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Screen-Reader Walkthrough Checklist (WW-63e)

This is a checklist for a real person to manually listen to WorkWingman with a screen reader. It's not automated — you turn on NVDA (or Windows Narrator), follow a script, and listen to what the app announces. The automated tests already prove that labels and focus management are correct; this walk-through judges whether the experience is coherent by ear: does the reading order make sense? Are you told what's happening? Can you find what you need?

Time: 10 minutes. Windows only. One person, one screen reader.

Setup: How to Turn On a Screen Reader

Pick one:

  • NVDA (recommended): Download and install the free NVDA screen reader. Then start it (Start menu → NVDA). It will announce your desktop out loud.
  • Windows Narrator (built-in): Press Ctrl + Win + Enter. Narrator will start and announce the desktop. (Turn it off the same way.)

Both work the same for this walkthrough. NVDA is louder and clearer if you're new to screen readers.

Five Keys You'll Use

Key What it does
Tab Move focus to the next button, link, or form field.
Shift+Tab Move focus backwards.
H Jump to the next heading (NVDA only; in Narrator, just Tab through everything).
D Jump to the next landmark like "main content" or "navigation" (NVDA only).
Enter or Space Press a button or click a link.

That's all you need. Arrow keys move within text or between options. Escape closes dialogs.

The Walkthrough: Route by Route

1. Land on the Queue (Jobs List)

  1. Start the app (WorkWingman icon).
  2. Once it's open, press Tab once.
  3. You should hear: "Skip to main content, link" (or similar).
  4. Red flag: You don't hear a skip link, or Tab lands somewhere deep in the page.
  5. Press H three times to jump through headings.
  6. You should hear: Headings like "Queue" (the job list), maybe "Filters," and so on in a logical top-to-bottom order.
  7. Red flag: A heading is named something useless like "Section" or a heading is in the wrong order (e.g., a subheading before the main one).
  8. Press Tab a few times and then Enter on one job in the list.
  9. You should hear: The job title and company clearly announced.
  10. Red flag: You hear "Button" with no description, or the job title is cut off.

Write down: Did the headings tell you what you were looking at? Did the job cards announce the right information?

2. Sidebar Navigation

  1. Press D to jump to navigation (or Shift+Tab repeatedly to move backwards).
  2. You should hear: Something like "Navigation" or "Navigation menu" or landmarks that name it.
  3. Red flag: You can't find the navigation, or it's not labeled.
  4. Press H inside the sidebar to find navigation headings (or press Tab to move through links one by one).
  5. You should hear: Links that are clearly named: "Queue," "Onboarding," "Application Progress," etc.
  6. Red flag: A link says "Link" with no name, or the name doesn't match the page it goes to.
  7. Tab through the sidebar slowly.
  8. You should hear: Each item announces itself as a link (the screen reader says "link" after the name).
  9. Red flag: Silence between links, or a link that doesn't say "link" after its name.

Write down: Did every navigation item name itself? Did anything sound broken or blank?

3. Onboarding Form (Profile Page)

  1. Navigate to the onboarding/profile page (use the sidebar).
  2. Press Tab to move through the form fields one by one.
  3. You should hear: For each field, first the label ("Email," "Phone," "First Name"), then the type of field ("edit text" or "text input").
  4. Example: "Email, edit text" then "Phone, edit text."
  5. Red flag: You hear just "edit text" with no label, or you hear the label but not the field type.
  6. Tab to a dropdown or select menu.
  7. You should hear: The label, then the field type ("combo box" or "dropdown"), then the current selection.
  8. Example: "Education Level, combo box, selected: Bachelor's Degree."
  9. Red flag: You hear just "combo box" with no label, or the selected value is missing.

Write down: Does every field announce its label before the input? Is anything left blank or unnamed?

4. Apply to a Job (Judgement Pause — the "Which Degree?" Dialog)

This is a key flow. When you apply to a job, the app may ask you which of your degrees matches the job's form field. This is a judgement pause — the app is asking you a question. It should announce the question and your options clearly, and you should be able to answer with the keyboard.

  1. Go to a job and press Enter to start applying (or click the Apply button).
  2. The app guides you through the application form. When it reaches a question about education or experience, press Tab until you land in a dialog or popup (you'll hear a bell sound or "Dialog" announced).
  3. You should hear: The question clearly (e.g., "Which of your degrees matches 'Bachelor's of Science'?").
  4. Press Down Arrow to move between options.
  5. You should hear: Each option announced (e.g., "Computer Science, Bachelor's degree, option 1 of 3").
  6. Press Enter to pick one.
  7. You should hear: The dialog closes and the app continues to the next question.
  8. Red flag: The dialog is silent or the question doesn't make sense; you can't figure out which option is which; pressing Enter does nothing or the app seems stuck.

Write down: Did the question make sense by ear? Could you pick an option and move forward? Did anything confuse you?

5. Apply to a Job (Account Wall Pause — "You Need an Account")

The app may pause and tell you that you need to make an account on a job site (LinkedIn, Greenhouse, Workday, etc.) before continuing. This should announce clearly that you need to take action, and you should be able to reach the username and password fields to copy them (or create an account).

  1. Continue applying to the same job or pick a new one.
  2. The app may announce "Account needed to continue: [Site Name]" (e.g., "Greenhouse," "LinkedIn").
  3. You should hear: The site name and the fact that you need an account, clearly stated.
  4. Red flag: Silent pause; no announcement; you don't know why the app stopped.
  5. Tab through the form.
  6. You should hear: Username, password, or link to create an account — all clearly labeled.
  7. Red flag: Fields with no labels, or the account form is hard to navigate by keyboard.
  8. Once you've noted the credentials or created an account, close the dialog or return to the app.

Write down: Did you understand why the app paused? Could you reach and read the username/password fields (to copy them to the job site)? Was the restart smooth?

What to Write Down (The Red Flags)

For each screen/flow, note:

  • Reading order: Did the page make sense from top to bottom? Or did something jump around?
  • Verbosity: Too quiet (you missed information), too chatty (endless announcements), or just right?
  • Stuck moments: Any place where you got lost, or a dialog didn't respond to keyboard input?
  • Confusing-but-technical: Anything that was technically correct but sounded weird (e.g., a link that says "Apply for [long job title]" and you had to listen to the whole title to know it's a link)?

The Takeaway

This is a judgment call, not a pass/fail test. The automated gates catch mechanical problems (labels, focus, contrast). You're listening for usability: Does this feel like an app a blind person could use to find and apply for a job? If something feels off, note it — those notes feed back into the backlog.

Write down what you heard, what confused you, and what worked well. That's the whole checklist.