Column and Row Headers in Microsoft Word
with JAWS and MAGic
In many tables, the first row, going from left to right, contains headers for the information in the
columns below it. Also, many times the first column, going up and down, contains headers for
the information in the rows to the right. If a table is not properly coded, JAWS and MAGic can
be changed to treat the information in the first row and the first column as headers. The settings
for JAWS are as follows:
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Only Marked Headers (default)
Off
Row
Column
Both Row and Column
If a table has been properly marked up with column and row headers, when moving left and right
in a table, you would hear the item in each column at the top of the column and then the contents
of the current cell. When moving up and down in a table, you hear the item at the beginning of
each row and then the contents of the current cell.
Repeat as Header Row for Word Tables (Microsoft Word
Setting)
When you create tables in Microsoft Word that cover more than one page it is nice to have the
column headers appear at the top of the second and subsequent pages. This is also a critical step
in creating the table with accessibility in mind before converting the table to PDF if you are
planning to do that. If the table spans more than one page remember to mark the row with the
column headings in the table properties to "Repeat as header row at the top of each page."
1. Make sure the cursor is in the table row or rows that are header rows. If more than one
row contains headers, select all the header rows first.
2. Press the APPLICATION Key or right click to open a context menu.
3. Choose Table Properties (R). The Table Properties multi page dialog box opens.
4. Press CTRL+TAB to move to the Row tab page.
5. Press TAB to move to and check the check box for Repeat as header row at the top of
each page.
6. Press ENTER to close the dialog box and save the changes.
The Table Properties dialog box for Microsoft Word with an arrow pointing to the Repeat
as header row check box
Use the Bookmark Feature to Have Row and Column
Headers Read for JAWS Users
You can make Microsoft Word table headers read automatically for JAWS and MAGic keyboard
users by adding bookmarks to the table with certain phrases. This is an accessibility and usability
feature of JAWS that uses the bookmark feature of Word.
Tables with both Row and Column Headers
To make row and column headers in tables accessible to users of JAWS 6.0 or later, start
Microsoft Word and open the document containing the table.
If the table has both row and column headers:
1. Place the insertion point in a cell where the row and column containing the headers meet.
2. Open the Insert menu (ALT+N) and choose Bookmark (K).
3. Type "Title" without the quotes and press ENTER.
Tables with only Row Headers
1. Place the insertion point in any cell within the column containing the headers.
2. Open the Insert menu (ALT+N) and choose Bookmark (K).
3. Type "RowTitle" without the quotes and press ENTER.
Tables with only Column Headers
1. Place the insertion point in any cell within the row containing the headers.
2. Open the Insert menu (ALT+N) and choose Bookmark (K).
3. Type "ColumnTitle" without the quotes and press ENTER.
TIP: Do not place a bookmark in each cell that contains a header. JAWS recognizes all cells in
the marked row and/or column as a header.
Documents with Multiple Tables
Microsoft Word does not allow two bookmarks to use the same name. If there is more than one
table in your document, add a number or descriptive word to the end of the bookmark text used
to indicate headers. For example:
Title_1
RowTitle_Revenue
ColumnTitle_Expenses
Any JAWS user can override the information provided by the table author by using the JAWS
Quick Settings dialog box (INSERT+V).