- We spoke about Plain English writing in class. Please answer the following in detail:
a. How would you explain to someone what “Plain English writing” is? (3 Marks)
Plain Language or “plain English” is writing content that is clear, concise, and easy for an audience to understand, as well as organized and structured and it’s consistent with how people behave online. It needs to follow these three objectives: The viewers can find what they need, understand it, and use it to fulfill the needs they have. We write for the reader, not for ourselves, which is why it’s important to avoid making the audience waste time and use a language that fits the audience best, which in most cases involves using common everyday words to avoid confusion, as well as providing the relevant content the reader is looking for briefly and without setbacks. However, this doesn’t mean that plain language means “dumbing it down” or that it avoids technical words, Plain English is about providing relevant content to an audience so they can find what they need, and understand it the first time they read it while making it easy to follow for them. Plain English gives us the ability to craft messages that are easy to understand, clear, and concise and that provide the readers with the content or instructions they are looking for while saving time and money, and increasing the positive user experience on the web. Plain English or Plain language is used because people have different reading levels and they don’t always read carefully, which affects how we generate content.