ProPublica Uses Plain Language to Make Stories More Accessible ▬ Editor & Publisher

ProPublica Uses Plain Language to Make Stories More Accessible

Plain Language

Editor & Publisher: 1.25.2021 by Rob Tornoe

It’s nice when a newsroom experiment pays off in unexpected ways.

In Arizona, ProPublica teamed up with the Arizona Daily Star to sponsor a story by Amy Silverman that looked into why the state’s Division of Developmental Disabilities turned down thousands of people who sought assistance.

The investigative piece has all the heft and rigor you’d expect from a ProPublica deep dive. But what could have simply ended as a robust and impactful piece of journalism transformed into something of an experiment in story forms (20 separate urls in total, including Spanish translations and audio versions) in an attempt to reach the very people the story was about—men and women living and coping with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Silverman said the decision to experiment with story forms started with a storytelling event that featured the actual voices of those living with disabilities, done in an attempt to bring them into her story in a meaningful way. The event, run by Rebecca Monteleone, a professor of disability studies at the University of Toledo, opened Silverman’s mind to the possibility of taking additional steps beyond her reporting to make the story itself more accessible to the group she was covering.

=That road eventually led to Silverman’s lengthy and at times complicated story being translated into plain language, the first time ProPublica (or any other news outlet, as far as I can tell) created a plain language version of a story in an attempt to increase its accessibility for disabled readers.  READ MORE ➤➤

 

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 18

Reading Level: very difficult to read.

Reader's Age: College graduate

Arizona Promised To Help People With Developmental Disabilities.
But some had to wait a long time. Some did not get help at all.

Arizona Daily Star: 11.05.2020 by Amy Silverman with data analysis by Alex Devoid;  Kyra Wade (plain english copy)

We worked with ProPublica to write this story. The Star is part of ProPublica’s Local Reporting Network.

This story has been translated into different formats:

Leer en español

Listen in plain language

Read the original text

Listen to the original text

Read why we translated this story

Many people think Arizona does a good job helping people with developmental disabilities. But some people have problems getting help. It can be confusing. People wait a long time.

These are stories about people who had problems getting help in Arizona.

Developmental disabilities are sometimes called DD. There are many kinds of DD. Some of them are:

Cerebral palsy

Autism

Intellectual disability

Epilepsy

The place that helps people with DD in Arizona is called the Division of Developmental Disabilities. It is sometimes called DDD.

🔽
We made the story in plain language because we want people with DD to be able to read it.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 8

Reading Level: fairly difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 12-14 yrs. old

(Seventh and Eighth graders)

Worst Words of the Year 2020 ▬ Plain English Foundation

Worst Words of the Year 2020

Worst Words 2020

Plain English Foundation: 12.22.2020

It’s hardly surprising that COVID-19 featured in the 2020 list of worst words and phrases. While the crisis generated some essential and even amusing words, other Covidspeak was less welcome.

Plain English Foundation also identified more of the usual suspects in poor public language during 2020: from political spin and doublespeak to made-up Frankenwords. =And this year’s mixed metaphor and non-apology examples are particularly poor.

Winner

Vertical consumption

Covidspeak

Discretionary essentials

Zump

Frankenwords

‘She’-session

Hipsturbia

Doublespeak

Withdrawn as a matter of priority

Sensitive receivers

Political spin

Reverse porkbarrelling

Efforting outreach

READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 15

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: College graduate

 

Average American Reader Needs You to Write (Even More) Clearly ▬ Digital Gov

The Average American Reader Needs You to Write (Even More) Clearly

Average America Reader

Digital Gov: 5.13.2020 by  Dr. Meredith Larson

When communicating with the public, we must change our assumptions about their ability to understand text. This is especially true when the information keeps changing and is complex, or the stakes are high and people are in crisis.

Over 50% of U.S. adults score below an international benchmark for literacy, with roughly 20% scoring at the very lowest levels. These adults span all demographics and are a part of your audience. Don’t assume they’re not.

You must communicate clearly with your audience. Keep it simple and convenient, and use plain language. Present the most important information you want to convey first. Get feedback from your readers on whether they understand the information you’re trying to convey.

Background

The Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) is an international, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) study used to assess the skills of literacy, numeracy, and digital problem solving in adults between the ages of 16 and 65. After collecting information on how their country’s population is performing, leaders can better target and help their people get access to the resources they need.

