Abstract Syntax Tree

A hierarchical tree representation of source code structure that captures the syntactic relationships between programming constructs like functions, classes, loops, and statements. In accessibility, AST-based navigation tools like StructJumper allow blind programmers to traverse code by logical structure rather than line-by-line, enabling quick jumps between methods, conditionals, and nested blocks. This approach overcomes the fundamental mismatch between linear screen reader output and the inherently hierarchical nature of code.