your career cruising plan.

Error Reports

Question Answer Notes Images
Are alert messages clearly visible to the user, either at the top of the form field, inline, or through a dialog box? Always Alert messages appear in the forms when not filled out properly. For example, area to Create My Plan Account form, if you do not fill in needed information, the box has a red line around it with a red x to the side and the word Required under it.
Do alert messages clearly indicate the field in which the error has occurred and a description of the error and the fix? Always On the forms, a red rectangle appears with Required displayed underneath.
Is the user able to easily access the user input field to correct the error? Always
Is the user able to resubmit the form and re-validate their submission? Always In the Career selector portion of the database, users can go through select or unselect items from the list. Users can also hit the Start Over button and redo this section. Any forms that the user fills out, they do have the option to edit the information, as well as update, or delete.
Do error reports follow a logical reading and navigation order? Always

Search function spell-check

Question Answer Notes Images
When a user spells a word incorrectly, does the search function offer spelling suggestions or synonyms? Never When words are spelled incorrectly there is no synonyms offered. However. In the search bar at the top does have offer a drop-down list of possible suggestions

Functionality of Interactive Elements

Question Answer Notes Images
Are icons such as to save, download, or print consistent across the site? Always The printing icon and save to my plan buttons are on the in the careers section. You can print or save your career plan. These options are available under all career information listings.
Is alternative text clear and consistent for each icon type? Sometimes The alt text is not present for any images on the home page under Focus on Careers.
Are actions consistently labelled across the site? For example, the “search” button is always labeled “search”. Always There is a search bar that shows consistently at the top of each page. It is consistent with the labelling. It does not have a search button. Yet you can access information by pressing enter or when typing in keywords, a drop-down list appears. All other buttons are labelled to include the action such as search or log in. There is no search bar to click. However, Wave points out that it does not have the form control label.
Are icons that have adjacent links consistent? Always
Can the purpose of each link be determined from the link text alone? Always The text of the link is very straightforward.

Consistent Navigation

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the eresource have a consistent layout and navigation across all pages? Always
Are search fields located in the same places throughout the website? Always There is one search field that remains in the top banner of the databases. This does not change position when switching to another page. Other search boxes stay in the same place on the pages that they are on.
Do other features occur in the same place throughout the website? Always
Are links, buttons, images, and other components that are used repeatedly throughout a website labeled consistently? Always

Pop-up windows/Interruptions

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the electronic resource avoid the use of pop-up windows which open automatically in a new tab if a user clicks on a button? Sometimes The links that launch in a new tab are at the bottom of the page: contact us, privacy, and terms of use. As well as any job posting found in the job search section. These links take you to the job posting on job search sites such as Indeed.ca.
Does the database avoid launching pop-up windows automatically when the database is loaded? Always
Where pop-ups occur, are users able to postpone or suppress any pop-ups? Not Applicable
Does the database avoid launching pages in a new browser window with the usual browser controls missing? Always Yes all new pages sampled contain the usual browser controls with nothing missing.

Headers

Question Answer Notes Images
Is page content subdivided hierarchically into appropriate headings and tagged appropriately? Always
Are headings concise and clear, and accurately reflect the content under that heading? Always

Menus

Question Answer Notes Images
Do database page menus have a reasonable number of navigation items and drop-down options? Always This is hard to evaluate. The pages that involve finding results is the job search pages. There are menu and filter options, but no drop-down. Users can search the for job posting in the same way they can on all other job searching databases, by filtering jobs by full-time, part-time, casual, contract, temporary, internship as well as by relevance of date.
Does the main navigation and drop-downs contain a reasonable number of menu items? Always The main drop-down menus are for the main search bar which contains the option to search by career or education, the My Account button that gives you the option to login and the Log in button. Other drop-down menu are included in advance job search and in the forms for users that create My Accounts.
Can all menus and submenus be accessed with screen readers and via keyboard navigation? Always Menus and submenus can be accessed with both a screen reader and keyboard navigation. However, the drop-down menus may need to be prompted access from mouse in order for tab to access them from the keyboard. This is the case for both the My Account and search bar at the top of the database.

