Lesson 8 of 9
Test without overclaiming
Product teams can find serious defects with screen reader testing. That does not make occasional testers representative of experienced users.
In this lesson
Separate compatibility checks, exploratory testing, and user validation.
What teams can test
- Whether every required control can be reached and operated
- Whether names, roles, states, and values are meaningful
- Whether focus moves predictably and context is preserved
- Whether core tasks can be completed
- Whether important dynamic changes are announced
What teams should not conclude
- That a flow is efficient or natural for expert users
- That one working combination proves all supported combinations
- That automated checks prove screen reader usability
- That brief internal testing replaces research with regular users
Record enough context
Document device, operating system, browser or app, screen reader and version, exact navigation path, expected result, actual result, and impact on the user's task.
What to remember
Team testing is a quality practice. Research with experienced users answers different questions.
Try this with your team
Rewrite one existing accessibility test so another tester can reproduce it without seeing the original screen.