Assessment Report | LEAP

Assessment Information
eResource Title	Vendor	Overall Grade
Academic Search Premier	EBSCO	B+

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

Presence of Icons

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are there icons where appropriate, such as icons to indicate PDF Full Text, Download, Folder, Citation, etc?	Always

Alt Text

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Do informative images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative?	Sometimes	if photos appear in the search result screen the alt text is "colour picture", "picture", "chart", etc. The alt text should be more descriptive. Video clips appearing in a search result have very descriptive alt text eg: "img alt="SYND 22-4-72 SPIRO AGNEW ATTACKS VIETNAM WAR CRITICS"
Do functional images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative?	Always
Do images used as text contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative?	Always

Content Scaling

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
When zoomed in at 200%, is text intact, readable, and not cut off?	Always
Are images clear and unpixelated at 200%?	Always
Is horizontal scrolling minimized at 200%?	Always

Colour and Contrast

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Do text and images have a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1?	Always

Colour

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Do colour coded graphs have text equivalents?	Always
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?	Always

Text to speech

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Is there a choice embedded within the database that offers text to speech or read aloud options?	Always

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
Are links or buttons accessible via keyboard navigation?	Always

Dynamic content

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Can users pause carousel movement?	Not Applicable
Is all functionality, including navigating between carousel items, operable by keyboard?	Not Applicable

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?	Always
Is the overall reading experience preserved at all screen resolutions?	Always

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
Do user input fields contain labels in addition to overall instructions mentioned above?	Always
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
Are text cues for coloured form control labels available?	Always
Are other visual indicators provided consistently, such as an asterisk for required form fields?	Always

Error Prevention

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are user input fields either reversible, checked, or confirmed? One of the three is acceptable.	Always

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
Do alert messages clearly indicate the field in which the error has occurred and a description of the error and the fix?	Always
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
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?	Always

Functionality of Interactive Elements

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are icons such as to save, download, or print consistent across the site?	Always
Is alternative text clear and consistent for each icon type?	Always
Are actions consistently labelled across the site? For example, the “search” button is always labeled “search”.	Always
Are icons that have adjacent links consistent?	Always
Can the purpose of each link be determined from the link text alone?	Always

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
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
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?	Sometimes
Does the database avoid launching pages in a new browser window with the usual browser controls missing?	Sometimes

Headers

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Is page content subdivided hierarchically into appropriate headings and tagged appropriately?	Sometimes
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
Does the main navigation and drop-downs contain a reasonable number of menu items?	Always
Can all menus and submenus be accessed with screen readers and via keyboard navigation?	Sometimes	I found navigating with a screen reader between "sections" such as the area to refine search to be tricky and a little confusing.

Change of context

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Does the “results” page or item record view avoid opening in a new tab without a warning?	Never	I find the results always open in a new tab with no warning
Is there an "update now" button that requests a refresh of content rather than automatically updating the content?	Never	When refining a search it automatically makes the changes although not consistently sometimes you have to press the enter key to initiate changes. It gives no indication that you have to sometimes hit the enter key but other times updates to your search is automatic.
Does the database avoid automatic redirection?	Never

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

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

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?	Not Applicable
Is default keyboard navigation order logical and intuitive, following the visual flow of the page as described above?	Always
When using a keyboard to navigate the interface, is the keyboard focus indicator visible?	Always
Does all interactive functionality work via keyboard, and does it behave consistently and as expected?	Always
Does focus order move sequentially across form fields?	Always

Skip Links

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are there skip links (either visible or invisible)?	Sometimes	Invisible skip links located on: Basic / Advanced search pages Search results lists HTML full text articles PDF full text articles No skip links: Full text finder pages
Are skip links visible or invisible?	Sometimes	Skip links are invisible
Are skip links (visible or invisible) positioned prominently near the beginning of the page?	Always
Are skip links labelled properly?	Always
Are skip links accessible via keyboard?	Always
Do anchors (link destinations) appear at the beginning of the relevant content?	Always
Do skip navigation controls appear in the same place on every page?	Sometimes	Didn't appear on full text finder pages

Tables

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Does the reader capture accurate information as it appears in the table and the columns and rows?	Sometimes	When using read & write the order seems off. It also reads invisible skip links that is very confusing. Also, in the basic search screen the reader began reading random numbers that I could not see on the page and could not follow. In the search result screen items were read out of order. Again, it read invisible skip links but read content out of order the search term line then it jumped up a line on the web page to read Mohawk College Library. I tested this twice, the second time it read the items in proper order? Also instead of reading my search term it said "enter search term here". In the results screen the reader will read results list and the number of results. It skips the relevant, page option, share buttons.

