Ally for Canvas: what to know
Who this is for:
Current Whitman faculty and students
This article provides an overview of the Ally tool in Canvas. Ally allows faculty members to assess and address the accessibility of their course content. Ally gives students multiple alternative formats of course documents.
What is Ally?
Ally is a tool inside Canvas courses that gives instructors ways to identify which parts of their course sites might need addressing to help ensure optimum accessibility for all students. It does so by automatically identify potential issues, explaining what they are, as well as how the instructor can address the issues. Meanwhile, for students, Ally automatically generates multiple alternative formats to course materials, including ePub, MP3, and more.
Sometimes this is confusing, but good to know: Ally is not made by Instructurer (makers of Canvas). It is made by Anthology, makers of Blackboard, but it’s made to work inside many different Learning Management Systems, like Canvas.
How to use Ally
Students
Access multiple alternative formats of course material wherever you find the Alternative Formats button. These buttons are only available to students.
Video: Ally Alternative Formats (under 3 minutes)
Faculty members
Access accessibility information on a per-item basis by clicking on accessibility score icons visible throughout your course. These buttons are only available to course instructors.
Access a comprehensive accessibility dashboard for each of your courses through the Course Accessibility Report, which is found in the Navigation list of tools. This dashboard is only available to course instructors.
Learn more about Ally
Excellent nuanced information about Ally from Kennesaw State University