Since this document helps to clarify the intent of success criteria and provides a bridge to technology-specific information, the
Please send comments by 2 August 2005 to
Publication as a Working Draft does not imply endorsement by the W3C Membership. This is a draft document and may be updated, replaced or obsoleted by other documents at any time. It is inappropriate to cite this document as other than work in progress. This document will be published as a W3C Working Group Note at the time that WCAG 2.0 becomes a W3C Recommendation.
This document has been produced as part of the W3C
This document provides information to Web content developers who wish to satisfy the success criteria of "Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0"
There may be other techniques besides those provided in this document that may be used to demonstrate conformance to WCAG 2.0; in that case, it is encouraged to submit those techniques to the WCAG WG for consideration for inclusion in this document, so that the set of techniques maintained by the WCAG WG is as comprehensive as possible. Deprecated examples illustrate techniques that the Working Group no longer recommends, but may be applicable in some cases.
This document is part of a series of documents published by the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) to support WCAG 2.0.
UNKNOWN
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Text alternatives for non-text content can be displayed in a variety of ways by a variety of user agents. Using synthetic speech, screen readers read the text aloud, helping people who do not see well or do not see at all. Such synthetic speech may also be helpful to people who have difficulty reading written text. Refreshable Braille displays present the text in tactile form for the benefit of people who depend on Braille. Conventional user agents such as desktop browsers include options to enhance legibility of text for people with limited vision by increasing or decreasing font size as well as changing text and background colors. People who cannot hear recorded speech can read transcripts. Providing text alternatives for non-text content thus makes it possible for people with different abilities using different devices to perceive the content of Web-based resources.
It is important to keep in mind that some people who depend on text alternatives do not have access to the non-text content. In other words, for many users the text alternative is not an "alternative" at all: the text alternative is the content. For other users, the text alternative is an important supplement to the non-text content.
When writing text alternatives it is important to ask yourself several questions about each piece of non-text content. For example:
What is the purpose of the non-text content?
Does it provide functionality (such as a graphical link or button)?
Does it convey information (such as a chart, diagram, or recording of a speech)?
Does it create a specific sensory experience, such as music without words or visual art?
If the non-text content does not provide functionality, convey information, or create a specific sensory experience, is it important for users to be aware of it?
The answers to these questions will help you determine what the text alternative should include, and may also lead to further questions.
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In the examples below, a single piece of non-text content is used in different contexts that require different text alternatives.
A photograph of an historic event. A photograph of two world leaders shaking hands accompanies a news story about an international summit meeting. The text alternative says, "President X of Country X shakes hands with Prime Minister Y of country Y."
The same image used in a different context with additional text alternative. The image of the president shaking hands with the prime minister appears on a Web site discussing intricate diplomatic relationships. The first text alternative reads, "President X of country X shakes hands with Prime Minister Y of country Y on January 2, 2009." An additional text alternative describes the room where the leaders are standing, the expressions on the leaders' faces, and identifies the other people in the room.
The additional description might be included on the same page as the photograph or in a separate file associated with the image through a link or other standard programmatic mechanism.
An audio recording. The Web page described in the previous example includes a link to an audio recording of the leaders' press conference. The page also links to a text transcript of the press conference. The transcript includes a verbatim record of everything the speakers say. It identifies who is speaking as well as noting other significant sounds that are part of the recording, such as applause, laughter, questions from the audience, and so on.
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A graphical navigation link. A navigation bar includes a small image showing a house. The image is a link to the site's home page. The text alternative says "Home."
A graphical icon. A Web page provides a text transcript of a press conference. The page also includes a graphical icon linked to an audio recording of the press conference. The text alternative reads, "Audio recording of press conference."
A graphical button. A search form includes a button featuring the image of a magnifying glass. The text alternative for the graphic says "Search."
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Visual design often provides important cues to the structure of Web content - that is, to the parts into which it is organized and the way those parts are related to each other. However, complex layouts may be difficult to interpret for people who have learning disabilities or cognitive impairments and for older users. A page that appears well organized visually may be difficult to understand for people who are blind if screen readers are not able to identify structures and relationships within the content.
