E-text, or electronic text, refers to a document or book presented as text in an electronic file.  This is a vital medium for people with a vision impairment, who can use screen readers or screen magnification programs to read the text.   

People with dyslexia might also request documents as electronic files.  There are specialised programs that assist people with dyslexia to read documents on a computer.

People who have difficulty physically handling papers and books can also benefit from reading via a computer.

Advantages of e-text include:

• The student can later reproduce in a different format if their needs change (eg. Their vision deteriorates)

• Most learning materials are produced using computers and can be modified to suit screen readers.

• The files can be sent quickly via email, and can be the basis for producing large print, Braille, or to be read on-screen

Disadvantages of e-text include:

• The materials are not portable unless student has notebook computer or similar device

• Some graphics are difficult to fit on the screen

• Features such as tables and graphics can be difficult to read using a screen reader.

Ask the student what format they are familiar with – do they use MS Word or Word Perfect, or do they want plain text files.

Layout of documents

This is a brief summary of the major features of accessible layout:

• Make sure that headings are clear

• Use leading (line spacing) of at least 25% greater than the text size.  This means that you would format your paragraphs with line spacing of at least 15 point for a font size of 12 point.

• Insert a blank line between paragraphs

• Do not indent paragraphs

• Ensure that good contrast is used

• Choose a clear font (a sans serif font such as Arial or Verdana is ideal)

• Use a minimum of 12 point font

• Avoid shading

• Use left justification (and ragged right edge)

Tables

Tables are a good way of laying out complex information for many people.  Screen readers, however, can struggle to read the text in an intelligible way, depending on the version of the screen reading software, the skill of the reader, and the complexity of the table. 

It can also be difficult to read text in tables using a screen magnification program, as you only see a small portion of the table on the screen, and you can lose track of what the columns and rows represent.

More Information

Accessible Electronic Documents

Accessible Information Solutions

http://www.nils.org.au/ais/print/resources/electronic_docs.html

This agency specialises in preparation of materials in a range of accessible formats.  This particular page on their site looks at how to create accessible Word, PDF and RTF documents.

Creating E-Text

High Tech Center Training Unit

http://www.htctu.fhda.edu/trainings/manuals/tutmain.htm

Choose the "Creating E-Text" document from the list of training manuals.

For more important information on converting materials, go to:

What to consider when converting materials in accessible formats (CD)