Accessibility QA Workbook: A Per-Course Testing Record

Questions answered by this guide

• ?How do I document that a course was tested for accessibility?
• ?What's the difference between a checklist and a QA workbook?
• ?What should an accessibility testing record actually include?
• ?How do I track whether a finding was actually fixed, not just found?

What you'll learn

• A checklist tells you what to check. A workbook is the evidence that you actually checked it
• Six sections: course info, method used, findings log, resolution status, sign-off, next re-test date
• Useful on its own, and as the paper trail behind a VPAT or compliance conversation later

What's inside

Whoever actually runs accessibility testing on a course and needs to show their work

1. 01Course and scope
2. 02Testing methods used
3. 03Findings log
4. 04Resolution tracking
5. 05Sign-off
6. 06Next re-test date

Why it matters

A checklist proves what should be checked. It doesn't prove what actually happened on a specific course, when, by whom, or whether a finding was ever resolved. If anyone ever asks "how do you know this course is accessible", a workbook is what answers that with evidence instead of "we checked it."

Best practices

• Fill this out per course, not once for the team, a workbook without a specific course and date attached isn't evidence of anything.
• Log every finding, not just the ones you fixed, a workbook that only shows clean results isn't credible as a record.
• Record resolution status per finding: fixed, deferred with a reason, or determined not to be a real issue, not just found/not found.
• Set the next re-test date when you close out a course's workbook, not when someone remembers to check again.

Common mistakes

• Only recording the final result, not what was actually tested to reach it.
• Leaving findings open with no documented decision, so nobody can tell later whether they were missed or deliberately deferred.
• Treating the workbook as a one-time document instead of something that gets reopened at the next re-test.

Practical checklist

• Course name, version, and scope of this test are recorded.
• Every testing method used (automated scan, keyboard, screen reader) is listed, not just the overall result.
• Every finding is logged, including ones later judged not to be real issues, with the reasoning.
• Each finding has a resolution status: fixed, deferred (with reason), or not applicable.
• A specific person signed off, with a date.
• A next re-test date is set before closing out this record.

Frequently asked questions

Summary

A checklist tells a tester what to check. A workbook records what they actually did: method, findings, resolution, sign-off, and when to check again, the evidence behind an accessibility claim, not just the claim itself.