In other words, visual cues alone can not give sufficient indication of the structure or organization of Web content and the relationships within it to meet the needs of users who have disabilities. This is why it is necessary to ensure that information, structure, and functionality can be separated from presentation (the way the content looks or sounds). Using structural markup correctly ensures that standards-compliant user agents can determine how the content should be presented, even when the user agent must adapt the presentation to meet the needs of people with disabilities. Conversely,
It is best to approach accessibility as an integral aspect of design instead of something "added" to a finished product. Content, structure, functionality, and visual design may then be considered together as parts of a complex whole that meets the needs of the largest possible number of users.
The following sections discuss general techniques for:
using structural markup to identify individual parts of the content and relationships among those parts; and
using markup to clearly define sections of the document or other resource.
The Technology-Specific Techniques documents provide detailed information about implementing these techniques in several W3C technologies, including (X)HTML, CSS, SVG, Scripting, and others.
The list below names some (but not all) of the parts of Web documents or types of content that may be identified through structural markup. Note that some items in this list may include other structural markup.
paragraphs
lists
forms
data tables
images
mathematical expressions
etc.
The techniques described below focus primarily on enabling user agents to identify structures and relationships within Web content. This is because actual users depend on what the user agent renders; in other words, users can only perceive what user agents can identify and present.
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The main content area of an online newsletter uses a layout that features two columns of text. as There is a "pullquote" in the center of the screen-- that is, a phrase taken from the article and displayed in a larger font to emphasize an important idea. The pullquote is shown over a shaded background and there is a border around it. Visually, the pullquote overlaps portions of both columns in the text. The page also includes a sidebar with a list of phone numbers. The visual layout does not require that the content be read in a certain order. However, it is important that people who use screen readers or text-only displays be able to read the content in a sequence that makes sense. Thus the pullquote and the sidebar should be clearly distinguished from the text in the left and right columns so that user agents can render the content separately.
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The intent of this Success Criterion is to ensure that user agents present text and other linguistic content correctly. Both assistive technologies and conventional user agents can render text more accurately when the language of the delivery unit is identified. Screen readers can load the correct pronunciation rules. Visual browsers can display characters and scripts correctly. Media players can show captions correctly. As a result, users with disabilities will be better able to understand the content.
HTML Techniques
CSS Techniques
[List goes here; also refer people to I18N information]
This Success Criterion helps:
people who Use screen readers or other technologies that convert text into synthetic speech;
people with learning disabilities and cognitive limitations that make it difficult to recognize (decode) individual words and sentences;
people with learning disabilities and cognitive limitations that make it difficult to recognize (decode) individual words and sentences;
people who rely on captions for multimedia.
Example 1: A Spanish Web site
The Web site of a Spanish non-governmental organization (NGO) identifies the natural language of its home page as Spanish. Screen readers automatically switch to the pronunciation dictionary for Spanish. Desktop browsers use the proper punctuation marks and other symbols.
Example 2: A news video.
A news video exists in English, German, and Italian versions. A user selects the Italian version and the media player automatically shows the Italian captions.
The intent of this Success Criterion is to ensure that user agents can correctly present content written in a language that is different from the language of the delivery unit as a whole. This applies to graphical browsers as well as screen readers, Braille displays, and other voice browsers.
Both assistive technologies and conventional user agents can render text more accurately if changes of language within the delivery unit are identified. Screen readers can switch to the pronunciation rules for the language of the foreign text, then switch back to the pronunciation rules of the primary language at the end of the foreign phrase or passage. Visual browsers can display characters and scripts in appropriate ways. This is especially important when one language reads from left to right and the other reads from right to left, or when the foreign phrase or passage uses a different alphabet than the primary language. Users with disabilities who know the language of the foreign passage or phrase as well as the language of the delivery unit as a whole will be better able to understand the content.
HTML Techniques
Advisory techniques: going beyond Guideline 3.1 L2 SC1
Make foreign passages or phrases visually different from other text in the delivery unit.
Give the names of any languages used in foreign passages or phrases.
This Success Criterion helps :
people who Use screen readers or other technologies that convert text into synthetic speech;
people with learning disabilities and cognitive limitations that make it difficult to recognize (decode) individual words and sentences;
people who rely on captions to recognize language changes in the soundtrack of multimedia content.
