Three Text Tips for Content People Can Actually Read
The words are the point of the course. If they are hard to read, the learning gets harder for no good reason at all. These three habits keep your text doing its job.
Here is what matters most:
- Write in plain, consistent language
- Keep capital letters to a minimum
- Check text and background contrast
Use Plain Language
Plain language is not about dumbing anything down. It is about removing friction, so a learner spends their effort on the subject and not on decoding your sentences.
Every extra clause is a small tax, and it lands hardest on people reading in a second language, people with dyslexia, and anyone tired or on a small screen. It slows everyone, though, so this is the cheapest accessibility win there is. Cut the padding, and pick your terms and stick to them. If you call something a “course,” do not switch to “module” and “unit” on the next page.
Some examples from real courses:
- “Utilise the aforementioned methodology” is longer and harder than “Use the method above,” and it says no more. The plainer version is faster to read for everyone. It is also far easier for a learner working in a second language.
- A course that calls the same task a “test” on one page and an “exam” on another makes learners stop and wonder whether they are the same thing. That doubt is wasted effort with nothing to do with the subject. Pick one word and use it everywhere.
- “In the event that you are unable to attend” becomes “If you cannot attend” with nothing lost. The shorter version lands first time, even on a small screen or a tired evening. Plain phrasing like this is the cheapest readability win you can make.
To go further on this, two references:
Go Easy on Capitals
A word written in capitals loses its shape, and shape is part of how we recognise words at a glance.
Whole sentences in capitals slow every reader down, and the effect is stronger for people with dyslexia. Some screen readers go further and spell capitalised words out letter by letter, so a heading in capitals can come back as gibberish. Save capitals for the places they belong, like acronyms and logos, and your text gets faster to read for nothing.
A few examples:
- “PLEASE SUBMIT YOUR ASSIGNMENT BY FRIDAY” is read more slowly than the same line in sentence case. Capitals strip out the word shapes that readers use to recognise words at speed. The all-caps version also reads as shouting, which is rarely the tone you want.
- A screen reader treats “NASA” as a word, which is what you want for an acronym. Set a whole heading in capitals, though, and some screen readers spell it out letter by letter. The heading then comes back as a run of single letters rather than words.
- A button labelled “DOWNLOAD” is harder to scan than “Download.” Sentence case keeps the shape of the word intact, so the eye catches it faster. It also stops the interface sounding like a sequence of orders.
Two resources worth a read:
Check Your Colour Contrast
The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) at Level AA ask for a contrast ratio of at least 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.
Low contrast does not fail one small group. It fails anyone with ageing eyes, anyone outdoors in glare, and anyone on a cheap screen turned down low, which is most of your learners at some point. Pale grey and pale yellow on white are the repeat offenders. Check the ratio before you publish, and never let colour be the only signal, because someone who cannot tell red from green needs another way to read it.
What that looks like day to day:
- Light grey text at #999999 on a white background sits at about 2.8:1, which fails the AA threshold. Darken it to around #595959 and it clears 4.5:1 for normal text. The change is small on screen but decisive for a reader with low vision.
- Marking required form fields in red alone leaves a colour-blind learner with no marker they can see. They cannot tell which fields they must complete. Add an asterisk or the word “required” and the meaning no longer depends on colour.
- Showing a task as “complete” or “incomplete” with only a green or red dot hides the status from anyone who cannot tell those colours apart. The dot carries the whole message, and for some learners it carries nothing. Add the words, or a tick and a cross, so the status survives without colour.
Two places to dig deeper:
