Plain Language: Creates a Conversation Flashcards
How does plain language supports accessibility?
People can read, understand and use the information
Information is easy to understand, even in poor conditions
The site supports a wider audience
The site supports a global audience and people reading in translation
How to design for plain language
Clear purpose
solid structure
Clean presentation
Write for your audience
Follow plain language guidelines for content (we want them to find, read and use information)
Organise the information from the reader’s perspective
Put the if before the then - (making sure context is clear)
Break up walls of words
Use lots of (useful) headings
Talk to your readers
Make your writing active (active voice - most of the time)
Put the action in verbs
Use bulleted lists (Where appropriate)
How can we better structure our pages for scanning?
Break up walls of words
Use (correctly tagged) bullets for lists
Use lots of (useful) headings
How can we make finding clear and accessible?
A meaningful title
A short summary paragraph
The data in a graph
The data is presented in a table
Use heading tags, nested in the correct order for headings
Use tags of bulleted and numbered lists
Use tables appropriately, with tags for header rows
What are common reading patterns?
F Pattern (reading few words at beginning of each paragraph) Steady reading pattern - line by line
How can we write helpful links
Make link text meaningful - clearly tell the person what it does
Combine links and images
Watch out for read more/edit links - will these make sense in a screen reader
The title attribute -Don’t rely on this to explain link. Handled differently by some Assistive Technology
How can we use language our audience is familiar with?
Write using terminology your audience understands
Provide definitions for unusual words, special words and for all abbreviations
Define Terms in the text
Use a glossary
Link to more detailed information
Set the language for the page
Why should we provide plain language summaries of complex content?
Improve accessibility for people with reading disabilities and also rushed readers
Why should we not rely on readability software?
It’s not about reading level
They often evaluate amount of syllables and number of words in sentences
How can we usability gets our content?
Include real content when designing, no lorem ipsum
Users can react in a more natural way