Example 1: A Web site about ancient Greek literature.
A Web site discusses Friedrich Nietzche's views of Greek tragedy from Aeschylus to Sophocles. English is the primary language of the delivery unit. The delivery unit includes quotations from Nietzsche's work in German as well as passages in ancient Greek from Aeschylus' Oresteia and Sophocles' Oedipus at Colonus.
Example 2: Captions for a multimedia soundtrack.
A French academic Web site discusses Asian film of the 1990s. French is identified as the natural language of the delivery unit as a whole. The site includes three 20-second video clips which illustrate important points. The dialogue of the first clip is in Chinese. The dialog of the second clip is in Japanese. The actors in the third clip are speaking Hindi. In each case, the language of the captions is identified.
Example 3: Text with foreign words that have become part of the delivery unit's language.
[WCAG definition of text goes here]
A process or technique for achieving a result
Ready for use or service; usable
The baseline impact analysis for guidelines and SC recommended that the phrase "is available]" be used in this and a number of other SC as a way to describe a "functional outcome." I am concerned that the phrase is vague and subject to intentional misinterpretation—e.g., a mechanism is available but we didn't implement it." To aboid this, we may want to consider changing "mechanism is available" to somethinglike "mechanism has been implemented" or "is available to the user."
The intent of this Success Criterion is to ensure that definitions are available for all words in the text of the delivery unit.
HTML Techniques
Glossary
Advisory techniques: going beyond Guideline 3.1 L3 SC1
Provide access to a dictionary of Sign for the language of the content, to support users who are Deaf
Provide access to a talking dictionary, to support users who might have difficulty decoding written definitions.
Provide a voice-enabled dictionary search, so that users who have difficulty typing or spelling can speak the word whose definition they need.
This Success Criterion helps users with limited memory or other limitations that make it difficult to understand the meaning of words.
People may suffer impaired memory for many reasons, including:
Accidental brain injury
Stroke
Disease
Aging
Example 1: A dictionary search form.
A Web site includes a search form provided by an online dictionary service. Users enter a word or phrase, and the form returns a list of definitions from the dictionary or dictionaries that it searched.
Example 2: A medical Web site.
A medical website provides information for both doctors and patients. The site includes a set of cascading dictionaries. A very specialized medical dictionary is first, followed by a second medical dictionary for the general public. The cascade also includes a list of abbreviations that are unique to the site, and finally there is a standard dictionary as well.
The standard dictionary at the end of the list provides definitions for most words in the text. The specialized medical dictionary yields definitions of unusual medical terms. Definitions for words that appear in more than one dictionary are listed in the order of the cascade. The meaning of abbreviations is provided by the list of abbreviations.
Example 3: A Web site about technology for people with disabilities.
A Web site describes operating system features that help people who can use only one hand. The site includes the term "StickyKeys." A user asks for a definition. The only definition the dictionary cascade can find is in the Web site's own glossary.
[Note: The inclusion of a product or vendor name in the list below does not constitute an endorsement by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Working Group or the Web Accessibility Initiative of the World Wide Web Consortium. This list is provided simply for convenience.]
[List of some online dictionaries and dictionary services will appear here.]
[WCAG definition of text goes here]
a process or technique for achieving a result
Ready for use or service; usable
The baseline impact analysis for guidelines and SC recommended that the phrase "is available]" be used in this and a number of other SC as a way to describe a "functional outcome." I am concerned that the phrase is vague and subject to intentional misinterpretation—e.g., a mechanism is available but we didn't implement it." To aboid this, we may want to consider changing "mechanism is available" to somethinglike "mechanism has been implemented" or "is available to the user."
the exact definition that users must know in order to understand the content
The intent of this Success Criterion is to ensure that definitions are available for:
Idiomatic expressions (words or phrases specific to a region or language that do not mean what the dictionary definitions of the individual words say. For example, the English phrase "he blew his stack" means that someone became very angry.
Jargon (words used in a particular way by people in a particular field. For example, the word StickyKeys is jargon from the field of assistive technology/accessibility.)
