This is an unpublished draft preview that might include content that is not yet approved. The published website is at w3.org/WAI/.

Stefan, student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia in Stories of Web Users, How People with Disabilities Use the Web

Accessibility: It's about people

Note: This user story is an example of a person with this type of disability. Other people with this disability may have different experiences.

About Stefan

My text reader helps me focus on what I am reading. I don’t use it all the time but for long text it is super helpful.

Stefan is a student with dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). As a person with ADHD, Stefan has difficulty following multi-step or long tasks. This can make it hard to maintain focus on his schoolwork. Visual supports, such as icons and images, and good use of whitespace around what he is looking at can help him to focus. He can become lost in dense text and is unable to find the meaning. When this happens he gives up because it takes too long and is tiring. This has caused him to fall behind in his work compared to other students.

Stefan’s school has recently transitioned to using digital textbooks. This has been a huge improvement for Stefan who can now use his text-to-speech software to aid his understanding of what are sometimes complex texts. Stefan also uses the web for research. Unfortunately, his experience on the web can be varied. Often sites contain content such as animated advertisments and graphics which he can find distracting.

Stefan finds it easier to use websites that have a simple and consistent layout with content written in plain language. Images or icons can also help to reinforce the meaning of the text. Sometimes he uses functionality in his text-to-speech software that allows him to change the page background color. This is especially helpful when he is tired. Stefan also uses captions when watching videos because both hearing and seeing the words reinforces their meaning.

Stefan is a fan of old science fiction movies and spends a lot of time on fan made sites and forums. He has spending limits on his card and he uses this to buy fan memorabilia. The design of these sites and purchasing process can make this difficult. They are often quite busy with distracting advertisements and complicated checkout forms. He has found that he can access these sites on his mobile phone where he can switch on the browser reading mode to remove a lot of the background clutter. This allows him to focus on the task and makes the steps much clearer.

Stefan experiences problems with sites where the navigation of the site is unclear. He finds it much easier to use sites that include functions such as a sitemap, breadcrumb trails, or a search function. Stefan has difficulty with spelling so benefits from search functionality, which suggests alternative spellings and error corrections.

Barrier examples

Spelling suggestions
Barrier: “I have difficulty with spelling and sometimes misspell words. Sometimes I don’t get the search results I’m looking for.”
Works well: “I like when search tools offer alternative spellings or alternative search suggestions instead of just returning no results.”
Browser settings aren’t respected
Barrier: “I use browser settings to specify the font, text size, and line spacing I need but some sites don’t display my settings.”
Works well: “When I change settings in my browser, websites show those settings.”
Complex language
Barrier: “Complex language and sentence structure are confusing to me and hard to read and retain.
Works well: Use short sentences and plain language as much as possible.”
Excessive acronyms and abbreviations
Barrier: “Excessive use of acronyms and abbreviations is distracting and I often must reread several times or sometimes just get stuck and give up.”
Works well: “Spell out the complete words of an acronym at least the first time it is used. Avoid or explain abbreviations.”

Assistive technologies and adaptive strategies used

Video: Stefan, student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia

This video is also available on a W3C server: Video: Stefan, student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia (file format: MP4, file size: 346MB).

Text Transcript with Description of Visuals

Audio Visual
How people with disabilities use digital technology; Stefan, student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia. How people with disabilities use digital technology; Stefan, student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and dyslexia.
Hello! I’m Stefan. I have dyslexia and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder – ADHD. A man speaks directly to the camera.
I have difficulty recognizing or sounding out written words, even though I use those same words in conversation all the time. It affects my spelling and my reading comprehension. It often takes me a long time to figure out the individual words I’m reading, and then it’s hard for me to remember how the words in a sentence fit together in a meaningful way. The man is sitting down in a living room reading a magazine.
Digital books and documents are often much better for me. On the computer, on a tablet, or – my favorite – on my new e-reader. I can change the font type, text size, and line spacing, which makes it easier for me to read. I also use the read-aloud function because I read better when I can see and hear the text at the same time. It also highlights the words being read aloud and has a reading ruler, so that I can follow along more easily. The man is sitting down in a living room reading from a tablet. He is changing the text formatting by adjusting the settings on the device. He then puts on his headphones to listen to the text and follows along with the highlighted text.
Sometimes, though, digital books and documents don’t work well. Sometimes they are just scanned images. These also can’t be read aloud and I can’t change the text size and font. Some don’t have bookmarks, which I use to jump to the parts I want to focus on. Or, there are long chunks or text without any headings, so I have difficulty focusing on the content. It’s so much easier when text has more spacing and graphics to make them easier to follow. The man is sitting down in a living room reading from a laptop. He is scrolling through a complex document.
Another problem is when I have to do online research. I type in words, but sometimes I do it wrong, or use a different word that sounds the same, like “brake” when I mean “break”. Sometimes I land on websites with all these ads and things popping up and moving around the screen. With ADHD, I get distracted by these ads and videos, and sometimes I click on them and forget what I was meant to be doing. I use several pop-up blockers but they don’t always work. The man is sitting down in a living room reading from a laptop. We see word options Brake/Break appear on screen. He then looks at a website which contains a number of advertisements and pop-ups.
When I find an article I want to read, I try to remember to switch to reading mode in my browser. This usually removes all the stuff around the page and lets me focus on the text. But some websites don’t work well and the ads still appear, or the text is too difficult for me to read. I love it when websites work well with my settings and extensions. Like, the extension for spelling and grammar, which helps me when I’m typing things like email. That’s very important for me. The man is sitting down in a living room using a laptop. He types a short text and corrects an error using the spell checker.
You can help make technology accessible to me. Accessibility: It’s about people. The man speaks directly to the camera.
For more information from the Web Accessibility Initiative on how people with disabilities use digital technology, visit w3.org/WAI/people Accessibility: It’s about people; w3.org/WAI/people
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This is an unpublished draft preview that might include content that is not yet approved. The published website is at w3.org/WAI/.