Learn How/Put Into Practice

Module Topics

Module Outcomes

To learn how to properly caption a video
To learn how to transcribe audio
To request video and transcription services

What are captions and transcripts?

Captions are a text version of the spoken word in multimedia that are primarily intended for those who cannot hear the audio. Transcripts are an alternative for anyone who cannot access content from web audio or video. These text-based resources may be read for deaf/blind users through refreshable Braille and other assistive technologies. Transcripts aren't meant to replace media content but are an addition to the media content. Transcripts do not have to be verbatim accounts of the spoken word in a video. Additional descriptions, explanations, and off-screen activities that would be heard but not seen, for example, laughter or an explosion, should be included.

Why are captions and transcripts important?

According to US government figures, one person in five has some functional hearing limitation (WebAIM). For those who cannot access the audio, captions allow a user to access the words through assistive technology, such as a screen reader. As a Universal Design consideration, captions are useful in many capacities for students in various learning environments and abilities. Captions have useful functions beyond those who have hearing impairments, they may help students who have lower language fluency, those who need to access a muted video, or when a video is being played with a lot of ambient noise. Transcripts allow deaf/blind users to get content through the use of refreshable Braille and other devices. According to WebAIM, for most web videos, both captions and a text transcript should be provided. For content that is audio-only, a transcript will usually suffice.

Resources

WebAIM Captions, Transcriptions, and Audio Descriptions