Basic Skills Assessed

PIAAC is designed to assess adults in different countries over a broad range of abilities, from simple reading to complex problem-solving skills. A country can check how its population stands in relation to the rest of the participating countries.

PIAAC has four domains:

1. Literacy

“Literacy is understanding, evaluating, using, and engaging with written text to participate in the society, to achieve one’s goals, and to develop one’s knowledge and potential.” PIAAC Literacy Domain Page.

2. Numeracy

“The ability to access, use, interpret, and communicate mathematical information and ideas, to engage in and manage mathematical demands of a range of situations in adult life.” PIAAC Numeracy Domain Page.

Literacy and Numeracy has a 5-point scale.

We might consider adults scoring Below Level 1 and Level 1 “at risk”, and Level 2 may be “struggling.”

For Literacy and Numeracy, Level 3 should be sufficient for participation in modern economies.

The Skill Scales: Literacy and Numeracy

Below Level 1: Locate a single piece of information in familiar texts.

Level 1: Read relatively short digital print or mixed texts to locate single text.

Level 2: Make matches between text and information that may require low level paraphrasing and drawing low-level inferences.

Level 3: Identify, interpret, or evaluate one or more pieces of information and often require varying levels of inference.

Level 4: Perform multiple-step operations to integrate, interpret, or synthesize information from complex texts, and may require complex inferences.

Level 5: Integrate information across multiple dense texts; construct syntheses, ideas or points of view; or evaluate evidence based arguments.

3. Digital Problem Solving in Technology-Rich Environments

“Using digital technology, communication tools, and networks to acquire and evaluate information, communicate with others, and perform practical tasks.” PIAAC Problem Solving in Technology-Rich Environments Domain Page.

Digital Problem Solving has a 3-point scale.

For Digital Problem Solving, Level 2 should be sufficient for participation in modern economies.

The Skill Scales: Digital Problem Solving

Level 0: One-step or simple problem (“Click on Help tab”).

Level 1: Sorting emails into existing folders.

Level 2: Using website to return item.

Level 3: Navigating multiple pages to find a form, etc.

4. Reading Components

“Focuses on elements of reading that are comparable across the range of languages in the participating countries: reading vocabulary, sentence comprehension, and basic passage comprehension.” PIAAC Reading Components Domain Page.

00:00 Intro

05:00 The Skill Scales: Literacy and Numeracy

08:45 Examples

10:45 United States Statistics

15:20 Demographics for struggling individuals

22:00 Skills predicting information seeking behavior

22:45 What low literacy correlates with

23:40 Adult levels

24:55 How to make things better for people

31:40 Specific things you can try

36:00 resources

READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 11

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 15-17 yrs. old

(Tenth to Eleventh graders)

This presentation (PDF, 3.6 MB, 51 pages), crafted by Dr. Meredith Larson of the U.S. Department of Education, offers detailed information on literacy skills of U.S. adults, including digital literacy, and the implications for communicating with the public.

Hosted by Plain Language Community of Practice and Digital.gov

CDC, White House Fail to Meet Health Literacy Guidelines @ Latin Post

New Study: CDC, White House Fail to Meet Health Literacy Guidelines

Latin Post: 8.19.2020 by Mary Anne R.

Why Should 

The Healthcare Industry 

Use Readability Formulas?

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the White House, and the state health departments have failed to meet the health literacy guidelines when it comes to passing COVID-19 information to the public.

This was according to the new study done by Darthmouth College researchers, which was released on Tuesday.

The CDC, the American Medical Association, and the National Institutes of Health all said that medical information for the public should be written at no more than eight-grade reading level.

But researchers found that public information released about COVID-19 have an average of over 11th-grader reading level.

They found the result after looking at 137 federal web pages.

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States are not required to follow the said guidelines. But experts said that it is needed for everyone to understand the given health information.

The 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy found that only 12 percent of American adults show proficient health literacy.

The study also showed that all 50 U.S. states have given health information above the recommended eight-grade reading level.

Nine of the 10 states with the highest illiteracy rates have written the said health information in above 10th grade level.

Dexter said that the differences between eight-grade and 11th-grade reading level are crucial.

Dexter explained that text written at a higher grade level can cause people to miss the most important information.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 11

Reading Level: difficult to read.

