Writing in Plain Language

1. Writing in Plain Language Presented by Jola Edwards, M.Ed. Rachel Drew, M.F.A. Center for Policy and Innovation Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services

2. Today’s Schedule 1:45 Take the pretest 1:55 Intro 2:30 Plain writing techniques 3:00 15-minute break 3:15 Plain writing techniques/exercises 4:15 Contest 4:50 Take the posttest

3. At the end of class, you should • Understand what plain language is and where it came from • Know some of the techniques for writing in plain language • Be able to begin using some of those techniques in your own writing • Know where to get more information and help

4. Introduction to Writing in Plain Language

5. What makes good writing? What do you think makes good writing?

6. Plain language: It’s about communicating. What is it? Why should I use it? How do I do it?

7. Plain language is a worldwide movement. • Sweden • UK • European Union • Canada • Australia • Mexico • United States • Government • Business • Healthcare • Legal

8. U.S. Federal Efforts • President Clinton’s Executive Memorandum, 1997 • Plainlanguage.gov • Plain Writing Act of 2010 • Signed by President Obama on October 13, 2010 • “The purpose of this Act is to improve the effectiveness and accountability of Federal agencies to the public by promoting clear Government communication that the public can understand and use.”

9. “Clear writing from your government is a civil right.” —Former Vice President Al Gore, 1998

10. Why use plain language? • Saves time • Reduces • mistakes • telephone calls • litigation • frustration • Saves money • Is more easily translated • Is more accessible

11. Testimonial from the federal government “The focus on PL let everyone know that it is OK to be clear, that we don't have to hide our message behind big words and bureaucratic language.” (Veterans Benefits Administration)

12. Just Say What You Mean. Plain language makes it easy for readers to: • Find • Read • Understand • Act on INFORMATION

13. The Plain Language Writing Process Step 1: Identify why and who Step 2: Organize your information Step 3: Use plain language writing techniques Step 4: Test your document Step 5: Revise

14. Step 1 Identify why and who • Why am I writing this? • Who are my readers (my audience)? • What does my audience know? • What does my audience need to know? • How will my audience use this document?

15. Step 2 Organize your information • Organize for your readers • Organize information in a logical order • Choose an appropriate format • Use descriptive headings • Use white space • Use tables • Try using the “inverted pyramid”

16. Step 3 Deploy your PL techniques • Use active voice • Use present tense • Use the simplest word • Avoid hidden verbs • Minimize acronyms and jargon • Use short sentences • Keep subject, verb, and object close together and in order

17. Step 3, continued: More PL Techniques • No extra words • Simple tables • Well-structured lists • Personal pronouns • Question and Answer format • Breaking up noun chains • Paragraph unity • Fewer sublevels • Words, not slashes • Parallel phrasing • “Must” instead of “shall” • Well-placed words

18. Step 4: Test your document • Read your own document. • Have a reader test your document. • Look for “naïve” readers as well as experts when you seek feedback.

19. Step 5: Revise • The writing process always includes revising. • Use the results of testing. • Look first at big issues like format and organization. • Edit at the sentence level.

20. Accessible design is plain design • Informative headings and subheadings • Left-aligned, ragged right • Line length of 65 characters or less • Bulleted or numbered lists • Tables • White space

21. Document Design:Which would you rather read? Diagnostic Procedures At the beginning of the process are the application and diagnostic procedures upon which you base your eligibility decision. Your role as the counselor is to initiate, analyze, and evaluate information considering the overall process. It may be helpful at this stage to "begin with the end in mind"—in other words, consider what outcomes are needed from each piece of the process to move to the next step. At application and throughout the diagnostic interview, you have the first opportunity to investigate the impact of disability on the consumer. Investigating this kind of information in the diagnostic interview is a complex process of probing and exploration. You must be prepared with the right questions and focus on the outcome to ensure that you can gather pertinent information, if it is not readily available. You may consider part of the interview as a service orientation in which you explain your role of counselor as direct provider of services, arranger or coordinator of services, and consumer advocate. The consumer must glimpse what is possible, even if the person does not yet fully understand the role he or she will play in becoming successful. Depending on the level of participation possible from the consumer, you should also explain any further diagnostic procedures, the eligibility process, and decision making that influences further planning. A sensitive, thorough interview is necessary, since one outcome may be that you find no indication of a disability and recommend that the person seek services from another source. The level and extent of evaluations you request to supplement the interview should be based on your diagnostic appraisal. Conserving funds and time dictates obtaining only the amount of information needed to evaluate the individual consumer. Again, "beginning with the end in mind" helps you to clarify the decisions you must make for eligibility when you first meet the consumer. The application, diagnostic interview, and subsequent diagnostic procedures are the first of several cornerstone pieces of a sound plan of services to reach the agreed-upon outcome. Having sound diagnostic information leads you to determining eligibility. The diagnostic interview is a significant vehicle for collecting information because it allows the consumer to provide you with needed social and vocational history. If you have not sufficiently developed this piece, you may fail to realize the need for a medical, psychological, educational, or vocational evaluation, a failure that could lead to a poor eligibility decision or developing a less than optimal plan for employment. You must see the diagnostic interview as a critical part of planning and decision making. Your role is to listen effectively and to ask questions as necessary. Diagnostic Procedures At the beginning of the process are the application and diagnostic procedures upon which you base your eligibility decision. Your role as the counselor is to initiate, analyze, and evaluate information considering the overall process. It may be helpful at this stage to "begin with the end in mind"—in other words, consider what outcomes are neededfrom each piece of the process to move to the next step. Developing a Plan At application and throughout the diagnostic interview, youhave the first opportunity to investigate the impact of disabilityon the consumer. Investigating this kind of information in the diagnostic interview is a complex process of probing and exploration. You must be prepared with the right questionsand focus on the outcome to ensure that you can gatherpertinent information, if it is not readily available. You may consider part of the interview as a service orientationin which you explain your role of counselor as • direct provider of services, • arranger or coordinator of services, and • consumer advocate. The consumer must glimpse what is possible, even if the person does not yet fully understand the role he or she willplay in becoming successful.

22. Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0: Guideline 3.1 Readable: Make text content readable and understandable. —World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) http://www.w3.org/TR/2008/NOTE-WCAG20-TECHS-20081211/G153

23. Principle 3 Understandable 3.1.5 Reading Level: if reading level is above lower secondary education level, • add supplemental content, • add a version at or below the lower secondary education level, or • make the text easier to read (G153)

24. What Readability Formulas Can and Cannot Do Readability formulas can give a quick, general assessment. They cannot measure • logical order • vocabulary appropriateness • gender, class, or cultural bias • effective design • concreteness and abstraction • obscurity, ambiguity, or incoherence • gobbledygook

25. Plain Language Writing Techniques

26. Don’t Hide Your Verbs in Nouns, Use Action Verbs Changing a verb into a noun hides the action and substitutes a weaker verb. Hidden Verb: Let’s make a decision. Action Verb: Let’s decide.

27. Hidden Verbs • perform an assessment of • give consideration to • make payment • conduct a review of • issue a report • Action Verbs • assess • consider • pay • review • report Nope! Yep!

28. Why use action verbs instead of hidden verbs? Too many nouns • Abstract • Wordy • Sluggish Active verbs • Concrete • Concise • Lively Yay! Boo!

29. Active Voice • Uses normal word order in a sentence: subject—verb—object • Tells “who” “did what” to “whom.” Example: Sallywrote the rule.

30. Passive Voice • The object becomes the subject. • The doer of the action (the usual subject) • disappears, or • moves to the end of the sentence in a "by" phrase. • The verb uses a form of "to be" with thepast participle. Examples: The rulewas written. The rulewas written by Sally.

31. If overused, passive voice • makes the reader work harder • creates sluggish, foggy writing

32. Never say never. . .even about passive voice. . . . • Use it when • you don’t want to identify the doer • the doer is unknown, unimportant, or obvious • the law is the doer Example: The rule was repealed in 2009.

33. No Extra Words • Cut out • extra prepositional phrases • wordy phrases • unnecessary adjectives • clutter words

34. Too Many Prepositional Phrases • Flabby: … but only such services as are needed [for such individual] [by reason] [of his condition] [of being disabled]. (4) • Lean: … but only those services the person needs because he or she has a disability. (0)

35. Wordy Phrases Phrases that use many words to do the work of one or two. • at this point in time • at that point in time • during the period when • due to the fact that • in the event that • notwithstanding the fact that Blah! Blah! Blah!

36. Wordy Phrases • at this point in time now • at that point in time then • during the period when when • due to the fact that since, because • in the event that if • notwithstanding the fact that although

37. Unnecessary Adjectives • [considerable] difficulty • [pertinent] information • [personal] opinion • [integral] part • [future] plans • [new] innovation • [violent] explosion • [absolutely] necessary Blah! Blah! Blah!

38. Clutter Words • The office has not [yet] received the report. • The worker denied [any] knowledge of the new forms. • The governor is [now] serving his third term. • The program will close [down] on July 1.

39. Every word that is unnecessary only pours over the side of a brimming mind. —Cicero

40. Say it succinctly Before Investigators at the contractor will review the facts in your case and decide the most appropriate course of action. The first step taken with most Medicare health care providers is to reeducate them about Medicare regulations and policies. If the practice continues, the contractor may conduct special audits of the providers medical records. Often, the contractor recovers overpayments to health care providers this way. If there is sufficient evidence to show that the provider is consistently violating Medicare policies, the contractor will document the violations and ask the Office of the Inspector General to prosecute the case. This can lead to expulsion from the Medicare program, civil monetary penalties, and imprisonment.

41. Say it succinctly After We will take two steps to look at this matter: We will find out if it was an error or fraud. We will let you know the result.

42. Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication —Leonardo da Vinci

43. Say It Simply YES • mean what you write • short sentences • simple words • precise words • considered writing NO • “dumb it down” • “50¢ words” • slang • jargon • lazy writing

44. Simple Words Understood quickly & easily Prefer the Anglo Saxon word to the Latin derivative

45. Latin Derivative Anglo Saxon • prior to • subsequent to • acquire • adjacent to • conceal • before • after • get • beside • hide

46. Simple, Everyday Words Not these, • utilize • assist • numerous • individual • initiate • shall • obtain But these: • use • help • many • person, consumer • begin, start • must • get

47. Example of a Simpler Word Before: • The counselor assists the consumer with making an informed choice. After: • The counselor helps the consumer make an informed choice.

48. Our national tendency is to inflate and thereby sound important. . . . But the secret of good writing is to strip every sentence to its cleanest components. —William Zinsser, On Writing Well, 1998

50. Well-Placed Words Keep related words close together: • subjects, verbs,& objects • modifiers & the things they modify