Labels or Instructions

Current:

3.3.2 Labels or Instructions: Labels or instructions are provided when content requires user input (Level A).

Proposed:

@@3.3.2 Labels or Instructions: Labels or instructions are provided when content requires user input. Labels and instructions:

• Fully describe the input's function
• Use the default format and standards for localized content in the location of the user and allow for changes of format on labels and user input. An exception is provided where any standard format is accepted.
• Explain where to get the required information. An exception is provided where the information is known by the intended audience.

Note: Information is known by the intended audience includes the user's name, phone number, address, date of birth and other information where user testing has shown that the information is known by the intended audience.@@.

Related Glossary additions or changes

What Principle and Guideline the SC falls within.

Principle 3, Guideline 3.3.
Update to 3.3.2

Description

The intent of this success criterion is not only to have content authors implement instructions or labels when content requires user input but for these instructions or labels to be implemented in a way that is beneficial to users with cognitive disabilities. The success criteria is intended to let users know what input data is expected. Implementing labels or instructions that fully describe an input's function alleviates ambiguity. Clear labels and instructions prevent the user from making errors and provide support that helps users complete and check their task.

For example, when asking for a passport number, provide an image of a passport (with alternative text) that highlights where you can find this number in your passport. Without this information many users will not know how to find the passport number and will be unable to complete the task.

To fully describe an input's function, the wording on the label needs to be unambiguous so that the function is clear. For example if there are more than one forms on a page, having more than one labeled "go" is not clear and the user is likely to make a mistake and go to the wrong place. The label should: clearly identify the full function preventing the user from making mistakes or; the scope of the task should be completely clear via a technique such as adding an instruction in a tooltip or help icon.

Another example would be an international ecommerce website which accepts multiple currencies. Product pricing includes the currency symbol in addition to the associated standardized text. For example:

• € 234,56 Euro
• £ 234,56 British Pounds
• $ 234,56 US Dollars

Using the default format for localized content based on the location of the user is also beneficial to users with cognitive disabilities. For example, currently many Web based calendars require settings to be changed to suit the locale. Users may not be aware of the start of the week in the locale, e.g. Sunday in the Middle East, and may be unable to take appropriate actions to suit their needs.

In some cases a full description of an input's function maybe not be possible for example, if the description would be too verbose or if additional explanation is needed. Explaining where to get the required information can also be helpful for users with cognitive disabilities, giving them a point of reference to the required input. For example, an assignment in an e-learning course may require students to write essays using the "MLA Format for Essays and Research Papers" and provide an indication for this requirement along with a link on how to write in this format along with an example.

Benefits

This Success Criterion helps users who need help understanding what input data is expected. This supports users who have:

• Intellectual disabilities
• Focus and attention related disabilities including attention with details
• Memory related disabilities
• Language related disabilities

The use of conformant labels or instruction when input is required is particularly helpful for users with cognitive disabilities because:

• In many case users will not understand how to complete a form and where to find information therefore making the task impossible to complete
• Ambiguous labels and lack of instructions result in user errors. With this success criteria errors can be mitigated before they happen therefore reducing the number of errors which occur during a task. Manual error correction is both difficult and frustrating. Multiple errors and the manual correction of errors results in the likelihood of loss of focus, and/or abandonment of a task.
• Reducing the number of errors will also reduce the number of error notifications. Multiple error notifications can distract users who have difficulty remaining focused from engaging and completing the primary task.
• The use of default values shows meaningful results with helping users who are challenged by attention to detail.

Related Resources

Resources are for information purposes only. No endorsement is intended or implied.

• Research carried out by Neil Milliken with web users who have dyscalculia - Background research document..
• User Needs Table 3: Entering data, error prevention & recovery

See also:

• ISO 4217 Currency Codes http://www.xe.com/iso4217.php
• WCAG 1.3.1 Info and Relationships: Information, structure, and relationships conveyed through presentation can be programmatically determined or are available in text. (Level A) WCAG advises providing symbol before the number as part of the W3C working draft on http://www.w3.org/TR/2013/NOTE-UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20-20130905/content-structure-separation-programmatic#content-structure-separation-programmatic-intent-head
• Mathematical Markup Language (MathML) Version 3.0 2nd Edition W3C Recommendation 10 April 2014 http://www.w3.org/TR/MathML/
• Making Mathematics Accessible http://www.dessci.com/en/reference/accessibility/
• Math on the web http://www.dessci.com/en/reference/webmath/
• Nielson -aging
• Deque blog Why Don't Screen Readers Always Read What's on the Screen? Part 1: Punctuation and Typographic Symbols http://www.deque.com/blog/dont-screen-readers-read-whats-screen-part-1-punctuation-typographic-symbols/
• ISO 8601 Date and Time format http://www.iso.org/iso/home/standards/iso8601.htm - Please note the example provided on the ISO page namely 2012-09-27 is read aloud by Microsoft Word TTS as 'two thousand and twelve, two hundred and nine minus twenty-seven and on the web page the dashes are read as dashes by Acapela voice
• 2.5m ticket sales lost every year due to inaccessible booking sites - report http://www.musicweek.com/news/read/uk-music-industry-loses-out-on-2-5m-tickets-sales-per-year-due-to-inaccessible-booking-systems-for-deaf-and-disabled-customers-r/057407
• W3C Date and Time Format http://www.w3.org/TR/NOTE-datetime
• Kuhn, M., (1995) A summary of the international standard date and time notation. last modified 2004-12-19 - http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mgk25/iso-time.html (Accessed June 1st 2015)