Words used in such a way that users must know exactly what definition to apply in order to understand the content correctly. For example, the word "representational" means something quite different if it occurs in a discussion of visual art as opposed to a treatise on government, but the appropriate definition can be determined from context. . By contrast, the word "text" is used in a very specific way in WCAG 2.0, so a definition is supplied in the Glossary.
Advisory techniques: going beyond Guideline 3.1 L3 SC1
Use markup and visual formatting to help users recognize words that have special meaning.
Provide a voice-enabled dictionary search, so that users who have difficulty typing or spelling can speak the word whose definition they need.
Provide a Sign language dictionary to help Deaf users find the necessary definitions
This Success Criterion helps people whose disabilities make reading difficult or impossible. These include:
People with learning disabilities or cognitive limitations that impair the ability to read
People with low vision. Screen magnification may reduce contextual cues.
People with memory loss
This Success Criterion helps people with disabilities that affect their ability to use context to aid understanding. This includes people with certain learning disabilities and cognitive impairments. In addition, people with low vision often lose context when screen magnifiers zoom in on a small area of the screen. This Success Criterion also helps people who have difficulty recognizing words (decoding) by limiting the number of dictionary entries they must read in order to find the definition that fits the context.
Example 1: Text that includes a definition for a word used in an unusual way.
Organize the list or "cascade" of dictionaries and other resources so that the definition search will find the intended definitions instead of displaying definitions from other sources in the "cascade." (The "cascade" lists the dictionaries and other reference materials in the order most likely to bring up the right definition. This controls the order to follow when searching for definitions.)
Example 2: Including definitions in the dictionary cascade.
WCAG 2.0 uses the word "text" in a specific way. If the Glossary for WCAG 2.0 appears first in the dictionary cascade, users who want a definition of "text" will get the definition as it appears in the Glossary. Users who request definitions for words that are not defined in the Glossary will get definitions that appear in whatever dictionary appears in the cascade.
[Note: The inclusion of a product or vendor name in the list below does not constitute an endorsement by the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines Working Group or the Web Accessibility Initiative of the World Wide Web Consortium. This list is provided simply for convenience, and to give users an idea of what resources may be available.]
Free bilingual dictionaries for a number of languages are available from the
The Free Dictionaries and Search Engines site provides access to free online dictionaries and search engines in many languages. For more information, see http://www.stars21.com/index.html?lang=en&pname=african @@broken link. Retrieved 9 April 2005.
WCAG definition of text goes here]
Ready for use or service; usable
[Note: The baseline impact analysis for guidelines and SC recommended that the phrase "is available]" be used in this and a number of other SC as a way to describe a "functional outcome." I am concerned that the phrase is vague and subject to intentional misinterpretation—e.g., a mechanism is available but we didn't implement it." To avoid this, we may want to consider changing "mechanism is available" to something like "mechanism has been implemented" or "is available to the user."]
A word made from the initial letters of a name that contains several words. For example, NOAA is a word made from the initial letters of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the United States. SNCF is a French acronym that contains the initial letters of the Societe National des Chemins de Fer, the French national railroad.
The shortened form of a word. For example, "Dr." is the abbreviation for the English word "doctor." "M." is the abbreviation for the French word "Monsieur."
The intent of this Success Criterion is to ensure that users can access the expanded form of acronymns and abbreviations.
There are several ways to address this Success Criterion.
HTML Techniques
Acronyms
Abbreviations
Advisory techniques: going beyond Guideline 3.1 L3 SC3
Use visual formatting to help users recognize acronyms and abbreviations.
Provide access to a talking dictionary, to support users who might have difficulty decoding written definitions.
Provide a voice-enabled dictionary search, so that users who have difficulty typing or spelling can speak the word whose definition they need.
This Success Criterion helps people whose disabilities make reading difficult or impossible. These include:
People with learning disabilities or cognitive limitations that impair the ability to read
People with low vision. Screen magnification may reduce contextual cues.
People with memory loss This Success Criterion also helps people with disabilities that affect their ability to recognize words as well as their ability to use context to aid understanding. Acronyms and abbreviations may confuse these readers in different ways:
Some acronyms spell common words, but are used in different ways. For example, "JAWS" is an acronym for a screen reader whose full name is "Job Access with Speech." It is also a common English word referring to the part of the mouth that holds the teeth. The acronym is used differently than the common word.