Reader's Age: 15-17 yrs. old

(Tenth to Eleventh graders)

Plain Language Tool Kit ▬ NWT Literacy Council

@NWTLiteracy

Plain Language Tool Kit

NWT Literacy Council

Plain Language Audit Tool (471.56 KB)

A checklist and readability tests

What is a plain language audit?

A plain language audit shows if a document(s) uses plain language guidelines.

It features:

➤ A checklist of plain language guidelines to show which guidelines are present and which are absent in the document(s).

➤ A readability test to show the grade reading level a person should have to read, understand, and use the information in the document(s).

Plain language is writing for your readers. Plain language applies writing and design guidelines that help people read, understand, and use written information.

How to do a plain language audit?

There are four simple steps to this audit:

1. Pick one document or group of documents.

2. Use the checklist to identify which plain language guidelines are present and which are absent in the document(s).

3. Do a readability test.

4. Identify document(s) that need a plain language edit.

Experts agree on this general guideline about what grade reading level to aim for in public documents.

Grade 5 to 6

Essential information for people who have less than 8 years of school or whose first language is not English

Grade 7 to 8

Public information that has new terms and concepts or specialized subject matter.

Grade 10 +

Specialized information for people who are familiar with the topic and who have good literacy skills.

Online readability tests are easy to use and free.

Write for Your Reader (1.59 MB)

An easy-to-use 'how to' manual for people who write or edit reports, memos, minutes, brochures, or other documents; includes the following.

Alternate Words and Phrases

Use this list to find a simple, short, clear word or phrase to replace a complex, long, abstract word or phrase.  Add your own favourites to the list.

Writing Samples

We chose seven writing samples from existing documents to show how your writing can change if you use plain language guidelines.

The first writing sample is from the Workers’ Compensation Board brochure for artists and carvers.

The first version of this writing sample is from the old brochure.

The second version is from the new plain language brochure.

The first version of all other samples is from an existing document.

We wrote the plain language versions for this handbook.

There is a Summary Checklist of Plain Language Guidelines at the end of this section.

Putting Plain Language Into Practice (538.3 KB)

READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on 7 readability formulas:

Grade Level: 8

Reading Level: standard / average.

Reader's Age: 12-14 yrs. old

(Seventh and Eighth graders)

Corporate Buzzwords Are How Workers Pretend to Be Adults via The Atlantic

Corporate Buzzwords Are How Workers Pretend to Be Adults

Circle back and kill me now.

The Atlantic:  2.19.2020 by Olga Khazan

If there’s anything corporate America has a knack for, it’s inventing new, positive words that polish up old, negative ones. Silicon Valley has recast the chaotic-sounding “break things” and “disruption” as good things. An anxious cash grab is now a “monetization strategy,” and if you mess up and need to start over, just call it a “pivot” and press on.

It’s the Uber for BS, you might say.

Cloying marketing-speak, of course, isn’t limited to the tech world. As a health reporter, much of my work involves wending my way through turgid academic studies, which are full of awkward turns of phrase such as salience and overweight (used as a noun, as in “the prevalence of overweight”). Even more tedious is reading some of the reports put out by nonprofit organizations, which always seem to want to arm “stakeholders” with tools for their “tool boxes.” I wish journalists were immune, given that we fancy ourselves to be plainspoken, but sadly common in our world is talk of “deep dives” and “impactful long form.” (Use of the word impactful is strongly discouraged by The Atlantic’s copy desk. As is the use of many other words.)

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When I recently asked on Twitter about everyone’s least favorite buzzwords, people really mind-shared some good ones. Capacity grates, as does at-risk when describing people, along with the delightfully redundant root cause. The “optics” of “growth hacking” do little to “value-add,” as well. But the strange thing is, these folks are from the fields in which those words are used. Like everyone’s loud tipsy uncle, the buzzwords people know best tend to be the ones that irritate them most. That so many people continue to use these words anyway speaks to one of the most powerful quirks of office life—and the power dynamics that make it so difficult to change.

