A useful text alternative lets someone obtain the lesson's information without relying on the recording. Start with the script, but verify it against the finished audio and any essential visual context. The production script is a draft of what you intended to say; the published text must represent what learners actually receive.
Decide what the text must preserve
List the information carried by the audio: explanation, speaker identity, task instructions, meaningful sounds, and references to visual material. A simple single-speaker lesson may need only clean paragraphs. A scenario with two characters needs labels that make the conversation understandable.
W3C's transcript guidance distinguishes basic transcripts from versions that also describe essential visuals. Use that distinction to plan your deliverable, without assuming one transcript automatically resolves every accessibility requirement of the surrounding course.
For a lesson about a chart, “this rises sharply” does not communicate enough on its own. Add the subject and the relevant comparison. The companion guide to describing charts in audio provides a useful way to decide which relationships matter.
Separate editorial notes from spoken content. If you add a definition or resource link, label it as supporting information rather than making it look like an omitted sentence.
Reconcile the script with the exported audio
Listen to the final download while following the script. Mark missing words, changed numbers, revised examples, and any sentence that was regenerated after the last text review. A tiny audio correction can leave a consequential mismatch in the transcript.
Preserve meaningful wording. It is reasonable to organize a transcript into paragraphs, but do not turn an uncertain statement into a firm claim or simplify away a condition. If the audio says a task applies only to owners, the text must preserve that restriction.
Write ordinary spellings even if the generation script uses a pronunciation workaround. A brand spelled phonetically for speech should still appear under its normal name in the published text. Keep the workaround in a private production field with the approved audio revision.
Have a second reviewer check dates, quantities, labels, and links. These details are easy for an author to overlook because the intended meaning is already familiar.
Make the text practical to navigate
Use descriptive headings that match the lesson structure. Break long paragraphs where the topic changes, and keep a sequence of actions in the same order as the audio. A reader should be able to find the example or exercise without scanning an uninterrupted wall of text.
Place the transcript or a clearly labeled link near the player. Avoid hiding it in a miscellaneous download folder or behind a label such as “additional assets.” The user should know what it is before opening it.
Timestamps can help with long lessons, but add them where they support navigation rather than at every sentence by default. If you include timestamps, check them against the final audio and update them when earlier sections change.
Give the publishing team both the text and its placement instructions. The accessible player handoff explains how content and playback controls need to be reviewed together.
Update audio and text as one release
Create a release record containing lesson ID, script revision, audio filename, and transcript revision. Mark the release complete only when the matching files are published in the destination course. A correct transcript in a shared folder does not help if the live link still opens an old version.
For a small correction, compare the affected paragraph with its neighbors and test all links in that section. For a major rewrite, review the entire text and recording. Use the microlearning revision workflow to decide the scope.
Draft narration in the voice studio, then retain the approved text as part of the same lesson package. The final check is to read the text with audio off and ask whether the explanation, task, and next action are all still clear.