Some acronyms sound like common words but are spelled differently. For example, the acronym for Synchronized Multimedia Integration Language, S M I L, is pronounced like the English word "smile."
Some abbreviations do not look like normal words and cannot be pronounced according to the usual rules of the language. For example, the English word "room" is abbreviated as "rm," which does not correspond to any English word or phoneme. The user has to know that "rm" is an abbreviation for the word "room" in order to say it correctly.
Sometimes the same abbreviation means different things in different contexts. For example, in the English sentence "Dr. Johnson lives on Boswell Dr.," the first "Dr." is an abbreviation for "Doctor" and the second instance is an abbreviation for the word "Drive" (a word that means "street"). Users must be able to understand the context in order to know what the abbreviations mean.
Example 1: A dictionary search form.
A Web site includes a search form provided by an online acronym service. Users enter an acronym and the form returns a list of possible expansions from the sources that it searched.
Example 2: A medical Web site.
A medical website provides information for both doctors and patients. The site includes a set of cascading dictionaries. A very specialized medical dictionary is first, followed by a second medical dictionary for the general public. The cascade also includes a list of acronyms and abbreviations that are unique to the site, and finally there is a standard dictionary as well. The standard dictionary at the end of the list provides definitions for most words in the text. The specialized medical dictionary yields definitions of unusual medical terms. Definitions for words that appear in more than one dictionary are listed in the order of the cascade. The meaning of acronyms and abbreviations is provided by the list of acronyms and abbreviations.
Example 3: An abbreviation whose expansion is provided the first time the abbreviation appears in the content.
The name, World Wide Web Consortium," appears as the first heading on the organization's home page. The abbreviation, "W3C," is enclosed in parentheses in the same heading.
Text that identifies portions of a larger document, especially text marked as a heading.
The intent of this Success Criterion is to help users understand how content is organized.
HTML Techniques
Section headings
Header misuse
Advisory techniques: going beyond Guideline 3.1 L3 SC4
Put the most important words at the beginning of the link or section heading.
This Success Criterion helps people who use screen readers by ensuring that section titles convey meaningful information when heard out of context—for example in a Table of Contents , or when jumping from heading to heading within a page.
This Success Criterion may also help users with low vision who may see only a few words at a time.
Users with reading disabilities benefit when section titles make it possible to predict what each section contains.
Example 1: A news site.
The home page of a news site lists the headlines for the top stories of the hour. Under each heading are the first 35 words of the story and a link to the full article. Each headline gives a clear idea of the article's subject.
Theofanos, M.F., and Redish, J. (2003). Guidelines for Accessible and Usable Web Sites: Observing Users Who Work With Screen Readers. Interactions, Volume X, Issue 6, November-December 2003, pages 38-51, http://doi.acm.org/10.1145/947226.947227. Retrieved 3 May 2005 from http://redish.net/content/papers/interactions.html.
A version of content which some users may choose instead of or in addition to another version of the content. Supplements may use different media. For example, there may be versions in text, graphics, and audio.
The people for whom the Web site, application, or other resource has been created. The audience may be large or small, local or global. The intended audience may be deeply knowledgeable about the topic, or completely uninformed.
Years of school completed, or highest degree achieved.
Typically begins at ages 15 or 16 and lasts for approximately 3 years. The educational programmes included at this level typically require the completion of some 9 years of full-time education (since the beginning of level 1 [primary education]) for admission or a combination of education and vocational or technical experience and with as minimum entrance requirements the completion of level 2[lower secondary education, such as middle school or junior high school in the US] or demonstrable ability to handle programmes at this level. (Source: International Standard Classification of Education 1997. UNESCO. Retrieved 22 June 2005 from
Usually begins at age 5, 6, or 7 and continues for six years of full-time schooling. Source: International Standard Classification of Education 1997. UNESCO. Retrieved 22 June 2005 from
Readability formulas predict whether text will be easy or difficult to read. Readability formulas assume that longer sentences are more complex than shorter ones, and therefore harder to read. Readability formulas also assume that shorter words are easier to read than longer ones.
