Anthology Ally
Ally is a tool used to make content more accessible by providing unique "Alternative Formats". There are several formats that Ally will generate based off the original uploaded content. Those formats are as follows:
- OCR’d version (for scanned documents)
- Tagged PDF (currently for Word, Powerpoint and OpenOffice/LibreOffice files)
- Immersive Reader
- Mobile-friendly HTML
- Audio
- ePub
- Electronic Braille
- BeeLine Reader
- Translated Version (disabled by default; administrators can submit a support case to have it enabled)
It is important to remember that Ally can only provide alternative formats for certain content types. Those content types are as follows:
- PDF files
- Microsoft® Word files
- Microsoft® Powerpoint® files
- OpenOffice/LibreOffice files
- Uploaded HTML files
- Content created in the LMS course editor (WYSIWYG)
Ally is a great tool for users to make their content more accessible for a variety of learners. To learn more about Ally and its capabilities please visit Anthology Ally Help.
To learn more about the kinds of alternative formats Ally can generate, click here.
Overview
Alternative Formats
Ally for Students
Ally has many uses, the most noticeable being the alternative formats, the accessibility score indicator, instructor feedback, and the course accessibility report.
Alternative Formats
These alternative formats are automatically generated based on the content upload into Blackboard. The best way to access these formats is to click on the icon next to any upload. The icon should look like this:
Accessibility Score Indicator
The accessibility score indicator can be shown next to documented that’s been linked or uploaded. It will have a small, scale icon that ranges in color. When the mouse hovers over this icon, Ally will provide a score that demonstrates the level of accessibility. The score and its meaning have been provided blow:
Instructor Feedback
Instructor feedback is a helpful tool that Ally provides to give content creators the ability to see suggestions that Ally makes to improve the accessibility score of a document. To access this feedback, click on the accessibility score indicator. This will then bring up the documented that was uploaded with suggestions that the content creator can make to increase the accessibility score.
Course Accessibility Report
This tool will give instructor the ability to take a deeper look into how accessible their content and course is, as a whole. This report will also give suggestions on how to fix the content to make it more accessible to a variety of learners.
To learn more about Ally and how it can help the accessibility of your course, navigate to a quick overview of Ally and its capabilities.
Some of the links on this page may require additional software to view.