Guidelines for Creating Easy to Read Text
In 1998, Inclusion Europe (formerly the International League of Societies for Persons with Mental Handicap - European Association) published the European Guidelines for the Production of Easy to Read Information for People with Learning Disability: for authors, editors, information providers, translators and other interested persons in order to support all stakeholders in providing accessible information for people with learning disabilities.
According to the guidelines, the concept of Easy to Read cannot be universal, and it will not be possible to write a text that will suit the abilities of all people with literacy and comprehension problems. However, Easy to Read material does embody some general characteristics, including:
- the use of a simple, straightforward language;
- only one main idea per sentence;
- the avoidance of technical language, abbreviations and initials; and
- a clear and logical structure.
While it can be relatively easy to write about things that are simple and concrete, it is much more difficult to write about abstract concepts in a way that people with a learning disability can understand. Therefore, whenever possible, abstract concepts should be avoided. Otherwise, the concept should be illustrated with concrete examples.
The structure of an Easy to Read document is very important. The contents should follow a clear and logical sequence. All unnecessary ideas, words, sentences or phrases should be avoided or removed. Writing in simple, straightforward language does not mean writing in a childish or simplistic manner however. Most information is aimed at adult readers and must be written and presented in an age-appropriate form.
The visual presentation of the information is likewise significant. Photographs, pictures or symbols should support the text wherever possible in order to aid understanding. These illustrations must also be easy to understand and should clearly match the text. The page layout of text and illustrations must be carefully considered so as to be clear and uncomplicated.
For More Information
Inclusion Europe has several Easy to Read documents on disability rights and the European Union available for download on their website. Many documents are available in multiple European languages. To view these documents, please click here.
To learn more about the creation of an Easy to Read text or publication, download the complete Inclusion Europe guidelines here.