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Cogniti Accessibility Statement

  • Effective Date: November 2025
  • Product: Cogniti Educational AI Platform
  • Organisation: The University of Sydney

Our commitment to accessibility

The University of Sydney is committed to ensuring that Cogniti is accessible to all users, including those with
disabilities. We strive to conform to recognised accessibility standards and continuously improve the user
experience for everyone.

Accessibility standards compliance

Cogniti has been developed with reference to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 standards. Our platform incorporates accessibility features aligned with Level AA compliance criteria.

Accessibility features

Keyboard navigation

  • Full keyboard navigation support across all interactive elements
  • Logical tab order throughout the interface
  • Keyboard shortcuts for common actions
  • Focus indicators on interactive elements

Screen reader support

  • Semantic HTML structure with proper heading hierarchy
  • ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) labels and roles throughout the interface
  • ARIA live regions for dynamic content updates (role=”status” and role=”alert”)
  • Descriptive alt text for images and icons
  • Screen reader-friendly error messages and notifications
  • Over 468 ARIA attributes implemented across 20+ template files

Visual accessibility

  • Skip-to-content links for efficient navigation
  • High contrast interface elements
  • Colour contrast calculation utilities for programmatic validation
  • Resizable text without loss of functionality
  • Visual focus indicators for keyboard navigation
  • Support for user-customisable interface elements

Content structure

  • Proper HTML5 semantic elements
  • Hierarchical heading structure (H1-H6)
  • Descriptive link text
  • Form labels properly associated with input fields
  • Table headers and data cells appropriately marked up

Interactive elements

  • Accessible tooltips with proper ARIA implementation
  • Tooltip content available to screen readers via aria-label attributes
  • Keyboard-accessible dropdowns and modals
  • Clear focus states for all interactive controls
  • Accessible data tables with pagination controls
  • Table column filters with descriptive ARIA labels

Forms and input

  • Descriptive labels for all form fields
  • Error messages clearly associated with form controls
  • Input field validation with accessible error messaging
  • CSRF protection without compromising accessibility

Dynamic content

  • Accessible modal dialogs with proper focus management
  • Live region announcements for status updates and notifications
  • Accessible rich text editor (HugeRTE with WCAG support)
  • Screen reader notifications for AJAX updates and toast messages

Security with accessibility

  • Content Security Policy (CSP) implementation that maintains accessibility
  • XSS protection through HTML sanitisation
  • Secure authentication flows that preserve accessibility features
  • CSRF protection integrated into accessible forms

Multi-modal interaction

  • Voice input support for chat interactions (where enabled)
  • Alternative text input methods
  • Multiple export formats (Excel, Word, Email) for content accessibility
  • Print-friendly conversation views

Assistive technology compatibility

  • Compatible with major screen readers (JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver)
  • Support for browser zoom up to 200%
  • Keyboard-only operation support
  • Compatible with browser accessibility extensions

Technical implementation

Frontend accessibility features

JavaScript Utilities: Comprehensive accessibility helper functions including:

  • HTML escaping and sanitisation
  • ARIA-compliant tooltip activation
  • Accessible notification system with ARIA alerts
  • Focus management for modals and dialogs
  • Keyboard navigation handlers

Known limitations

We are continuously working to improve accessibility across all features. Current areas of ongoing development
include:

  • Enhanced keyboard shortcuts for advanced features
  • Additional language support for internationalisation
  • Continued refinement of colour contrast ratios

Third-party components

Cogniti utilises industry-standard accessible third-party libraries:

  • Bootstrap 5: WCAG 2.1 AA compliant framework
  • Tippy.js: Accessible tooltip library
  • Tabulator: Accessible data table library with ARIA support
  • HugeRTE: Accessible rich text editor
  • Showdown: Markdown renderer with accessibility features
  • MathJax: Accessible mathematical notation rendering

Assistive technologies tested

Cogniti has been tested with:

  • Screen readers (JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver)
  • Keyboard-only navigation
  • Browser zoom and text scaling
  • High contrast mode
  • Voice recognition software

Feedback and support

We welcome feedback on the accessibility of Cogniti. If you encounter any accessibility barriers or have suggestions for improvement, please get in touch.

Continuous improvement

The University of Sydney is committed to ongoing accessibility improvements. We:

  • Regularly review and update our accessibility practices
  • Conduct periodic accessibility audits
  • Incorporate user feedback into development priorities
  • Stay current with evolving accessibility standards and best practices

Conformance status

Partial Conformance: Cogniti partially conforms to WCAG 2.2 Level AA. “Partially conforms” means that some parts of the content do not fully conform to the accessibility standard. We are actively working to achieve full conformance.

Additional information

  • Platform: Web-based application (HTML5, CSS3, JavaScript)
  • Supported Browsers: Modern browsers with accessibility feature support (Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge)
  • Mobile Accessibility: Responsive design supporting mobile assistive technologies
  • Document Formats: Support for accessible document formats (PDF, DOCX, XLSX)

Last reviewed: November 2025

Next review date: June 2026