What is a plain language?
Plain language means designing documents so that audiences can:
- Find the information they need
- Understand the information they find
- Use that information to do what they want to do
Here are some examples of how plain language improves content for readers.
| Type of plain language improvement | "Before" text | "After" text |
|---|---|---|
| Simplify convoluted syntax or poorly chosen words | Utilization of the new application resulted in an improved time to completion. | People who used the new application finished faster. |
| Add a definition of an important technical term | You might be eligible if your income is 50% of your city/town's Area Median Income (AMI). | You might be eligible if your income is 50% of your city/town's Area Median Income (AMI). AMI means the middle income in your area. Half of people in your area make more, half make less. |
| Fill in a "content gap" so that the text addresses its audience's likely questions. | You might be eligible if your income is 50% of your city/town's Area Median Income (AMI). AMI means the means the middle income in your area. Half of people in your area make more, half make less. | You might be eligible if your income is 50% of your city/town's Area Median Income (AMI). AMI means the middle income in your area. Half of people in your area make more, half make less. The federal government has an AMI table for federal programs |
| Reduce the amount of information per sentence or clause. | Certification as an Asbestos Inspector authorizes the consultant to review building records, perform visual inspections, collect samples, prepare written inventories and conduct other forms of investigation necessary to determine and document the presence and condition of known or suspect ACM in facilities. | Getting certified as an Asbestos Inspector authorizes consultants to:
These activities help inspectors determine and document if a facility contains, of if they suspect it contains, asbestos. |
What is a plain language review?
When you do a plain language review, you try to identify ways to make it easier for audiences to do these things. This process imagines that you're just evaluating a document, not revising it. However, in some cases, you will want to do both. This is the same process Mass Digital uses to conduct reviews for web domain name requests. You can use this plain language review worksheet to use this method on your own content.
Note: By “document,” we mean whatever you're reviewing — a Word document, webpage, paper letter, etc.
Step 1: Identify the audience and purpose
The first thing you should do for a plain language review is make sure you understand:
- Who the document's audience is
- What the purpose of the document is
If you start reading but can't figure these out, you should pause your review and ask the subject matter expert (SME) or stakeholder you're working with for more information.
Who is the audience?
A lot of the feedback you'll provide about a document is based on if you think something would make sense to the intended audience.
Try to define the audience concretely. Doing this helps you judge if the document is doing a good job meeting that audience’s needs. For example, the audience could be:
- An unemployed person or someone who needs food stamps
- A municipal official who needs financial data
- A state agency that needs to follow your guidelines
There is often more than one audience — at least “people who have read/done this before,” and “people reading/doing it for the first time.”
What’s the purpose?
Try to understand what the audience can use the document to do or learn. This will help you evaluate if anything could prevent the audience from doing or learning.
Questions that can help you assess purpose are:
- Is it clear in the document what the audience is expected to do or learn?
- Can the audience use the document with limited or no prior knowledge?
- Does the document answer questions the audience is likely to have?
- Does it provide clear directions for completing tasks, including necessary information like timelines, eligibility criteria, and what to gather ahead of time?
Step 2: Check the readability score to get a sense of how complicated the writing is
You can use Microsoft Word’s Editor to check the document’s Flesch-Kincaid grade level. Flesch-Kincaid is an algorithm that judges how hard it is to read a text. It uses criteria like sentence and multisyllabic words to generate this judgment. It gives you a rough idea of how complicated it is. We recommend that state agencies aim for a Flesch-Kincaid score of 8th grade level.
Grade level doesn't tell you if the document clearly communicates its message. However, it helps set expectations for the review. If you see grade level 13, you'll know to be on the lookout for ways to suggest simplifying sentence and paragraph structure.
It's important to distinguish between simplifying ideas and simplifying how you communicate them. Often, plain language issues have nothing to do with the subject matter. For example, look out for:
- Convoluted sentences
- Very long sentences that could be split into simpler ones
- Jargon that needs a plain language definition
- Unfamiliar words (like “utilize” and “obtain”) that could be replaced with familiar words (like “use” and “get”) without affecting meaning
This makes it easier for readers to understand and use the document. Nobody, including experts, wants to read content that is more complicated than necessary.
"Grade level" differs depending on which algorithm and tool you use to measure it
There are many different types of algorithms for measuring readability. They will often produce different scores when you apply them. To make matters worse, 2 different implementations of the same algorithm might produce different scores!
You can take a practical approach to grade level. Try to use the same algorithm and tool to measure it. For example, you might always use Microsoft Word's version of Flesch-Kincaid. In addition, don't treat grade level as your ultimate goal. Try to find out if your intended audience can actually use your document to do what they need to do.
