3.2 Use elements to convey document structure and mark up lists properly

New standards released

The New Zealand Web Standards 2.0 were released in March 2009 and replace the previous version, the New Zealand Government Web Standards 1.0 (below). See Meeting the standards for more information.

The Standard

3.2 Use elements to convey document structure and use them according to specification. Mark up lists and list items properly.

HTML structural elements, such as H1 to H6, LI, OL, and UL, are used to denote document structure rather than custom styles.
HTML elements should not be used for formatting effects such as indentation.
Use HTML headers <h1>..<h6> in document order (i.e., not styling order).
The meaning of the page title should be clear out of context. An agency needs to clarify <h1>, <h2> heading tags for page or document titles. This not only assists with the consistent identification of documents on an agency web site, but ensures users of external search engine are presented with more appropriate results.
Items that are intended to be associated as a list are accordingly marked up as a list.
Titles should contain meaningful information in the first 60 characters.
Page titles have the same syntax consistently throughout the site.

This standard covers the WAI checkpoints 3.5 and 3.6 for NZ government agencies.

As stated by the Irish National Disability Authority "Many people navigate or skim through documents by reading the headings to get a feel for the structure and an overview of the content and scope of a document. Lists with a non-logical structure will confuse users who rely on screen readers. Also, some screen readers will read content assigned as a header in a different tone of voice to other content on the page".