The problem

This page demonstrates how NVDA does not read the legend of checkboxes in some situations.

Technical background

NVDA does not announce grouping labels unless user is in interactive/forms mode (the mode used to fill in forms). For form elements that require user inputs (text input fields, tabs, radiobuttons) this mode is triggered automatically wen they receive focus, and user will hear group labels (such as legends) announced along with individual form field labels as he enters and leaves those fields. Checkboxes are one exception to this, as they can be activated using the spacebar without switching out of browse mode (the mode used to read text).

On this page you will notice how legends are only announced as user tabs or shift-tabs out of text input fields (that trigger interactive/forms mode). For all other fieldsets or ARIA groups on this page NVDA will not announce the legend tags.

You can have all legends be announced by manually forcing NVDA into interactive mode (by pressing NVDA key and spacebar). But this means that NVDA will not work when you navigate the document with the arrow keys, and will not read any static text on the page.

See NVDA defect #3321 and Sailesh Panchang's test page for additional context.

Jaws does not make this distinction and will announce common label in either mode.

The test

start here

Three groups of checkboxes with no other fields in between.

Which ice cream flavors do you like?


Which dogs do you like?


Which ice cream flavors do you NOT like?


Results

NVDA 2015.3 / FF 40.0.3: none of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward or backward. No legends are read when user navigates by checkboxes (using the "x" key)

NVDA 2015.3 / IE 11: none of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward or backward

JAWS 15 / FF 40.0.3: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward and backward

JAWS 15 / IE 11: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward and backward

Does adding aria group syntax help matters?

Which ARIA ice cream flavors do you NOT like?


Three groups of checkboxes each preceeded by text boxes.

Which ice cream flavors do you like?


Which dogs do you like?


Which ice cream flavors do you NOT like?


Results

NVDA 2015.3 / FF 40.0.3: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward or backward

NVDA 2015.3 / IE 11: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward or backward

JAWS 15 / FF 40.0.3: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward and backward

JAWS 15 / IE 11: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward and backward

Three groups of checkboxes each preceeded by links.

first link
Which ice cream flavors do you like?


second link
Which dogs do you like?


third link
Which ice cream flavors do you NOT like?


fourth link

Results

NVDA 2015.3 / FF 40.0.3: none of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward or backward

NVDA 2015.3 / IE 11: none of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward or backward

JAWS 15 / FF 40.0.3: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward and backward

JAWS 15 / IE 11: all of the legends read as user tabs through the checkboxes forward and backward

End here