Web Accessibility and Academic Publishing: Why It Matters

Web accessibility ensures that people with visual, auditory, cognitive, motor, and neurological disabilities can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with digital content.

In academic publishing, accessibility directly affects:

• Researchers using screen readers
• Students with learning disabilities
• Scholars accessing content on mobile or assistive devices
• Global audiences with varied bandwidth and input methods

Key Reasons Accessibility Is Critical for Publishers

Inclusive access to knowledge: Research must be accessible to all, not just the able-bodied.

Legal and policy compliance: Many countries mandate WCAG compliance for educational content.

Improved discoverability: Accessible content performs better in search engines.

Funding and indexing requirements:Accessibility is increasingly tied to grants and indexing eligibility.

Reputation and trust:Inclusive publishing enhances brand authority.

Accessibility is no longer optional—it is a core publishing standard.

Overview of WCAG 2.2

What Is WCAG?

WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) is an internationally recognized set of guidelines developed by the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). It provides technical success criteria for making web content accessible.

Evolution of WCAG Versions

• WCAG 2.0 – Baseline accessibility standard
• WCAG 2.1 – Added mobile, low-vision, and cognitive support
• WCAG 2.2 – Further improves usability, focus visibility, and interaction accessibility

WCAG 2.2 builds upon WCAG 2.1 and does not remove existing requirements, making it backward-compatible.

The Four Principles of WCA

WCAG guidelines are organized around four core principles:

1. Perceivable

Content must be presented in ways users can perceive.

• Text alternatives for images
• Captions and transcripts for multimedia
• Adaptable layouts without loss of information

2. Operable

Users must be able to navigate and interact with content.

• Full keyboard accessibility
• No keyboard traps
• Clear focus indicators

3. Understandable

Content and interfaces must be easy to understand.

• Predictable navigation
• Clear instructions and error messages
• Readable language

4. Robust

Content must work with current and future assistive technologies.

• Valid HTML
• ARIA used correctly
• Compatibility with screen readers and browsers

WCAG Conformance Levels Explained

WCAG defines three levels of conformance:

• Level A – Minimum accessibility
• Level AA - Industry-recommended standard
• Level AAA – Highest accessibility (often impractical for full sites)

Why Academic Publishers Should Target WCAG 2.2 Level AA

• Required by most accessibility laws
• Balanced between feasibility and inclusiveness
• Expected by universities, libraries, and funding agencies

What’s New in WCAG 2.2: Key Success Criteria

WCAG 2.2 introduces new success criteria that are especially relevant to academic platforms with complex interfaces.

1. Focus Appearance (2.2.7 – Level AA)

What it means:

Keyboard focus indicators must be clearly visible and distinguishable.

Why it matters for publishers:

• Researchers navigating article pages via keyboard need to see where focus is.
• Submission systems often fail to show visible focus states.

Best practices:

• High-contrast focus outlines
• Minimum focus area requirements
• Avoid removing default focus styles without replacements

2. Dragging Movements (2.2.6 – Level AA)

What it means:

Any functionality that requires dragging must have an alternative.

Publishing use cases:

• Reordering figures or tables in submission systems
• Interactive data visualizations
• Content management dashboards

Solution:

• Provide buttons or keyboard controls as alternatives

3. Target Size (Enhanced Accessibility)

What it means:

Clickable elements must be large enough to activate easily.

Why it matters today:

• Increased mobile access to journals
• Users with motor impairments benefit from larger targets

Recommended practices:

• Adequate spacing between links
• Avoid tiny inline action buttons

Technical Implementation for Academic Publishing Platforms

1. Semantic HTML and Structure

Correct semantic structure is the backbone of accessibility.

Best practices:

• One <h1> per page
• Logical heading hierarchy
• Proper use of <article>, <section>, <nav>, <main>

2. Accessible PDFs and Research Documents

PDFs are a major accessibility challenge in academic publishing.

WCAG-compliant PDF requirements:

• Tagged PDF structure
• Correct reading order
• Alt text for figures, charts, and equations
• Accessible tables
• Embedded fonts and metadata

Trend:

Publishers are increasingly shifting toward HTML-first publishing with accessible PDFs as derivatives.

3. Tables, Figures, and Data Visualizations

Academic content relies heavily on complex data.

Accessibility techniques:

• Table headers () with scope
• Captions and summaries
• Text alternatives for charts
• Avoid color-only meaning

4. Forms and Submission Systems

Editorial and peer-review platforms must meet WCAG 2.2 standards.

Key requirements:

• Proper labels for inputs
• Clear error identification
• Keyboard navigability
• Accessible authentication flows

Accessibility Testing and Quality Assurance

Automated Testing Tools

• Axe
• Lighthouse
• WAVE

Manual Testing

• Screen readers (NVDA, JAWS, Voiceover)
• Keyboard-only navigation
• Zoom and reflow testing

Best practice:

Accessibility testing should be integrated into CI/CD pipelines for publishing platforms.

Accessibility Roadmap for Academic Publishers

A structured roadmap ensures sustainable compliance.

Step-by-Step Approach

• Accessibility audit of platforms and content
• Define WCAG 2.2 Level AA targets
• Prioritize high-impact issues
• Train editorial and production teams
• Embed accessibility into author guidelines
• Monitor and improve continuously

Legal and Ethical Considerations

Regulatory Drivers

• ADA (USA)
• Section 508
• EN 301 549 (EU)
• EU Accessibility Act

Ethical Responsibility

Academic publishing exists to disseminate knowledge without barriers. Accessibility aligns directly with scholarly ethics and open access principles.

Business and SEO Benefits of WCAG 2.2 Compliance

Accessibility delivers measurable value:

• Improved SEO and SERP rankings
• Better user engagement
• Reduced bounce rates
• Increased citation potential
• Lower legal and remediation costs

Common Accessibility Challenges and Solutions

Current and Emerging Accessibility Trends

• AI-assisted accessibility remediation
• Accessibility-first publishing platforms
• Accessibility metrics in journal evaluations
• HTML-first and XML-driven publishing
• Accessibility as a ranking and procurement criterion

Conclusion:

WCAG 2.2 represents a critical milestone in the evolution of digital accessibility for academic publishers, addressing real-world usability challenges related to focus visibility, interaction design, and inclusive navigation. For journals, universities, research platforms, and scholarly publishers, aligning with WCAG 2.2 Level AA compliance is no longer optional; it is essential for legal readiness, inclusive access, global reach, and long-term digital sustainability.

By adopting WCAG 2.2 guidelines, academic publishers strengthen their commitment to accessible academic content, inclusive digital publishing, improved SEO performance, and enhanced user experience across devices and assistive technologies. Accessibility-first publishing not only supports researchers and learners with disabilities but also improves overall content discoverability, engagement, and citation potential.

Kryon Knowledge Works plays a vital role in enabling this transformation by supporting publishers with end-to-end digital publishing solutions, accessibility-aware platforms, structured content workflows, and compliance-ready architectures. With deep expertise in scholarly publishing ecosystems, accessibility standards, and scalable technology solutions, Kryon Knowledge Works helps academic publishers operationalize WCAG 2.2 compliance across journals, repositories, submission systems, and digital libraries.

As accessibility regulations tighten and expectations from universities, libraries, and indexing bodies continue to rise, publishers that proactively implement WCAG 2.2 accessibility best practices supported by experienced technology and publishing partners will lead the future of inclusive, compliant, and globally accessible scholarly communication.