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Welcome to our December issue of the Accessibility Minute Newsletter! This newsletter is produced by the CU Boulder Digital Accessibility Office (DAO) and covers one accessibility skill or topic per month. Please visit the DAO website to access past newsletters. As always, thank you for taking a minute (or two) to read.

Using Styles for Proper Heading Structure in Microsoft Office

Last month's newsletter covered heading structure, an appetizer for this month’s "main course" newsletter, which covers practical techniques for applying and customizing headings using Microsoft Office Styles.

How to Use Microsoft Styles for Heading Structure

To apply programmatic headings in Microsoft Office, you must utilize the Styles tool, located on the Home tab of the Ribbon. Select or put your cursor on the line of text you wish to format as a heading, then choose the appropriate heading level from the . You can also apply the heading style before you type out your heading. As a shortcut, you can hold Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) + Alt + the heading level number you wish to apply to the text (e.g., Ctrl or Command + Alt + 2 to apply a heading level 2). .

Please note that Microsoft PowerPoint does not utilize Styles to apply headings. The Title and Subtitle elements used in PowerPoint’s Slide Layout options are recognized by assistive technologies as headings.

Title Style or Heading 1?

You may notice the Title style option within the Styles Pane. This should not be used in place of Heading 1, as it does not create a navigable heading for assistive technologies nor does it appear in the document outline.

A document title is the main name of the document as a whole, while a Heading 1 serves as the primary structural element and main topic of the content. To add a document title, select File, navigate to Info, then enter a document title within the Properties option, which may be the same text as your Heading 1.

How to Modify Heading Styles

If you want your headings to match your brand or personal design preference, you can customize them through the following steps:

1. Within the Styles Pane, open the context menu (right-click) on the heading style you wish to customize, and select Modify from the drop-down menu. If you're not using a mouse, select the Styles button, Manage Styles button, then arrow to the style you wish to customize and select Modify.
2. From the Modify Style dialogue window, you can now adjust the font, size, color, and spacing of this specific heading level.
   1. To set your customized heading designs as the default for all new Word documents, select the “New documents based on this template” radio button.
3. Select OK to save changes.

Alternatively, if you’ve already designed headings within the document prior to applying a programmatic heading styles, select the heading text, and from the Styles Pane open the context menu (right-click) on the heading level you wish to apply, and select “Update Heading to Match Selection.”

Using Headings to Create a Tables of Contents

Fun Fact: Programmatic headings can create an instant Table of Contents (TOC). An appropriate heading structure enhances accessibility, and it can also save you time! Apply the following steps to generate a TOC in seconds:

1. Place your cursor or focus where you want to add a TOC.
2. From the References tab in the Ribbon, select Table of Contents.
3. After choosing one of the built-in design options, the headings will convert to a TOC. Selecting “Custom Table of Contents” allows you to customize the look and information included in your TOC.

If you create a TOC but need to add new headings or update heading names in your document, put your cursor or focus in the TOC and select Update Table. This will refresh the contents of your TOC.

Final Thoughts

By using Microsoft Office’s Styles to apply proper heading structure, you’re creating content that is accessible, navigable, and efficient for everyone. Plus, you save time with features like automatic Tables of Contents and consistent formatting. It’s a win-win!