Change of context

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the “results” page or item record view avoid opening in a new tab without a warning? Sometimes The results page or item record view only opens in a new tab when it is linking to a job posting from another site.
Is there an "update now" button that requests a refresh of content rather than automatically updating the content? Not Applicable
Does the database avoid automatic redirection? Always Never came across any redirection of a search on the pages reviewed. However, if no activity in the database has been done for several minutes, there is a redirection to an error page and the user must refresh or go link back to the database directly.

Change of Context: Focus

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the form refrain from submitting automatically when a component receives focus? Always
Does the database avoid launching new windows when a component receives focus? Always
Does the database avoid change of focus when a component receives focus? Always
Are you able to tab through a page using keyboard navigation without the keyboard focus moving away from the control? Always

Assessment for Career Cruising by St. Clair - Module 3: Interface Structure | Status: Complete | Grade: A+

Navigation Links

Question Answer Notes Images
Can the purpose of each link can be determined from the link text, or from the link text together with its surrounding context? Always The text of the link is very straightforward.

Keyboard Navigation

Question Answer Notes Images
Can keyboard focus be moved to all page elements? Always
If moving keyboard focus away from a component requires more than arrow or tab keys, is this clearly indicated on the page? Always
Is default keyboard navigation order logical and intuitive, following the visual flow of the page as described above? Always The keyboard navigation of the pages sampled followed a left to right navigation sequence unless otherwise altered from using a mouse.
When using a keyboard to navigate the interface, is the keyboard focus indicator visible? Always The exception to this is in the search bar at the top of the page. However, the cursor does come up for the user to type.
Does all interactive functionality work via keyboard, and does it behave consistently and as expected? Always The interactive functionality is present in the career selector section on Career Cruising. It is accessible by keyboard navigation. However, if someone was going to fast they could easily miss options.
Does focus order move sequentially across form fields? Always

Skip Links

Question Answer Notes Images
Are there skip links (either visible or invisible)? Always Invisible
Are skip links visible or invisible? Always Invisible, unless using keyboard navigation.
Are skip links (visible or invisible) positioned prominently near the beginning of the page? Always Skip links are invisible unless using keyboard navigation and located at the top of each page.
Are skip links labelled properly? Always The skip to main content link is at the top of each page.
Are skip links accessible via keyboard? Always There is one skip link at the top of each page.
Do anchors (link destinations) appear at the beginning of the relevant content? Always The anchor links are relevant to the content.
Do skip navigation controls appear in the same place on every page? Always

Tables

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the reader capture accurate information as it appears in the table and the columns and rows? Sometimes Database tables the rows and columns are mentioned by the reader. There is also a map. However, the screen reader does read the provinces and territories on the Map of Canada under the education tab. Though, it reads these when using keyboard navigation. In the PDF documents the reader does not read columns and rows. For the Career Cruising and the Blueprint for Life/Work Designs, the tables it would be hard for a person to follow if they were unable to see the table or chart.

Frames

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the screen reader successfully navigate from one frame to another? Never No frames are mentioned.
Does each frame have a meaningful title that tells the user the purpose of the frame? Not Applicable No frames used in the samples.
When navigating the page using keyboard navigation, is the user able to navigate effectively from one frame to the next? Not Applicable No frames used within sample.

Assessment for Career Cruising by St. Clair - Module 4: Content | Status: Complete | Grade: C+

PDFs

Searchable PDFs
Question Answer Notes Images
Are the sampled PDFs image-only? Not Applicable There are no image only PDF documents.
Are the sampled PDFs locked (secured)? Never The PDF documents sampled can be extractable. Many of the PDF documents have the editable feature turned on so users can add information.
Are the sampled PDFs fully searchable? Always PDF's are both searchable and extractable.
Tagged PDFs
Question Answer Notes Images
Are alternative descriptions provided? Sometimes
Is primary language specified? Always All PDF documents sampled passed the primary language specified in the accessibility report. The PDF documents come in both English and French. Users can access the documents in the English or French version of the database. The MS Word Documents also come in English and French.
Is reliable character encoding provided? Always All samples reviewed passed the character encoding. Reliable character encoding is provided.
Are all page elements tagged? Always All five PDF documents sampled passed the tagged feature in the accessibility report.
Are list and table structure correct? Sometimes Lists in the five PDF documents sampled all passed the accessibility assessment for structure. However, two out of the five sampled documents had heading issues.

