Maizey Image Describer

Powered by the UM-GPT Toolkit, the Maizey Image Describer (located within the Instructor Tools menu) is designed to help you quickly remediate inaccessible images in your Canvas course. Unlike other tools that require you to locate images individually, this tool scans your entire course at once and suggests editable descriptions for every image found.

Access the Maizey Image Describer

 
  1. Go to your course in Canvas.
  2. Click on Instructor Tools in your course menu.
    Canvas course menu showing example location of Instructor Tools link.
  3. Locate Maizey Image Describer in the list of apps and click Launch.
    The Maizey Image Describer listing in Instructor Tools with description and Launch button.

Scan Your Course

 

When you open the Alt Text Helper tool for the first time, you will need to click the Start Scan button to perform an initial scan of your course.
The Start Scan button which appears the first time you access the Maizey Image Describer tool.

On any subsequent launch of the tool, it will display the results of the most recent scan. This summary shows you exactly how many images need attention across Assignments, Pages, Classic Quizzes, and Classic Quiz Questions.
Example of course scan results showing 2 Pages found with 6 images without alt text.

  • Updating the list: If you have added new content or images since last using the tool, click the Rescan Course button to ensure you are viewing the most up-to-date information.Most recent scan example with the Rescan Course button located in the top right.

Start a Review Session

 

To begin fixing images, you must select a specific group of content to work on.

  1. Scroll down to the Start Review section.
  2. Click the Content Category dropdown menu.
  3. Select the group you wish to remediate (e.g., Assignments or Pages).
  4. Click Begin Review.
    The Start Review section showing the dropdown menu with Pages selected and the Begin Review highlighted next to it.

Note: If a category shows "0 images," no accessibility issues were found in that group, and the "Begin Review" button will be disabled.

Review, Edit, and Approve

 

Once the review starts, the tool will guide you through the images in that category one by one. For each image, you will be presented with an AI-generated description. You have three choices:

  • Approve: If the AI suggestion is accurate, keep it as is.
  • Edit: If the suggestion is inaccurate or missing context, click the text box to edit the description manually, then Approve.
  • Skip: If you do not wish to add alt text to a specific image right now, you can skip it.

Note: If you skip an image, it will disappear from your review list until you rescan the course.

Example review area which shows the image to be reviewed, the editable description, the approve button, and the skip button.

Save Your Changes

 

Important: Changes are not applied immediately as you click through the images. You must complete the batch to finalize the updates.

  1. Page through all images in your selected category.
  2. On the final screen of the review, click the Preview and Save Changes button.
  3. Review the summary page and click Save All Changes.
    Example Review Summary indicated the number of approved changes, edited descriptions, and skipped images.
  4. Your updated alt text will now be live in your Canvas course.

Additional Information (FAQ)

 
Does this tool automatically change my course content? No. The tool only applies changes after you have reviewed the suggestions and clicked "Save Changes" at the end of the process.
Will this update the alt text in all my courses where this image is published? No. The tool updates the alt text only for the specific instance of the image in the current course. This ensures you can control the description based on the specific context in which the image is used.
Can I run the scan more than once? Yes. You can use the Rescan Course button as often as you like to check for new images or changes.
How do I change the alt text after it is saved? Once you have saved changes in the Maizey Image Describer, any further edits must be made directly in Canvas. Navigate to the specific Page, Assignment, or Quiz, open the Rich Content Editor, and manually edit the image options. See: How Do I Manage Alt Text and Display Options for Images
Why is the "Begin Review" button greyed out? The button is disabled if the selected category contains 0 images or if the current scan found no issues for that specific content type.
Do I need to scan and fix the images again when I copy my content? No. Once you have fixed the images in your course content, the alt text will remain when the content is copied to other courses.
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