Finding Accessible Videos

Introduction

Pre-recorded videos used in online courses—from videos produced by TED, PBS, and Crash Course to those created by individuals and hosted on YouTube—can be a useful way to explain concepts, demonstrate processes, and bring course content to life.

Accurate captions are an important part of making sure students can access the information in these videos. As you curate resources for your course, keep in mind that just because a video has captions doesn’t mean they’re accurate or cover all the visual material presented in the video. A caption icon on YouTube only indicates that captions are available, so you’ll need to check them for accuracy.

This tip sheet will show you how to find pre-captioned videos and check their captions before you include them in your course.

Understanding Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)

Under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), federal regulations establish accessibility requirements for web content and mobile apps provided by state and local governments, using WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the technical standard. This includes Level A criteria, such as Success Criterion 1.2.2, which requires captions for prerecorded video with audio content.

A Closer Look

Not every “CC” icon means the same thing. Here’s where to look for accessible videos and what to check before you assign them to your students.

Start with Your Library’s Streaming Collections

Your library likely already subscribes to a streaming platform built for classroom use. Check there before searching the open web. For example, the Universities of Wisconsin campuses all have access from within the Canvas LMS to Films on Demand, which is Section 508 compliant and provides captioning and interactive transcripts for its English-language content.

Use the platform’s advanced search to filter for videos with closed captioning or interactive transcripts, rather than checking titles one by one. One caveat: not every title on the platform is captioned, so the filter step still matters.

Search YouTube the Smart Way

YouTube hosts a huge amount of usable classroom content, but most of it only has auto-generated captions, which are often inaccurate and missing punctuation. A quick two-step check will save you from assigning something that only looks accessible.

First, filter your results: after searching, select Filters, then choose Subtitles/CC under Features. This narrows your list to videos with some caption track. Second—and this is the step people skip—open the video, click the settings gear, and check the caption label. If it reads “English,” it’s likely human-created or edited; if it reads “English (auto-generated),” treat it as uncaptioned until you’ve reviewed it yourself.

Check Auto-Captions for the Details

WCAG doesn’t set a numeric accuracy score, but it does require captions to be a complete text equivalent: this includes every spoken word, each speaker change identified, and relevant sounds like laughter or a doorbell included and all synced to the audio. Auto-generated captions routinely miss these details—dropped punctuation, misheard words, no speaker labels—so a captioned-looking video can still fail the standard.

Use Google’s Video Search Filters

Google’s video search has a similar filter, found under Tools > Closed Captioned when you search the Videos tab. It works much like YouTube’s—a useful first pass, but it doesn’t distinguish auto-generated captions from human-edited ones, so the same verification step still applies.

You can also narrow your search to institutions covered by the same accessibility rules as yours. Public colleges, universities, and government agencies (.edu and .gov) are also subject to WCAG, so video hosted on these sites is more likely to already meet accessibility standards. Try combining “site:.edu” or “site:.gov” with your topic to find it.

Check Auto-Captions for Accuracy

A caption icon only confirms a caption track exists—not that it’s accurate. Always check the video’s own caption settings before you assign it. If it’s labeled “auto-generated,” review it yourself or keep looking.

Additional Resources