At a Glance
Color is a powerful way of conveying information, and in a digital environment, you can find any color at your fingertips. But for many students, color can be a stumbling block to understanding information. By taking the time to consider how color is used in a course, instructors can make sure that students can understand all the information, no matter what color is used.
Convey Information with More Than Color
Color should not be solely relied upon to convey information. Users who don’t perceive color fully may struggle when presented with color-based cues. In a course, if keywords are marked in bright red, colorblind or blind students might not be able to tell which words are important. However, by using additional avenues for communication, these challenges can be avoided. For in line text used in Canvas, keywords could be red, bold, and labeled in the text itself. Use text, patterns, textures, and shapes to communicate information alongside color. Multiple indicators of information ensure that everyone can understand, no matter their visual perception.
High Contrast is Best
Color contrast simply means the difference in brightness between different colors in an image or text. Black text on a white background, or vice versa, both have very high levels of contrast and are thus easier to read. This is especially important for low-vision and colorblind users, who may struggle to distinguish between similar color shades and tones. Pope Tech has a color contrast checker that will flag any potential issues with color use in your Canvas course. Visit this Digital Accessibility page for a video demo of how to use it!
Colorblind Design
In addition to high color contrast, being careful with color choices is also important for colorblind design. Certain colors are more difficult to distinguish. For example, these color combinations can pose challenges for red/green colorblind people:
One major issue with these color combinations is that they’re very close together in saturation. Yellow and bright green are almost indistinguishable to a colorblind viewer, but bright yellow and dark green would present enough contrast that even if someone couldn’t see green, they’d still be able to tell the difference between the colors.
Conclusion
To ensure accessibility, it’s important not to rely solely on color to convey information, as colorblind or visually impaired users may struggle with color-based cues. Instead, use additional methods like bold text, labels, patterns, textures, and shapes to communicate information. High contrast between text and background, such as black text on a white background, improves readability for low-vision and colorblind users. Additionally, be mindful of color choices, avoiding combinations like red and green that are difficult for colorblind individuals to distinguish.
References/Resources
- Fixing Color Contrast Errors with Pope Tech: a video explains how to fix color contrast errors in Canvas with the Pope Tech accessibility tools
- COBLIS: a tool that allows you to apply various colorblind filters to images you want to check.
- WebAIM Contrast Checker: a tool that allows you test text and background color combinations.
- ColorBrewer: provides colorblind-friendly palettes for maps and other data visualizations
- Color Oracle: a free desktop program that applies a colorblind filter to your entire screen, independent of the program you’re using, so you can view everything on your computer from a colorblind perspective.
This page is related to Accessibility
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At a Glance
Color is a powerful way of conveying information, and in a digital environment, you can find any color at your fingertips. But for many students, color can be a stumbling block to understanding information. By taking the time to consider how color is used in a course, instructors can make sure that students can understand all the information, no matter what color is used.
Convey Information with More Than Color
Color should not be solely relied upon to convey information. Users who don’t perceive color fully may struggle when presented with color-based cues. In a course, if keywords are marked in bright red, colorblind or blind students might not be able to tell which words are important. However, by using additional avenues for communication, these challenges can be avoided. For in line text used in Canvas, keywords could be red, bold, and labeled in the text itself. Use text, patterns, textures, and shapes to communicate information alongside color. Multiple indicators of information ensure that everyone can understand, no matter their visual perception.
High Contrast is Best
Color contrast simply means the difference in brightness between different colors in an image or text. Black text on a white background, or vice versa, both have very high levels of contrast and are thus easier to read. This is especially important for low-vision and colorblind users, who may struggle to distinguish between similar color shades and tones. Pope Tech has a color contrast checker that will flag any potential issues with color use in your Canvas course. Visit this Digital Accessibility page for a video demo of how to use it!
Colorblind Design
In addition to high color contrast, being careful with color choices is also important for colorblind design. Certain colors are more difficult to distinguish. For example, these color combinations can pose challenges for red/green colorblind people:
One major issue with these color combinations is that they’re very close together in saturation. Yellow and bright green are almost indistinguishable to a colorblind viewer, but bright yellow and dark green would present enough contrast that even if someone couldn’t see green, they’d still be able to tell the difference between the colors.
Conclusion
To ensure accessibility, it’s important not to rely solely on color to convey information, as colorblind or visually impaired users may struggle with color-based cues. Instead, use additional methods like bold text, labels, patterns, textures, and shapes to communicate information. High contrast between text and background, such as black text on a white background, improves readability for low-vision and colorblind users. Additionally, be mindful of color choices, avoiding combinations like red and green that are difficult for colorblind individuals to distinguish.
References/Resources
- Fixing Color Contrast Errors with Pope Tech: a video explains how to fix color contrast errors in Canvas with the Pope Tech accessibility tools
- COBLIS: a tool that allows you to apply various colorblind filters to images you want to check.
- WebAIM Contrast Checker: a tool that allows you test text and background color combinations.
- ColorBrewer: provides colorblind-friendly palettes for maps and other data visualizations
- Color Oracle: a free desktop program that applies a colorblind filter to your entire screen, independent of the program you’re using, so you can view everything on your computer from a colorblind perspective.