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Changes for page Simple sentences

Last modified by Lizzie Bruce on 2020/01/11 23:51
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edited by Lizzie Bruce
on 2019/03/08 16:59
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To version Icon 2.20 Icon
edited by Lizzie Bruce
on 2019/03/07 13:30
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2 2  This helps:
3 3  
4 4  * **people in a hurry** – simply written content is easier to scan and absorb instantly
5 -* **people who are stressed** – if you're anxious you find it harder to comprehend things
6 -* **people who are multi-tasking** – if you're holding a baby or a running business your attention's divided
7 -* **cognitive impairments** – easy to understand words and sentences carry less cognitive load
5 +* **cognitive impairments** – easy to understand words and sentences need less cognition
8 8  * **visual impairments** – short and simple sentences convey meaning in a smaller visual field
9 9  * **motor impairments** – it's less tiring when you can understand what you read quickly
10 -
11 11  
12 -== ==
13 13  
14 14  == Guidelines ==
15 15  
... ... @@ -19,7 +19,7 @@
19 19  
20 20  [[Specialist terms>>||anchor="st"]]
21 21  
22 -[[Law, medicine, money>>doc:.Medical.WebHome]]
18 +[[Medicine, money and law>>doc:.Medical.WebHome]]
23 23  
24 24  (% class="wikigeneratedid" %)
25 25  [[Words to avoid>>doc:.Words to avoid.WebHome]]
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27 27  
28 28  ----
29 29  
30 -== ==
26 +(% class="wikigeneratedid" %)
27 +== ==
31 31  
32 32  == {{id name="pe"/}}Plain English ==
33 33  
... ... @@ -65,7 +65,7 @@
65 65  What is 'plain' for one person may not be for someone else.
66 66  
67 67  
68 -== Usability evidence: plain English ==
65 +== Usability evidence for plain English ==
69 69  
70 70  [[Guideline 3.1 Readable: Make text content readable and understandable.>>url:https://www.w3.org/TR/UNDERSTANDING-WCAG20/meaning-supplements.html]], Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, 2008.
71 71  
... ... @@ -86,15 +86,17 @@
86 86  
87 87  ----
88 88  
89 -== ==
86 +(% class="wikigeneratedid" %)
87 +== ==
90 90  
91 91  == {{id name="ssl"/}}Simple sentences ==
92 92  
91 +
93 93  === 1. Make your average sentence 15 words long. ===
94 94  
95 -The maximum sentence length for a good level of comprehension is 25 words. Split long sentences up into 2 or 3, or use bullet points.
94 +The maximum sentence length we would recommend for easy comprehension is 25 words.
96 96  
97 -Oxford Guide to plain English, GOV.UK and linguists agree 15 word sentences are fine but above 40 words is hard to understand.
96 +You can split longer sentences up into 2 or 3 or restructure the content with bullet points to make meaning clearer for users.
98 98  
99 99  
100 100  === 2. Avoid complex sentence structures. ===
... ... @@ -112,14 +112,16 @@
112 112  >"The fox, which was red, over the gate jumped." – harder to understand
113 113  
114 114  
115 -== Usability evidence: simple sentences ==
114 +== Usability evidence for simple sentences ==
116 116  
117 -Oxford Guide to plain English
116 +"People with some learning disabilities read letter for letter – they do not bounce around like other users. They also cannot fully understand a sentence if it’s too long. People with moderate learning disabilities can understand sentences of 5 to 8 words without difficulty. By using common words we can help all users understand sentences of around 25 words." GOV.UK
118 118  
119 -Jyoti Sanyal 'Indlish'
118 +The Oxford Guide to Plain English recommends 15–20 words per sentence. It also says: "…if you regularly exceed 40 words, you’ll certainly weary and deter your readers."
120 120  
121 -Author Ann Wylie
120 +Jyoti Sanyal, author of 'Indlish' said: "Based on several studies, press associations in the USA have laid down a readability table. Their survey shows readers find sentences of 8 words or less very easy to read; 11 words, easy; 14 words fairly easy; 17 words standard; 21 words fairly difficult; 25 words difficult and 29 words or more, very difficult."
122 122  
122 +Author Ann Wylie said: "When the average sentence length in a piece was fewer than 8 words long, readers understood 100% of the story. At 14 words, they could comprehend more than 90% of the information. But move up to 43-word sentences and comprehension dropped below 10 percent."
123 +
123 123  [[Writing for GOV.UK>>url:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/content-design/writing-for-gov-uk]], UK Government website
124 124  
125 125  [['Sentence length: why 25 words is our limit'>>url:https://insidegovuk.blog.gov.uk/2014/08/04/sentence-length-why-25-words-is-our-limit/]], Inside GOV.UK, UK Government blog, 2014
... ... @@ -163,7 +163,8 @@
163 163  
164 164  ----
165 165  
166 -== ==
167 +(% class="wikigeneratedid" %)
168 +== ==
167 167  
168 168  == {{id name="st"/}}Specialist terms ==
169 169  
... ... @@ -193,14 +193,13 @@
193 193  
194 194  >Example:
195 195  >
196 ->"It is a Palladian style stone building, and contains a number of splendid paintings and much fine wood-carving." – original sentence (source [[yourdictionary.com>>url:http://sentence.yourdictionary.com/palladian]]).
198 +>"It is a Palladian style stone building, and contains a number of splendid paintings and much fine wood-carving." – original sentence.
197 197  >
198 198  >"It is a [[Palladian style>>url:http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/articles/s/style-guide-palladianism/]] stone building, and contains a number of splendid paintings and much fine wood-carving." – with link to a definition.
199 ->
200 200  > "It is a Palladian style stone building and contains a number of splendid paintings and much fine wood-carving. Palladian style architecture features include columns, symmetry and decorative arches." – with explanatory definition.
201 201  
202 202  
203 -== Usability evidence: specialist terms ==
204 +== Usability evidence for explaining specialist terms ==
204 204  
205 205  [['Writing Digital Copy for Domain Experts'>>url:https://www.nngroup.com/articles/writing-domain-experts/]], Nielson Norman Group, 2017
206 206  
... ... @@ -215,11 +215,13 @@
215 215  [['Technical Writing Need Not Be Abstruse—Use Plain Language for Maximum Impact'>>url:https://digital.gov/2015/10/23/technical-writing-need-not-be-abstruse-use-plain-language-for-maximum-impact/#]], Colleen Blessing, 2015
216 216  
217 217  [['The Facets of the General Public as Audience'>>url:https://www.dropbox.com/s/2u2cybl7c57u0tr/AudienceIssues.pdf?dl=0]] Cheryl Stephens and Mariah Stufflebeam, 2017
218 -
219 219  
220 -----
221 221  
222 222  (% class="wikigeneratedid" %)
222 +We generated the [[original sentence about a specialist architecture term>>url:http://sentence.yourdictionary.com/palladian]] from yourdictionary.com.
223 +
224 +
225 +(% class="wikigeneratedid" %)
223 223  Here's some sector specific guidance for [[medicine, money and law>>doc:.Medical.WebHome]].
224 224  
225 225