Heading Structure Guide

Questions answered by this guide

• ?Why does it matter if my heading is a "real" heading?
• ?How do screen reader users navigate by heading?
• ?How do I add a heading in Rise?
• ?How do I structure headings in Storyline?
• ?Should I skip heading levels for a smaller-looking title?
• ?Which WCAG criterion covers headings?

What you'll learn

• A heading needs to be marked as a real heading, not just styled to look like one
• Screen reader users jump between headings to navigate, styled text is invisible to that shortcut
• Heading levels should follow the actual structure, not be picked for how the text size looks

What's inside

Instructional designers structuring section titles in Storyline or Rise

1. 01The concept
2. 02A worked example
3. 03How to fix it in Rise
4. 04How to fix it in Storyline
5. 05Choosing the right heading level

Why it matters

Screen reader users often jump directly between headings to get a quick sense of a course's structure, the same way a sighted learner might skim a page by its bold section titles. Text that's only styled to look like a heading, large font, bold, centered, is invisible to that navigation shortcut, a screen reader has no way to know it's a heading rather than a regular sentence. This touches two WCAG success criteria: 1.3.1 (Info and Relationships, Level A), because a heading's structural role has to be programmatically determinable, not just visible, and 2.4.6 (Headings and Labels, Level AA), which requires that once a heading exists, its wording actually describes the section's topic or purpose, not just that a heading is present.

When you'll encounter this

• You're adding a section title or lesson title and reach for large, bold text instead of your tool's real Heading option.
• You're reviewing a course someone else built, and a title looks right but you're not sure what block type it actually is.
• You're deciding how many heading levels a lesson needs, and whether to skip a level for a smaller-looking title.
• A11yCheck flags a heading structure issue on a scan report.

Examples

Best practices

• Use your tool's real Heading option, not large, bold text styling, for anything that visually functions as a section title.
• Choose the heading level that matches its place in the structure, don't skip levels just because a smaller size looks better visually.
• Keep heading wording descriptive enough to make sense on its own, out of context, the same way a good link or button label does.
• Keep heading text reasonably short. A heading that runs several lines is harder to use as a quick navigation point.
• Use headings consistently throughout a course rather than mixing real headings and styled text from lesson to lesson.

Common mistakes

• Using large, bold text instead of a real Heading block or style, because it was faster or looked identical.
• Skipping heading levels, jumping from a top-level heading straight to a much smaller one, purely for visual reasons.
• Writing heading text that only makes sense with the surrounding paragraph, rather than standing on its own.
• Mixing real headings and styled text inconsistently across a course.

Practical checklist

• Every section or lesson title that visually functions as a heading is a real heading, not styled text.
• Heading levels follow the actual structure, not just what size looked best.
• Every heading's wording describes its section's topic on its own, out of context.
• Heading text is reasonably short and used consistently across the course.

Frequently asked questions

Summary

A heading needs to be a real, marked heading, not text styled to look like one, so screen reader users can navigate a course by jumping between headings. This is WCAG 1.3.1 for the structural marking itself, and 2.4.6 for making sure the heading's wording actually describes what follows.