According to Gretchen McCulloch, the author of Because Internet, buzzwords were born from the artifice of the office itself. At work, people are paid to do things they wouldn’t otherwise do in their leisure time. They don’t dress at the office the way they do at home; they don’t act at the office the way they do outside of it; and they don’t talk about drilling down and rightsizing around their friends. Buzzwords mark the boundary of work life, broadcasting “I’m working!” in much the same way an Ann Taylor getup does. They allow workers to relate to one another—the much-decried “synergy” is an important part of a lot of people’s jobs, after all.

Frankly, buzzwords also help save time. You can command a co-worker to “get their ducks in a row” and have them basically know what you mean. In this way, speaking in business jargon is a way of showing that you fit in with the office, the Copenhagen Business School professor Mary Yoko Brannen told me. One of the most important elements of culture is language.

From a more cynical perspective, buzzwords are useful when office workers need to dress up their otherwise pointless tasks with fancier phrases—you know, for the optics.  READ MORE ➤➤

Automatic Readability Checker

Based on (7) readability formulas:

Grade Level: 9

Reading Level: standard / average.

Reader's Age: 13-15 yrs. old

(Eighth and Ninth graders)

How to Write Low Literacy Materials :: 15 Tips via JOE

How to Write Low Literacy Materials

JOE:  FEB 2001 by Juanita E. Miller

Extension professionals frequently have to write fact sheets, newsletters, and educational materials that appeal to and are effective with low literacy people. Approximately 40 million Americans age 16 years and older have low literacy skills (U.S. Congress, Office of Technology Assessment, 1993). Forty-three percent of people with the lowest literacy skills live in poverty; 17% receive food stamps; and 70% have no job or a part-time job (Family, Career and Community Leaders of America, 2000).

Thus, to help low literacy people understand what they need to know, professionals and paraprofessionals need to be able to write materials at a low literacy level. This article is a guide to assist you in writing low literacy text.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics (1993), literacy is "…the ability to read, write, and speak in English and compute and solve problems at the levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job and in society, to achieve one's goals, and develop one's knowledge and potential." There are three types of literacy skills.

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15 Quick Tips for Writing Low Literacy Materials

Many of the tips below should be familiar to you because they hold true for the writing of all types of materials. Others, however, are especially important when you want to reach low literacy audiences.

➧ Keep writing style simple.

➧ Use active voice and conversational style.

➧ Sequence main points in a logical manner.

➧ Make your sub-points clearly correspond to the main point.

➧ Use short words and sentences.

➧ Avoid double negative expressions.

➧ Use the same word consistently rather than synonyms to avoid confusion.

➧ For lengthy materials, use a table of contents to point the way.

➧ Write short summaries at the end of long sections.

➧ Use a larger type than 12 points for the text.

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Testing Reading Level

There are several tests that measure reading level. The Fog Index, developed by Robert Gunning, is easy to understand and requires a minimum amount of text to execute the test. To find the Fog Index of material you have written, follow these steps.  READ MORE >>

Why Plain English Isn’t ‘dumbing down’ via Medium

@govplainlang

Why Plain English Isn’t ‘dumbing down’

Medium: 9.24.2017 by Dominic Warren

I was in a meeting recently and was finally confronted with a phrase I’ve been expecting to hear since I started in content design. “No, I don’t agree, that’s just dumbing down.” Someone had finally used the words “dumbing down” when discussing the content. It’s been a long time coming.

Without an understanding of content and how users read on the web, it would be easy to just chuck all the information you know onto the page. But there’s important reasons we use plain English and write the way we do.

Plain English

Google Dictionary defines plain English as:

“clear and unambiguous language, without the use of technical or difficult terms”

It’s using language simply so it’s as easy to understand as possible.

We do this because we don’t read on the web the same way we read printed media, such as books and newspapers. We scan the page. As mentioned in a previous article, we don’t read fluidly, we saccade. This is when your eyes move from one point of the page to the other in no particular order, jumping quickly all over the place.

Our content also has to fight against outside influences. Our readers have lives, thoughts and emotions that can get in the way of reading huge amounts of technical text online. They might have children fighting for their attention, or they might have been through a recent trauma. They might just have something better and more interesting to do. So making the content easy to understand and simple to follow is the most important thing we can do as writers.

This is why content should be task-focused where possible, especially for services. If we want the user to do something, tell them what to do and how to do it quickly and easily. They don’t have the time to sit down and read through guidance after guidance. If they need to know something, tell them it straight away at the top of the page. READ MORE >>