Table of Contents

Key Accessibility Standards
Best Practices for Math Accessibility
Platform-Specific Guidelines
Evaluation and Validation Tools
Digital Math Formats

Key Accessibility Standards

Several standards and guidelines address mathematics accessibility:

Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

WCAG 2.1 includes relevant success criteria for mathematical content:

1.1.1 Non-text Content (Level A): Math requires text alternatives
1.3.1 Info and Relationships (Level A): Mathematical structure must be preserved
1.4.5 Images of Text (Level AA): Math should not be presented as images
1.4.10 Reflow (Level AA): Math should reflow when zoomed
2.1.1 Keyboard (Level A): Math interactions must be keyboard accessible

PDF/UA-2 (Universal Accessibility Version 2)

PDF/UA-2 standards require:

Properly tagged mathematical content
MathML representation for equations

EPUB Accessibility

The EPUB Accessibility specification recommends:

Using MathML for mathematical expressions
Providing text alternatives for complex notations
Ensuring math is properly structured

Best Practices for Math Accessibility

Beyond formal standards, these best practices ensure maximum accessibility:

Use MathML whenever possible
- Provides semantic structure for assistive technologies
- Enables proper reading by screen readers
- Allows for braille output
Avoid images of equations
- Images lack semantic information
- Cannot be properly interpreted by assistive technologies
- Do not scale well
Structure content logically
- Use proper headings and organization
- Provide context for equations
- Label equations consistently
Test with assistive technologies
- Verify with screen readers
- Check braille output when possible
- Test with actual users

Platform-Specific Guidelines

Different platforms have specific requirements:

Web: Use MathML, MathJax, or other accessible rendering solutions
Word: Use Equation Editor with proper settings
PDF: Ensure math is tagged with MathML structure elements
EPUB: Include MathML representations

Evaluation and Validation Tools

Unfortunately, there are not many tools can help assess math accessibility. Test the documents manually using a user's preferred assistive technologies and settings.

Digital Math Formats

For detailed information on formats, explore: Introduction to Digital Math Formats.