In some languages, readability formulas measure sentence-length by counting characters instead of words. Readability formulas for languages that use multiple scripts within a single document (such as Japanese katakana and hiragana) may also consider the number of different scripts used in the text as a measure of difficulty.
Results of readability tests are often expressed in terms of the education level needed to recognize words and sentences in the text. Thus readability formulas can help authors write content that matches the education level or reading ability of the intended audience.
[Note: add plain-language paraphrase approved at 2005-04-28 call.]
A set of material transferred between two cooperating web programs as the response to a single HTTP request. The transfer might, for example, be between an origin server and a user agent.
The intent of this Success Criterion is to ensure that supplementary aids are provided for complex text. It defines a threshold that establishes when simpler alternatives are required. It also defines the required reading level for one type of alternative, the text summary.
The threshold for deciding when text is complex enough to require supplemental versions is set at the upper secondary education level as defined by the International Standard Classification of Education (UNESCO, 1997). . In the United States and Japan, for example, as well as other countries, this corresponds to the 10th grade.
The readability requirement for text summaries is set no higher than primary education because many people with learning disabilities read at or below this level.
Here are some additional points to consider:
There are people with disabilities at every education level. They include people with learning disabilities and cognitive impairments as well as people with physical and sensory limitations.
Research shows that most readers have difficulty understanding text at or above the tenth grade level.
According to Canada's Northwest Territories Literacy Council, text that requires reading ability at or above the tenth grade level is appropriate only when presenting specialized information to an audience that already knows the topic.
Education levels and compulsory education requirements vary a great deal from country to country.
Reading ability also varies from country to country, and sometimes from region to region within the same country.
Reading ability does not always match education level. For example, 2004 data show that over 85% of adults in the United States have finished high school (upper secondary). But the International Adult Literacy Survey (1994-98) found the reading ability of most adults in the US was closer to the end of lower secondary (eighth grade). And the US ranked last among 19 high-performing economies for the reading ability of adults who had not completed high school (upper secondary).
It has been estimated that 15-20 per cent of adults have learning disabilities
As many as 80 per cent of adults with low literacy skills are likely to have learning disabilities.
Researchers in New Zealand found that approximately 80% of adults with self-reported reading/learning disabilities had literacy levels below the minimum level required for meeting the complex demands of daily life in information-based societies. (Chapman, J.W., Tunmer, W.E., and Allen, R. (2003). New Zealand IALS results. Dyslexia 9.2 (May 2003): 75-98. Abstract retrieved 29 April 2005 from http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/jws/dys/2003/00000009/00000002/art00002)
This Success Criterion leaves authors free to present complex ideas and information while also meeting the needs of people with reading disabilities.
Measure the readability of the text.
If the results indicate that the text requires an education level of 10 years or more, do one of the following:
Make the text easier to read.
Provide one or more supplementary versions
[List techniques for linking to spoken versions and/or grouping text and accompanying illustration in a DIV, etc.]
Advisory techniques: going beyond Guideline 3.1 L3 SC5
Text on navigational and landing pages requires reading ability no higher than primary education level
Text on interior pages requires reading ability below upper secondary education level.
Signing versions are available for information, ideas, and processes that must be understood in order to use the content.
This Success Criterion benefits people with reading disabilities who can understand complex ideas and processes presented in highly readable text or by other means, such as graphics illustrating relationships and processes or through the spoken word.
Reading disabilities such as dyslexia affect the ability to recognize individual words. Decoding must be automatic in order for people to read fluently. The act of decoding text word by word consumes much of the mental energy that most people are able to use for understanding what they read.
People with reading disabilities have become successful scientists, engineers, artists, actors, attorneys, surgeons, and skilled professionals in many other fields. But they are often at a significant disadvantage when ideas and information they need are available only in complex textual presentations. This Success Criterion does not limit the complexity of textual presentation. Instead, it asks authors and other content providers to present ideas and information more than one way in addition to the textual presentation.
Example 1: A scientific journal including readable summaries of complex research articles
A scientific journal includes articles written in highly technical language aimed at specialists in the field. The journal's Table of Contents page includes a plain-language summary of each article. The summaries are intended for a general audience with eight years of school. The metadata for the journal uses the Dublin Core specification to identify the education level of the articles' intended audience as "advanced" and the education level of the intended audience for the summaries as "eight years of school."
