Integrating Easy English into your website is a highly effective way to improve accessibility for users who may struggle with reading and comprehension, which is why we implement it into our clients websites as part of our ongoing effort to make sites more user-friendly and accessible.
Easy English is a writing style that simplifies language for people who find reading and understanding standard English challenging. Unlike Plain English, which is intended for those with reasonable literacy, Easy English caters to individuals with lower literacy levels or cognitive impairments. It uses shorter sentences, straightforward grammar, and visual aids like pictures or symbols to help communicate key information.
Why Easy English Matters
A significant 44% of Australians between the ages of 15 and 74 are functionally illiterate, meaning they struggle to read and write at a level that allows them to manage everyday tasks. Easy English makes information accessible to these individuals by simplifying content without losing the core message. But the benefits of Easy English extend beyond those with low literacy levels, it’s also valuable for time-poor individuals or those experiencing cognitive overload, making content easier to digest quickly.
Our Approach to Easy English Integration
To convert our client’s website to Easy English, we utilise a dedicated plugin that helps reformat content for readability. Here’s how we approached the task:
- Simplifying the Text: Write the website’s existing content using plain language, shorter sentences, and simple grammar structures. Each sentence was limited to around 15 words or fewer to ensure clarity.
- Adding Visual Support: We incorporated relevant icons and images to enhance comprehension. Visuals are crucial in helping users who struggle with reading to understand important information at a glance.
- Streamlined Layout: Using an uncluttered design with plenty of white space. This layout ensures the content is not overwhelming and is easier to navigate.
Why We Chose Easy English
While Easy Read is another popular method for simplifying content, it’s generally geared toward people with intellectual disabilities and includes slightly more complex language. Easy English, on the other hand, uses very basic language and shorter sentences, making it suitable for a broader audience. After discussing the needs of our client’s website users, we determined that Easy English was the best fit for ensuring the widest accessibility possible.
Want to learn more about making your website accessible? Download our Easy English Resource Sheet to get practical tips and guidelines.
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Topics: Accessibility, Digital
