Accessibility API 101
summary
Claim: the accessibility API is an older, slimmer layer than the DOM and many JavaScript frameworks break the mapping between visual DOM and assistive tech. Demonstrations use Edge devtools and NVDA to show a div/span table reads as isolated cells but a native <table> exposes headers and column relationships to screen readers. ARIA existed to patch the gap because JavaScript doesn't talk to the accessibility API. Refactoring accessibility later costs about 6–8× more; rule of thumb: native HTML elements first.
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chapters (6)
- 0:00Introduction to accessibility
- 10:35Native HTML elements importance
- 21:53DOM vs accessibility API
- 33:21JavaScript and accessibility myth
- 44:17Web evolution and accessibility
- 57:00Takeaways and Q&A
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