WCAG is frustrating—it often feels like it fails to cover many people with disabilities or address scenarios where it should. This article delves into these frustrations, the key concerns it raises, the individuals it impacts, and the solutions that can help overcome these challenges to improve accessibility.
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) serve as a global standard for accessibility, providing principles, guidelines, and success criteria aimed at eliminating barriers for people with disabilities.
For professionals like designers and accessibility testers, working with WCAG can sometimes feel daunting and frustrating. Its language can be complex, and its scope may seem restrictive in covering certain accessibility issues.
Understanding Why WCAG Is Frustrating
Some accessibility professionals note that the wording of WCAG success criteria can be difficult to understand due to its technical nature and high reading level.
As a technical standard, WCAG aims to remain broadly applicable across different technologies while providing practical guidance for developers and testers. However, some criteria can be complex, requiring multiple readings to fully grasp.
Additionally, accessibility testers often encounter issues that do not fit neatly within WCAG categories. This raises concerns about whether such issues will receive adequate attention.
While WCAG is a well-established framework that addresses many accessibility needs, it does not cover all possible barriers. Testers are encouraged to refer to additional resources, such as the Making Content Usable for People with Cognitive and Learning Disabilities guidance from the COGA task force, and to engage with community groups for further insights.
Recognizing these challenges is important, but it remains essential to uphold WCAG as a foundational accessibility standard. With a significant portion of the web still inaccessible, maintaining rigorous standards helps ensure a more inclusive digital experience. A structured approach to addressing accessibility concerns—while continuing to refine and expand guidance—supports both practitioners and individuals with disabilities.
The section below explores strategies for enhancing accessibility practices while reinforcing WCAG’s role in promoting digital inclusion.
Addressing The Frustrations
Improving the readability of WCAG’s success criteria
While some WCAG success criteria can be complex, constructive feedback helps improve accessibility standards. Reporting readability challenges to the WCAG community supports ongoing refinement.
Engaging with peers and accessibility-focused communities, such as WCAG on GitHub and the Web-A11y Slack channel, provides valuable perspectives on interpreting the guidelines. Additionally, the Understanding documents from WCAG offer further clarification, including examples of techniques that pass or fail specific criteria.
Recognizing and Categorizing Accessibility Issues Beyond WCAG
It is essential to ensure that accessibility issues outside WCAG are recognized for their significance. Even when an issue falls outside WCAG’s defined criteria, it can still have a meaningful impact on usability and inclusion.
A lack of clarity in categorization may make it harder for stakeholders to learn from accessibility challenges, and miscommunication can erode trust between testers and recipients. Taking the time to clearly justify issue categorization fosters better understanding and collaboration.
Reframing WCAG as a Starting Point for Broader Accessibility
Despite the challenges outlined above, WCAG remains a foundational standard for digital accessibility. When its importance is questioned, productive discussions can help bridge gaps in understanding.
If accessibility standards are dismissed too readily, the broader field may suffer, potentially diminishing trust in WCAG and affecting the credibility of those advocating for accessibility. This, in turn, could leave individuals with disabilities without crucial support. Rather than viewing WCAG as a limitation, it is more effective to emphasize its role as a starting point while continuing to address broader accessibility needs.
By approaching conversations with optimism and a commitment to inclusion, accessibility advocates can reinforce the significance of WCAG while encouraging progress in areas that extend beyond its current scope.
Image Credits
All images used in this article are credited to Karolina Grabowska.