Example 2: Medical information for members of the public
A medical school operates a Web site that explains recent medical and scientific discoveries. The articles on the site are written for people who are not doctors. Each article uses the Dublin Core metadata specification to identify the education level of the intended audience as having completed 8 years of school and includes the Flesch Reading Ease score for the article. A link on each page displays the education level and other metadata. No supplementary versions are required because adults who have not begun upper secondary education can read the articles.
Example 3: An e-learning application.
An online course about Spanish cultural history includes a unit on Moorish architecture. The unit includes text written for students with different reading abilities. Photographs and drawings of buildings illustrate architectural concepts and styles. Graphic organizers are used to illustrate complex relationships, and an audio version using synthetic speech is available. The metadata for each version describes the academic level of the content and includes a readability score based on formulas developed for Spanish-language text. The learning application uses this metadata and metadata about the students to provide versions of instructional content that match the needs of individual students.
Example 3: A moderately difficult description of a complex and unfamiliar natural event.
In a dazzling and dramatic portrait painted by the Sun, the long thin shadows of Saturn's rings sweep across the planet's northern latitudes. Within the shadows, bright bands represent areas where the ring material is less dense, while dark strips and wave patterns reveal areas of denser material.
The shadow darkens sharply near upper right, corresponding to the boundary of the thin C ring with the denser B ring. A wide-field, natural color view of these shadows can be seen here.
The globe of Saturn's moon Mimas (398 kilometers, or 247 miles across) has wandered into view near the bottom of the frame. A few of the large craters on this small moon are visible.
Note: The description in Example 1 is taken from NASA – Sun-Striped Saturn, at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/cassini/multimedia/pia06574.html. Retrieved 2005-03-08.
Note: This description received a Flesch Reading Ease score of 57.9 and a Flesch-Kinkaid Grade Level of 9.9. This result means that people in the United States who have finished almost 10 years of school should be able to recognize the words and sentences.
Example 4: Description of a complex and unfamiliar natural event, rewritten to improve readability
The long thin shadows of Saturn's rings sweep across the planet's northern regions. Bright bands within the shadows show areas where the ring material is less dense. Dark strips and wave patterns show denser areas.
The shadow darkens sharply near the top right. This is where the thin C ring meets the denser B ring. This shows a wide-field, natural color view of these shadows.
The globe of Saturn's moon Mimas (398 kilometers, or 247 miles across) appears near the bottom of the frame. A few of the large craters on this small moon are visible.
[Note: This edited version of the description was rated at 72.1 on the Flesch Reading Ease scale, meaning that people beginning their sixth year of school should be able to read the description. The changes include:
Introductory phrases were deleted or moved to the end of the sentence.
Some sentences were shortened.
Some longer sentences were divided into two sentences.
Some longer words such as "latitudes" and "reveal" were replaced by shorter words with similar meanings ("regions," "show"). ]
· A Plain Language Audit Tool provides a checklist for determining whether documents can be edited for clarity and "plain language." The checklist includes a readability assessment. Available from the Northwest Territories (Canada) Literacy Council at http://www.nwt.literacy.ca/plainlng/auditool/cover.htm.
The Plain Language Network Web site provides many useful resources to help writers produce documents that communicate clearly in a variety of cultural and rhetorical contexts. See http://www.plainlanguagenetwork.org/.
The US government's plain language Web site at http://www.plainlanguage.gov provides general information about plain language as well as information about use of plain language in US government documents, including legal requirements
The Plain English Campaign Web site provides useful information and guidance for authors writing in English. Available at http://www.plainenglish.co.uk/.
The Swedish government's Plain Language site provides similar information about plain language efforts in Sweden. Available at http://www.regeringen.se/sb/d/4409.
Hall, T., and Strangman, N. CAST: Graphic organizers. Retrieved 5 April 2005 from http://www.cast.org/publications/ncac/ncac_go.html#startcontent. This article illustrates several different kinds of graphic organizers, explains how each type may be useful, and summarizes research findings that graphic organizers support learning, especially among students with learning disabilities.