Step 3: Check for plain language principles
This section summarizes the major things you should consider during plain language reviews.
Organization style guide
Your organization may have a style guide with plain language definitions of key terms. This can save you a lot of time thinking about how to explain technical terms. It may also help you use the same words that your organization uses in other places.
Title and headings
Check that titles and headings are descriptive and make sense on their own. Titles are especially important for webpages, since people often encounter them in search results. Descriptive headings help people scan and understand how a document is organized.
Webpages usually benefit from short sections and more headings (than printed documents), since people tend to scan a lot when they read online.
Document structure
Most important information should be at the beginning of the document and at the start of each section. It should be clear what each section is about and how it relates to the rest of the document. For example, imagine you are writing a webpage about how constituents can apply for something. You should make clear as close to the beginning as possible what the application is for and who should apply. You do not need to begin with who offers the application or where its funding comes from.
Also, look for places where too much information is packed into too little space. For example, if you see a very long list in a sentence, you might suggest converting it into a bullet list. Same for long paragraphs and sentences: You may want to suggest converting these into multiple sentences or paragraphs.
Instructions
Check any instructions to make sure they guide the audience through a process without leaving out critical information. For example, if a process says you’ll need to show identification, but doesn’t list what documents you can use, it’s leaving out something the audience needs to know.
You should also check that information is presented in a logical order. For example, instructions for applying for something might begin by saying what to gather ahead of time and how long an application takes to fill out. Then, after listing the steps to apply, it should end with telling how long it takes to get a response to your application.
If you are looking at a transactional application or form, you'll also review help text. Help text should tell you what to do (and maybe why). You should point out any text that could be cut to clarify the help text.
Accessibility
A plain language review is not an accessibility audit. However, since both are concerned with access, they do overlap. Common plain language accessibility issues you should check for are:
- Make sure that link text tells you where it’s taking you if you read it out loud. For example, “click here,” “here,” or a URL aren’t accessible
- Check how webpages look on mobile. You may notice that they become overwhelming to read, or that some content becomes hidden or harder to see
- If there are images, check that alternative text makes sense if read aloud, and that critical information is not contained only in images
Data
If the review includes data, you should check that:
- Data is accompanied by critical context, such as when it was collected, its timespan, and any information important for interpreting it
- Technical terms used in the data are explained, or that the audience has access to a data dictionary
- Charts and dashboards have clear labels and help text
Language and tone
Note: You may want to hold off on this section if there are structural issues. There's no reason to suggest rewording a sentence if the author might cut it because it's irrelevant.
Mass Digital recommends that documents use a conversational tone that directly addresses the reader. This does not mean they avoid jargon or complicated ideas. It means that the document:
- Uses sentences that aren't too long (under 25 words)
- Avoids sentences that contain too much information. Try to communicate 1 piece of new information at a time.
- Uses familiar words when there’s no good reason to use an unfamiliar word (such as “use” instead of “utilize”). Plainlanguage.gov offers a "word substitution" list that may help you find alternatives.
- Defaults to active voice ("Submit the form" instead of "The form should be submitted")
- Defines jargon in plain language
- Says what acronyms stand for
- Provides any background information the audience needs
- Avoids idioms and figurative language that machine translation (to another language) might struggle with
- Phrasal verbs (such as "look up," "turned on"," "put off," "run out of") cause issues for machine translation (e.g. Google Translate). You may want to replace them.
If you notice patterns of issues, you should try to give the writer examples about how to revise that kind of issue. For example, if you see many very long sentences, you should show how they could be broken into multiple, shorter sentences.
Step 4: Provide feedback
You can provide 2 types of feedback:
- High level: Critical observations on the document as a whole. These tend to be structural, or to affect the entire document.
- Specific: Moments in the document that need attention. These can still be very important, even if they aren’t big enough to make it into your higher-level comments.
The feedback process might be iterative
You likely will give this feedback in stages.
During early rounds of feedback, you will work with the SME or stakeholder on structural or holistic changes. For example, you may suggest that sections be re-ordered or that help text be added for each field in a web form.
In later rounds, you would focus on specific places where a change would help.
Sometimes you might want to pause your review to submit feedback if the structure of the document doesn't seem to match the audience's needs or the document's purpose.
Reviews that include multiple rounds of feedback are common. This helps prevent decision makers from being overwhelmed with feedback. It also helps you avoid commenting on a paragraph that someone decides just needs to be removed.
You may encounter questions or resistance to your feedback. Remember, plain language is important to helping your audience succeed in doing or learning something.