ASPIRE report

ASPIRE Platforms

Platform

Elsevier ScienceDirect

ASPIRE Review Date

11/02/2020

URL

https://www.elsevier.com/solutions/sciencedirect/support/web-accessibility

ASPIREscore (%)

97.06

RANK

VERIFIED

Gold

Platform Update?**

URL Update Date

Updated URL

Notes

COMMUNICATION

The Communication section assesses the Accessibility Statement for its provision of information and level of contact information availability.

Accessibility Information - Discoverability

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Is the accessibility information discoverable on the supplier's website?

Accessibility information is easy to find. If yes, 2 points.
Accessibility information is difficult to find. If yes, 1 point.
Accessibility information not found. If yes, 0 points.

Accessibility Information - Currency

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. When was the information last updated?

Last updated within the last year. If yes, 2 points.
Last updated more than a year ago. If yes, 1 point.
No information available. If yes, 0 points.

Contact Information

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. What level of contact information is provided by the supplier?

Contact details include specific options (e.g. named person / phone / dedicated accessibility email). If yes, 2 points.
Contact details include a generic contact option (e.g. main switchboard number). If yes, 1 point.
No contact details available. If yes, 0 points.

Response Times

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the platform provider give information about target response times for sourcing unprotected files or accessible formats where required for disabled students?

Accessibility information includes target fulfilment times of 1 - 5 business days. If yes, 3 points.

Accessibility information includes target fulfilment times of 6 - 10 business days. If yes, 2 points.

Accessibility information includes target fulfilment times of 11+ business days. If yes, 1 point.

No information available on response times. If yes, 0 points.

CONTENT INFORMATION

The Content Information section assesses the Accessibility Statement for the level of information provided about content files and user permissions.

Digital rights management (DRM) - Commercial Content

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the supplier employ DRM for online reading through the default interface?

Content is signposted as DRM-free. If yes, 2 points.
Digital rights management (DRM) restrictions are clearly explained. If yes, 1 point.
There is no information on DRM. If yes, 0 points.

Digital rights management (DRM) - Content Requests

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Learning providers may need to obtain a DRM-free copy of a textbook if a disabled student's needs aren't met by the online platform. Does the platform provider's accessibility statement include guidance for requesting accessible or DRM-free copies in these circumstances?

Yes, detailed guidance is available on how to do this. If yes, 2 points.
Some guidance is available on how to do this. If yes, 1 point.
There is no information on this. If yes, 0 points.

Advice on reading options

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Reading online through the platform interface can give a different accessibility experience from downloading a chapter or downloading a book. Does the accessibility statement give any advice on the accessibility features of reading online versus download options for different accessibility needs?

Detailed guidance is available. If yes, 2 points.
Some guidance is available. If yes, 1 point.
There is no information on this. If yes, 0 points.

Image descriptions

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Different online platforms may provide different levels of support for image descriptions such as Alt tags and Long Descriptions. The publisher is responsible for the image descriptions (not the aggregator) but the aggregator's platform should support image descriptions where they are available in publisher's files. Is this mentioned?

Specific information available. If yes, 2 points.
Generic information available. If yes, 1 point.
No information on image descriptions. If yes, 0 points.

Navigation

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the aggregator provide information about navigational tagging, keyboard navigation and reading order in their online reading platform? This may vary with the different source formats being rendered in the platform - e.g. PDF versus EPUB or HTML. How much information is available on navigation?

Information is available on navigational tagging (e.g. heading levels, hyperlinks), keyboard navigation AND reading order. If yes, 3 points.
Information available on structural tagging, keyboard navigation OR reading order. If yes, 2 points.
Navigation options are planned for next 6 - 12 months. If yes, 1 point.
No information available on heading structure or reading order. If yes, 0 points.

Screen reader compatibility

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the accessibility statement include information on the platform's compatibility with screen reader technologies? This may include information on recommended browser type and version for optimum compatibility.

Detailed and specific information (e.g. what works/doesn't work; which were tested etc). If yes, 3 points.
Generic information is available but short on detail. If yes, 2 points.
Screen reader compatibility planned for next 6 - 12 months. If yes, 1 point.
No information available on screen reader compatibility. If yes, 0 points.

Text-to-speech compatibility

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the accessibility statement include information on the platform's compatibility with text to speech technologies? This might include inbuilt features, third party tools or suggested browser plugins.

Detailed and specific information (e.g. what works/doesn't work; which were tested etc). If yes, 3 points.
Generic information is available but short on detail. If yes, 2 points.
Text to speech compatibility planned for next 6 - 12 months. If yes, 1 point.
No information is available on text to speech. If yes, 0 points.

Magnification + Reflow

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the accessibility statement include information on magnification and reflow in the online reading platform? This might vary according to the format of the source file - is information available on file format differences?

Information available on magnification and reflow. [3]
Information available on magnification. [2]
Magnification and reflow options are planned for next 6 - 12 months. [1]
No information is available on magnification and reflow. [0]

Colours + Contrasts

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the accessibility statement include information on changing colours or contrast levels on the platform? This might include inbuilt features, third party tools or browser plugins.

Detailed and specific information is available. If yes, 3 points.
Generic information is available (e.g. 'use a browser plugin.'). If yes, 2 points.
Contrast and colour functionality planned for next 6 - 12 months. If yes, 1 point.
No information is available on colour and contrast. If yes, 0 points.

Copying + Printing

Score:

ASPIRE criteria. Does the aggregator provide information about copying and print limits in their online reading platform?

Specific information available on copy/print limits (e.g. pages or percentages). If yes, 2 points.
Generic information available on copy/print limits. If yes, 1 point.
No information available on copy/print limits. If yes, 0 points.

Scoring

The ASPIRE 2018 score is based on crowd-sourced data and is an aggregate score across audited URLs. For a breakdown of the individual scores, please consult the original ASPIRE 2018 data, available for download at the link below.

ASPIRE 2018

** Platform Update

If a platform has updated their accessibility statement but does not wish to be ASPIREverified we are happy to include reference to their updated statement by referencing the updated URL link. If the "Platform Update?" option is "yes" then the URL has been updated by the platform but is not ASPIREverified.