Web accessibility
in the Netherlands
Raph de Rooij @ EAFRA, Frankfurt, 27 March 2009
Web accessibility
- Waarmerk drempelvrij.nl
- Quality mark and evaluation scheme
- Introduced in 2005
- Based on:- W3C's WCAG 1.0 prio 1 guidelines- Third party testing (under accreditation)
http://www.drempelvrij.nl/ (Dutch only)
Policy on web accessibility
- Mandatory, but no legal obligation
- April 2006: motion by parliament”improve the accessibility of government websites”
- June 2006: Ministerial decision- Based on a quality model- Only applies to central government
- December 2008: All government websites must comply by 2011
Effect of policy
2003-2004 2005 20080
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
municipalitiesprovincesministriesnational
Source: Accessibility Monitor 2004/2005/2008 (tested against WCAG 1.0 priority 1 guidelines)
A quality model, you said?
Ministerial decision ...… Based on a quality model …
quality model = quality mark/
Web Guidelines quality model
- Introduced in September 2004
- Defines the quality of web interfaces- Standards compliance, sustainability, semantics
- Wider scope than 'just' accessibility- Poor interface quality = problems- Other hardware and software (mobile, OS)- Helps building a stronger business case
- Accessibility: important quality aspect- Includes all WCAG 1.0 prio 1 and 2
checkpoints (and some prio 3)
Establishing an 'ecosystem'
- Quality model (125 guidelines)
- Automated test tools ('quick scan')
- Normative document for manual inspection
- Community building- Advisory group meetings / Wiki /
Blogs (web front-enders, government workers)
- Monitoring instruments- Process model (instrument for project leaders)
- Articles, books, curriculum, courses etc.
- Support by a service desk
Results so far - or still happening:
Monitoring
- Automated test for build quality
- Accessibility assurance- Is the responsibility of the government organisation- Two options for assessment:- Third party certification- Self-declaration of conformity (SDoC)
- One methodology- Normative document of the Quality Mark
drempelvrij.nl foundation
Reporting (prototype)
- Based on classificationInspired by the European Union energy label
- Two labels: build quality & accessibilityClassification Build quality Accessibility
A Conformance with all Web Guidelines: 47 points + manual assessment
Result of manual assessment: conformance with all Web Guidelines
B Automatic test on 47 guidelines: maximum score: 47 points
Result of manual assessment:conformance with WCAG 1.0 priority 1&2
C Automatic test on 47 guidelines:high score: 44 to 46 points
Result of manual assessment:conformance with WCAG 1.0 priority 1
D Automatic test on 47 guidelines:reasonable score: 38 to 43 points
Result of manual assessment:almost conformance with WCAG 1.0 priority 1
E Automatic test on 47 guidelines:low score: 29 to 37 points
Indication(s) found that accessibility is a priority, but without a verifiable positive result
F Automatic test on 47 guidelines:Very low score: < 29 points
No information found on the accessibility of the website, or a clear commitment to accessibility
Work in progress: WCAG 2.0
- Implementation requested by motion- Requests the Dutch government [...]
her accessibility guidelines to conform with current and future guidelines formulated by the International World Wide Web Consortium (W3C)
- Preparation started earlier this month- Alignment necessary with European work- Will also lead to a new normative document
- New version of our test instrument- Hybrid tool: support for WCAG 1.0 and 2.0;
enabling a smooth transition from 1.0 to 2.0- Based on EARL and UWEM
ICTU / Government Answers©
Raph de Rooijweb interface quality specialist
Web Guidelines Service DeskICTU / Government Answers©
P.O. Box 840112508 AA The Hague – Netherlands
T +31-70-8887898E [email protected] I www.webguidelines.nl
[extra slides]
Problem?
On the web, situations like this one occur often...
Solution?
... unfortunately, 'solutions' like this one occur often too.
Cause: Too often, accessibility is seen as a 'technical' problem.
Bush MB 60 (1957)
Bush TR 82 (1959)
Bush MB 60 (1957)
Bush TR 82 (1959)
Identical function, look and feel, but different technology:a valve radio and a transistor radio
www.overheid.nl (April 2005)
www.overheid.nl (August 2005)
April 2005 • Valid code: No• Accessible: Almost• Size: 26,7 Kb
August 2005 • Valid code: Yes• Accessible: Yes• Size: 5,4 Kb
Identical function, look and feel, but different technology:an example of 'old school' and an example of 'state of the art'
Links
- Quality mark Drempelvrij.nlwww.drempelvrij.nl (Dutch only)
- Web Guidelines quality modelwww.webguidelines.nl
- Ministerial decisionwww.webguidelines.nl/decision/
- Normative documentwww.drempelvrij.nl/webrichtlijnen (document in English)
- Automated Web Guidelines test toolwww.webguidelines.nl/test/ (public version)
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