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Plain Language & Accessibility

Plain Language & Accessibility.

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• Why plain language
• How to apply plain language
• Plain language and other languages
• Resources

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Why Plain Language

Plain Language & Accessibility.

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Currently, 45, 000, 000 adults in the US can’t read above a 5th grade reading level.*

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*Source: Literacy Project

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Plain Language & Accessibility.

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It’s also the law: Plain Language Act of 2010 requires federal agencies to use clear communication the public can understand and use �

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Plain Language & Accessibility.

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Plain language helps everyone. Those:

• With different cognitive abilities
• Relying on audio to listen to text
• Speaking English as a second language

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Plain Language & Accessibility.

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Plain language is a WCAG AAA requirement.

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Between 6 and 8 grade reading level after removing:

• Pronouns
• Titles
• Supplemental content

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How to do it in 3 (big) steps

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Step 1

�Test your content with a readability tool (Hemingway App, Readable.io, or Flesch-Kincaid)

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Tip: Remove proper nouns, titles, domain-specific language. And you need to test at least 10 to 100 pages to get an average reading level.

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Plain Language & Accessibility.

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Step 2

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Do a manual review. Use our quick guide to plain language

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Plain Language & Accessibility.

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Step 3

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Test with humans

• Tree testing
• Ask users to read aloud*
• Ask users to paraphrase

We’ll have templates soon. Stay tuned!

�*You can also try MS Edge’s “immersive reader” function

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Non-english Languages.

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Overall readability score = language with the worst score. *

• Resources and readability tools are limited.**
• Focus testing with low-English proficient users

Tip: A good readability score in English is strong indicator of quality of translation*

* according to WCAG AAA�**see Resources for tools + tips on testing in other languages

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Remember, plain language is not only about the words on your page.

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Other ways to make your content more understandable*:

• Audio
• Sign language

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*consistent with WCAG AAA guidelines

Plain Language & Accessibility.

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Resources

• CivicActions Plain Language Guide�Digital.gov Plain Language Action and Information Network. They promote plain language in all government communications.
• Plain Language Association International LinkedIn. This group advocates for plain language in business, government, and law.
• Center for Plain Language
• Plain Language Association International
• Federal plain language guidelines
• Guide to accessibility for teams
• Steps to make your content plain language

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Plain Language & Accessibility.

Other Languages.

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• The Fry Graph Readability Formula
• Multilingual resource in GitHub
• Why plain language is necessary for multilingual translation
• Code for America fellowship report includes a section on multilingual user research
• Accessibility guidelines in French multilingual user research

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