Pillar: Captioning & Transcribing Video and Audio Materials 

What and Why 

Captioning transforms audio into text displayed on a screen. Captioning can be added to a pre-recorded video or added to live videos in real time.  Captioning supports:  

• Effective communication for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing community, students with learning disabilities, and second-language learners to be able to engage with audio/video events and materials 
• Clarity when speakers are difficult to understand or background noise is high 
• Improved focus, engagement, and retention for most viewers. 

Transcripts are accurate written versions of spoken content. They are provided along with a video or audio file (e.g., podcasts) for easy download. Transcripts provide: 

• Ability to be read by a screen reader 
• An accurate, searchable record of audio content.  

Audio Description is a narrated explanation of important visual information, including context and clarification of speakers. Think of it like “alternative text” for video. Audio descriptions provide:  

• full access and participation for people who are blind or have low vision 
• highlighting of important visual aspects that may be missed or misunderstood (e.g., emotions and social cues portrayed) 
• flexibility in the viewer’s consumption of the media. 

Audio descriptions are needed in certain circumstances when visual information is not being clearly conveyed to the user through sound. Email the Digital Accessibility Coordinator to determine if your multimedia requires audio descriptions and to learn how to obtain them.  

Captioning and Transcription Best Practices 

• Use video and audio files that have captioning and transcription.  
• Review the entirety of captioned and transcribed video and audio files for complete accuracy. 
• Do not turn on the captioning auto-play feature. 
• Enable captions when showing content in a course or meeting. 
• Provide transcripts alongside prerecorded audio & video content. 
• Follow University guidance for when to provide captions and transcripts. 

How Tos for Captioning and/or Transcription 

NOTE for ALL METHODS BELOW: All captions and transcripts must be reviewed for accuracy and completeness by you, the content expert. In reviewing the accuracy of captions, ensure the following: 

• accuracy of technical terms, spelling, punctuation, and grammar  
• the meaning and intention of the material is preserved 
• captions are complete (all words are included; including speaker identification and non-speech information as needed) 
• captions are synchronized appropriately. 

How to Turn on Captions  

Select the "CC" button on the video’s media player to enable captions. The video does not have captions if the “CC” button is grayed out, missing, or cannot be selected. Captions will be listed as: 

• “English (auto generated)” captions have been produced using automatic speech recognition. Please check for accuracy 
• “English (American)” or “English” captions produced by a human/professional vendor. These are more likely to be accurate.   

How To Caption 

Opt for Captioned Materials

If using 3rd party videos in your course materials, opt for accurately-captioned videos. Contact your library liaison to help you.   

Professional Captioning/Transcription

Professional captioning of academic course content is recommended. Funded by the Provost's office and managed by the UVA Library, the Academic Captioning Project is a centrally funded effort to encourage the provision of accurate captions and transcripts for recorded academic course content. For captioning or transcription of academic course content, send a request through the Captioning Project.  

Auto-Generated Captions/Transcripts via Canvas Tools*

Video platforms available within Canvas (e.g.,  My Media/Media Gallery, Canvas Studio, Panopto) have built-in tools to automatically generate captions through Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) on pre-recorded videos.  

*ASR captions always require your review for accuracy and completeness. All four of the following criteria must be met to use ASR:  

• no one has a specific captioning accommodation (requires professional captioning)
• the video-event features people speaking clearly  
• there is limited background noise 
• you review the captions for accuracy and completeness. 

If all four criteria are not met, request professional captioning of your course materials through the Captioning Project.    

For Students with Approved Accommodations

The Student Disability Access Center (SDAC) continues to manage student-specific captioning accommodations. Follow the specific guidelines provided to you in the Accommodation Letter you received via email from SDAC. 

Events and Course Meetings: Live real-time captions

For any UVA sponsored hybrid or virtual event or class session, enable auto-captions and make them available to participants.  

• Zoom: Managing automated captions (read) 
• Microsoft Teams: Use live captions in Microsoft Teams meetings (read) 
• If the event is recorded and distributed later, review and edit the captions for completeness and accuracy before sharing in any digital format. 
• Complete the Professional Captioning Request Form or email [email protected] if an advance accommodation request for live captions has been made by an individual, 

How to Edit Existing Captions 

• In Canvas: How do I edit captions in My Media? | Integrated Tools | Learning Technology Services Help (read) 
• In Canvas Studio: How do I edit captions in Canvas Studio? (read) 
• In Zoom: follow instructions to edit the Transcript, and it will automatically edit the captions

Where can I get support or further training? 

Complete the Captioning and Transcription Request Form  (UVA Captioning Project) or contact [email protected] for assistance.  

Coming soon, Summer 2025: “Faculty Pathways for DA Support”  

For faculty designing or managing website content: Web Accessibility Tutorials 

References 

W3C Web Accessibility Initiative. (2024).  Making Audio and Video Media Accessible.