A key part of accessible digital content is the appropriate use of language. It is important to understand the purpose of specific content and choose the type or style of language which matches that purpose.
Types of language
The two most commons types of language used in Higher Education in Australia are:
- Academic English
- Plain English
Key differences between academic and plain language
Academic language is formal, precise, and often specialised. It uses discipline-specific terminology and complex sentence structures to express nuanced ideas and detailed arguments. This style is appropriate for scholarly publications, academic reports, and discipline specific learning materials. It is also the expected standard for many student assessment tasks.
Plain language, on the other hand, is clear, direct, and designed to be easily understood by a broad audience. It avoids jargon, uses shorter sentences, and prioritises clarity. Plain language is particularly effective for your instructions, general information, and communications as it reduces the cognitive load for students.
When to use plain or academic language
Academic language: Use when you are writing topic- or subject-specific learning content that requires precision and technical detail, such as course materials, research explanations, or for discipline-specific discussions.
Plain language: Use for general instructions, communications, and other content aimed at helping your students navigate processes, understand expectations, or access essential information. For example, use plain language for writing assessment task instructions.
Why should you use plain language
Using plain language has many benefits for you and your students. Here are just a few!
- Reduces their cognitive load
- Improves their comprehension and retention of the content
- Reduces their reading time
- Makes it easier for them to follow your instructions
- Reduces the time they spend asking for clarification or correcting mistakes they have made due to misunderstanding content
- Reduces your time to create content
- Reduces the time you spend answering requests for clarification
- Reduces time you spend giving feedback related to student misunderstanding – you can focus on giving meaningful feedback
Using plain language
Principles
There is a standard, AS ISO 24495.1:2024, which sets out an internationally recognised way of creating content using plain language. The governing principles in the standard are:
Your content should meet your students’ needs and answer their questions. The focus of this principle is on the reader and the content.
The key considerations for creating relevant digital content are:
- Select the more appropriate content type, e.g. Canvas page, Word document, discussion post
- Identify what questions your students need answered
- Do not leave out content your students need
- Leave out content your students do not need
Your students should be able to quickly work out what questions your content answers, and be able to find specific information in the content. The focus of this principle is on the structure and design of your content.
The key considerations for creating findable digital content are:
- Put the most important information at the beginning of your content
- Address one topic or answer one main question at a time, i.e. do not create long, complex content covering multiple topics or questions
- Use headings and lists to structure your content logically and clearly
- Structure instructions in chronological order
- Use images and multimedia if appropriate to make specific sections easier to find
- Clearly identify information that is only for some of your students, e.g. only for one cohort in a co-taught course
Your students should be able to easily understand the different sections of your content or document, and how the content or document fits together as a coherent whole. The focus of this principle is on the use of language.
The key considerations for creating understandable digital content are:
- Consider different interpretations that students could have based on their cultural background, age, gender etc
- Use precise, unambiguous and everyday words, e.g. “start” instead of “commence”
- Avoid jargon and specialised words, or provide a glossary of terms if necessary
- Keep your sentences short and keep the sentence structure simple
- Use active voice, not passive voice, e.g. “You must individually complete this assessment.” instead of “This assessment must be completed individually by each student.”
- Address your students directly using “you” and “your”, i.e. second person
- Only use abbreviations where necessary, and always spell out the abbreviation in its first use
- Use Australian spelling consistently as this is the standard expected of your students
- Be consistent, i.e. use the same words for the same meaning and different words where you mean something different
If you have followed the points for the principles of Relevant, Findable and Understandable, it is likely that your content will also be Usable. The focus of this principle is on evaluating your content.
The key considerations for creating usable digital content are:
- Evaluate your content against the first three principles before publishing it
- Check in with your students to ensure the content is meeting their needs
- Update your content based on frequent queries or requests for clarification from your students
- Remove out of date content
- Ensure that your content is accessible for all your students, including those using assistive technology
Examples of plain language
The following table lists some example plain language words and phrases and their more complex equivalents.
| Plain language | Complex language |
|---|---|
| use | utilise |
| begin | commence, initiate |
| end | terminate, complete |
| try | endeavour |
| help | facilitate, provide assistance with |
| find out | ascertain |
| share | disseminate |
| reduce | mitigate |
| next | subsequent |
| before | prior to |
| if | in the event of |
| show | demonstrate |
| make sure | ensure |
| best | optimal |
| agree | concur |
| next to | adjacent to |
| combine | consolidate |
| explain | illustrate |
| carry out | implement |
| enough | sufficient |
| about | approximately |
| because | as a consequence of, due to the fact that |
| work with | colloborate with |
| can | have the capacity to |
| apply | make an application |
| how | the way in which |
| get | obtain |
Inclusive language
Inclusive language avoids expressions or words that exclude certain groups, intentionally or inadvertently. It’s about choosing neutral, non-discriminatory words and respecting all readers.
Veruska Anconitano, CEO & Co-Founder, Multilingual Inclusive Language Expert
Accessible language and inclusive language, while different, complement each other. Although this resources focuses on accessible language, it is also important to consider your choice of words through an inclusion lens so that your students can fully engage with your content and experience a true sense of belonging at ANU.