Captions crucial, but not just for the reasons you think.

While most people think of captions as being for people who are d/Deaf or have hearing loss, captioning also provides benefits to people who speak a different language, are learning to read, are watching in a noisy (or quiet!) space, and those who learn better through visually processing information.

Captions can also help improve learning! More than 100 studies have shown that captioning improves recall, attention to and comprehension of video content.

• Captions should be accurate to what is being said and include accurate spelling and punctuation.
• Correct captions should appear when the audio is heard. Sounds or music that are important to context, should be included in the captions.
• Speaker(s) should be identified
  A single speaker should be identified at the start of the video; multiple speakers should be identified as the speaker changes, especially when there are off-screen speakers or overlapping speech.
• Slideshows should leave a fifth or more of the bottom of the slide clear so that slide content and captions can coexhist on the screen comfortably.

For more details, see the captioning section of the digital accessibility online course

Recording content with captions

1. Start with a script.
   Writing a script before recording makes captioning far easier — you can use it as a starting transcript. 
2. Use Zoom, Google Meet, or ScreenPal.
   You can use a software solution like Zoom or ScreenPal to capture captions based on the transcript.
3. Upload to Google Drive, YouTube or ScreenPal.
   Upload your script as a caption file. 
   Adding/editing captions in Google Drive – Adding captions/syncing transcripts in YouTube – Editing captions in Screenpal
4. Review and correct generated captions.
   Review the video to make sure that the captions are synced correctly.
   
5. Need help?
   The Center for Teaching and Learning assists faculty and staff with video lecture production including screen captures and narrated PowerPoints. Student may contact the Research and Writing center or drop by during open hours for assistance.

Adding captions to an mp4 file

1. Upload to Google Drive, YouTube or ScreenPal.
   Auto generate captions on the file. Auto-generated captions are *not* WCAG 2.1 AA compliant by default, due to spelling and punctuation errors that often occur (though, since 2025, accuracy has dramatically improved), but they do give you a great starting point for captions and often require only minimal editing and this is the recommended starting point for WOU course content.
   Adding/editing captions in Google Drive – Adding captions/syncing transcripts in YouTube – Editing captions in Screenpal
   
2. Review and correct captions.
   Using the built-in caption editor, correct punctuation, capitalization, and any mis-transcribed words. Auto-captions alone do not meet WCAG 2.1 AA — this step is required.
3. Need help?
   The Center for Teaching and Learning assists faculty and staff with video lecture production including screen captures and narrated PowerPoints. Student may contact the Research and Writing center or drop by during open hours for assistance.

• Search WOU’s licensed streaming content first. Hamersly Library subscribes to databases that include captioned content. Most titles can be located by searching in Primo, but you may also want to browse the platforms:
  • Films on Demand (FOD) — search by subject, supports filtering for closed captioned titles. Accessible via research.wou.edu/databases.
  • Academic Video Online (AVON) — 68,000+ titles from BBC, PBS, A&E, and more. All AVON videos are closed captioned and many include transcripts. Also at research.wou.edu/databases.
  • Theatre in Video
• If WOU doesn’t have it, request it. Use the request form in My Library to request a streaming license or physical purchase.
• Check YouTube/public sources with existing captions. Many educational channels (PBS, SciShow, CrashCourse, TED-Ed, and Kahn Academy) provide human-reviewed captions. Verify caption quality before use in a course context.

1. Check if a captioned version exists. Search the same platform (e.g. YouTube) for an alternate version, or look for the content in WOU’s licensed databases (AVON, Films on Demand) where it may already have captions.
2. Download and add captions using YouTube or Google drive. If permitted by the source’s terms of use, download the video, upload to YouTube (unlisted/private) or Google Drive, use auto-captioning, correct the captions, then export the .srt file for use elsewhere. 
3. Request captioning. If you need professional-quality captions or are creating content for a student with a registered accommodation, contact Disability Access Services at odscaptioning@wou.edu. Submit non-classroom requests at least 3 business days in advance; classroom requests via AIM at least 3 weeks before term start.