Testability

Identify where the content requires user input. For each element that requires input confirm that there are labels and instructions so that each of the following are true:

• Check that the label fully describes the input's function. If it is not fully described confirm that the full information is easily available such as via a help icon or other WCAG technique.
• Use the default format and standards for localized content in the location of the user and allow for changes of format on labels and user input. An exception is provided where any standard format is accepted and it conforms to the technique on standard formats
• When the user is required to input information other then the user's name, phone number, address or date of birth confirm one of the following is true:
  • You have explained where to get the required information or
  • user testing that includes people with cognitive disabilities has shown that how to get the information is known by the intended audience. (such as an employees badge number which all employees need to wear could be known by all employees)

Techniques

• Providing clear labels that fully describe the input's function
• Providing instructions where labels are not enough
• Providing instructions via COGA semantics
• Using aria-label
• Removing ambiguity by giving pointers to users to give context - such as tool tip, clear headings or help
• Providing instructions describing where to get the required information
• Failure: Using an unclear ambiguous label
• Failure: Not providing instructions for finding information
• Calendars and dates
• Any standard format is accepted
• Use terms that describe the present past and future days rather than just using numbers or dates. By using terminology such as today, tomorrow or travel now in the appropriate language for the locale, the user has a clear understanding of the timeliness of the event, booking or occasion.
• Display long form of dates with punctuation, e.g., June 1st, 2015 or 1st June, 2015. This offers a clear understanding of the date. Punctuation helps the text to speech API read the date in a way that is easier to follow.
• When using numbers for time - check use of appropriate punctuation between numbers when providing times as these may be read inappropriately by text to speech engines.
• Temperature
• Allow reading of long form temperature. Reading the values long form rather than using figures is helpful for the same reasons outlined in the dates and calendar section.
• Advisory: Reinforce with non-numerical values, e.g., Very Cold, Cold, Cool, Mild, Warm, Hot, Very Hot. These are subjective values and may not always be helpful especially when dealing with weather and ambient temperature (due to reasons such as variances in regional average temperature - what is considered hot in UK is considered cool in India or Thailand). It may be possible to use look up tables and JSON to query relative average temperature based upon locale and adjust temperature ranges accordingly.

Examples:

Currently many web based calendars require settings to be changed to suit the locale. Users may not be aware of the start of the week in the locale, e.g. Sunday in the Middle East, and be unable to take appropriate actions to suit their needs.

Pass example: Calendar settings recognize locale and/or offer the ability to edit settings.

Failure example: Incorrect punctuation and poorly localized date layout.

In USA the month appears before the day which is reversed in UK e,g 06/01/2015 or 01/06/2015. Dyslexic users and other user groups will not often confuse the order.

Pass example: Month is given in text with numbers for date and year.

Failure example: A series of numbers for the date.

The international standard notation for the time of day is hh:mm:ss but this can be hard for those with cognitive impairments to fully comprehend - 10:30:10 may be read out as 10 hours, thirty minutes and 10 seconds by most text to speech engines but may be too long to remember. The ISO advises the 24 hour clock for example 13:30 as opposed to 01.30pm - the latter is localized for English speakers but may help those with learning disabilities along with symbols to represent the period in the day such as suggest under calendars.

Being able to hear the numbers for time repeatedly read out aloud accurately with text to speech technologies can help comprehension and memory. Developers need to be aware of how these technologies react to time formats. This feature can provide those with dyscalculia, dyslexia and attention deficit disorder and those who may be under high cognitive load or situationally disabled with a better understanding of the concepts.

Pass example: Numbers representing time can be read out accurately by text to speech engines.

Failure example: Numbers fail to be read out accurately by text to speech engines.

Even with all of the above in place a person may not be able to associate the concept of the temperature with the numbers so giving additional hints may help provide the connection to whether something is hot or cold.

Use symbols where appropriate for example, for weather the symbols used such as sun, snowflake, sun & cloud will give some indication.

Pass example: The Temperature is Five Degrees Centigrade (Cold) hint: It's hat and scarf weather.

Failure example: Failure to explain figures representing relative values. Temperature = 21℃/70℉

The Temperature is Thirty Degrees Centigrade (Very hot) hint: The weather is appropriate for wearing shorts