Structure: Reading Order

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the Read Out Loud function read the PDF in a logical way, preserving the order of the text and various sections? Always However, in the table of contents there may be some confusion when the narrator says the page number from the previous section and then says the title of the next section. It makes it sound as if the page numbers are not corresponding to the correct titles. Pages in PDF documents are read from left to right and keeps to the order of the document.
Does the Read out Loud function avoid problematic elements such as excessive blank spaces read as “blank”? Always In the PDF documents sampled with the read aloud function there weren’t many problems found. The read out loud does move smoothly through the documents. The only issue found in one document, the read out loud read the + and = sign out of order with the writing. It was presented as a word equation but was not read as one.
Are the controls consistent and effective for navigating through the document? Sometimes In the Help section, there is a copy of MS Word Documents and PDF’s for users, parents, and teachers to download to be used for as activities or projects. Keyboard navigation is available easily in the PDF documents, but not in the same way for MS Word document as this is editable.

Magnification

Question Answer Notes Images
When zooming in to 250%, does all text, images, tables, and other elements appear clear and easy to read? Always There were no images or tables present in the PDF documents sampled. However, all the text was clear and easy to read. The only problem was that it did not full fit within the screen so the scrolling bar at the horizontal bar will need to be used unless there is a bigger screen used for reading the document.

Images

Positioning of Images
Question Answer Notes Images
Are the images positioned prominently and easy to find? Always
Alternative Description
Question Answer Notes Images
Do informative images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Never
Do images used as titles contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Not Applicable PDF documents sampled do not contain any images that for text.
Do rich images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative? Sometimes Of the 5 PDF documents sampled, 3 failed to have alt text provided for rich images such as graphs, charts, figures or diagrams.

Tables

Question Answer Notes Images
Are tables tagged and described with in-text summaries where appropriate? Never All five documents sampled failed the in-text summary, as this feature was skipped.
Do table headers allow for easy navigation with screen readers? Always

Additional Navigational Aids

Question Answer Notes Images
Does the bookmarks panel display bookmarks? Never No bookmarks were identified in the panel on any of the PDF documents. However, users can make their own.
Do bookmarks link to the correct sections in the document? Sometimes The five PDF documents sampled, 3 of them failed the bookmark assessment.

Video Captions

Question Answer Notes Images
Are videos captioned? Never The videos do not have the descriptive captioning within them. However, there is a corresponding transcript below the video.
If captions are closed, and need to be turned on by the user, is that process straightforward and intuitive? Not Applicable There are no closed-captioning present for the audio or video recordings.
Are captions typo-free and grammatically correct (unless slang and grammatical errors are intentionally used in the video)? Not Applicable The captions are not provided on the audio or video clip directly, but in a transcript below the video. Closed captioning on the video might be a suggestion to implement in addition to the transcript.
Does caption placement avoid blocking any important visual components necessary to understand the video? Not Applicable Captions are not attached to the video. There is a transcript below but not in the actual video recording.
Are the captions in sync with spoken words? Not Applicable In the Like and Dislike audio recordings and Advice video recordings, there is a transcript below for users to follow. However, there is no closed captioning in the videos or audio recordings.
For videos that contain captions, are transcripts provided? Not Applicable Videos do not contain captions within the video. However, there is a transcript of what the person says below the video. This is the same for audio recordings.
For videos that do not contain captions, are transcripts provided? Always Videos and audio recordings do contain the transcript directly below.

Described Video

Question Answer Notes Images
Do videos include described video, or if not, is there a text equivalent of the video provided on the same page or via a link? Always Videos and audio recordings do not include a describe video but do have a transcript of what is said below.
If the video includes described video or a text equivalent of the video, is it an accurate description of the video contents? Always Videos and audio recording do not include a describe video but do have a transcript of what is said below.

Audio Accessibility

Question Answer Notes Images
Is a link to a text transcript provided in reasonable proximity to the audio clip? Always The text transcript for the audio and video recordings is directly below the clips. However, it does not contain a separate link.
If a transcript is provided, does it accurately capture the content of the audio? Always From the video and audio recordings sampled, the transcript below does accurately capture what is said in the recordings.
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