4. Provide Headings and Summaries for Tables
Tables are formatted visually in a grid of data and that formatting provides context to the data. Through visual formatting a sighted user can quickly determine the purpose of the table and which rows/columns are the headers for the data. Assigning headers to the table also provides a layer of understanding of the data cells in the table. All of the attributes of the visual formatting of a table must have programmatic code equivalents for the non-sighted user. Luckily, Princeton's instance of the Drupal CMS will create WCAG AA compliant results if used correctly.
Best Practices
- Define column and row headers to add semantic understanding to the table structure
- Add a summary of the table's content and purpose for the non-sighted user that will be read aloud by their screen reader
- Avoid using tables as layout devices as the experience for the non-sighted user will be confusing