Frames

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Does the screen reader successfully navigate from one frame to another?	Sometimes	When using read & write the order seems off. It also reads invisible skip links that is very confusing. Also, in the basic search screen the reader began reading random numbers that I could not see on the page and could not follow. In the search result screen items were read out of order. Again, it read invisible skip links but read content out of order the search term line then it jumped up a line on the web page to read Mohawk College Library. I tested this twice, the second time it read the items in proper order? Also instead of reading my search term it said "enter search term here". In the results screen the reader will read results list and the number of results. It skips the relevant, page option, share buttons.
Does each frame have a meaningful title that tells the user the purpose of the frame?	Sometimes
When navigating the page using keyboard navigation, is the user able to navigate effectively from one frame to the next?	Not Applicable

PDFs

Searchable PDFs

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are the sampled PDFs image-only?	Sometimes	Image only PDFs tend to be older (pre - 1990) and tend to be primarily medical titles Since our patrons tend to search for the most current information I wouldn't let this stop me from using this database
Are the sampled PDFs locked (secured)?	Sometimes	Tend to be older titles (pre - 1990) Since our patrons tend to search for the most current information I wouldn't let this stop me from using this database
Are the sampled PDFs fully searchable?	Sometimes	I would say approximately 80 to 90 % of the content is searchable. I tested 20 different PDFs on a variety of subjects and dates (1970s - current). The items not searchable were older titles and tended to be medical in nature. Since our patrons tend to search for the most current information I wouldn't let this stop me from using this database

Tagged PDFs

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are alternative descriptions provided?	Never
Is primary language specified?	Never
Is reliable character encoding provided?	Sometimes
Are all page elements tagged?	Sometimes
Are list and table structure correct?	Never

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?	Sometimes	Article formatting within the PDF can create issues with this function, for instance placement of advertisements.
Does the Read out Loud function avoid problematic elements such as excessive blank spaces read as “blank”?	Always
Are the controls consistent and effective for navigating through the document?	Always

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

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?	Never
Do rich images contain appropriate alt text or an appropriate textual alternative?	Never

Tables

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are tables tagged and described with in-text summaries where appropriate?	Sometimes
Do table headers allow for easy navigation with screen readers?	Never

Additional Navigational Aids

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Does the bookmarks panel display bookmarks?	Sometimes
Do bookmarks link to the correct sections in the document?	Always

Video Captions

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Are videos captioned?	Sometimes	Appears anything from the early 2000s back are not closed captioned at all. From my sampling of 2014 and newer it was sporadic. The close captioning did not always start right at the beginning of whatever the speaker so a user could miss valuable information.
If captions are closed, and need to be turned on by the user, is that process straightforward and intuitive?	Always
Are captions typo-free and grammatically correct (unless slang and grammatical errors are intentionally used in the video)?	Always
Does caption placement avoid blocking any important visual components necessary to understand the video?	Always
Are the captions in sync with spoken words?	Sometimes	Some close captioning doesn't start immediately, In a few cases the user would miss the first few words of the speaker. It is otherwise synced.
For videos that contain captions, are transcripts provided?	Always
For videos that do not contain captions, are transcripts provided?	Always

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?	Never
If the video includes described video or a text equivalent of the video, is it an accurate description of the video contents?	Not Applicable

Audio Accessibility

Question	Answer	Notes	Images
Is a link to a text transcript provided in reasonable proximity to the audio clip?	Not Applicable
If a transcript is provided, does it accurately capture the content of the audio?	Not Applicable

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