{"id":4397,"date":"2023-01-17T07:50:52","date_gmt":"2023-01-17T15:50:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/inspire\/?p=4397"},"modified":"2023-01-17T07:50:52","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T15:50:52","slug":"five-tips-on-improving-readability-in-your-courses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.oregonstate.edu\/inspire\/2023\/01\/17\/five-tips-on-improving-readability-in-your-courses\/","title":{"rendered":"Five Tips on Improving Readability in Your Courses<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The following is a guest blog post from Aimee L. Lomeli Garcia, MLA. Aimee completed an Instructional Design internship with OSU Ecampus during the Fall of 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Have you ever found yourself reading the same paragraph over and over again only to not retain any information? Or been so overwhelmed with the content you\u2019re trying to read that you\u2019re unable to absorb any of it? Odds are that it may not just be the content you\u2019re trying to read; it may be the way the information is laid out. One way to help read and retain information is to make the text more readable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Making information readable in your online course can seem overwhelming, but there are a few steps that you can take to make the content more digestible for students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is Readability?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

First off \u2013 what is readability?  Readability is defined as \u201cthe ease in which a reader can comprehend text\u201d (Calonia, 2020). Readability is a vital aspect to keep in mind as you design online courses. It not only makes the content of the class easier to read but increases the likelihood that students will understand the faculty\u2019s content through lectures and discussions.  Better readability also decreases the risk of students misunderstanding the content, experiencing frustration, and increases the risk of students becoming disinterested in interacting with the course.  Though there are multiple options to make content more readable, there are five ways that you can adapt the content in your course: chunking content, using whitespace, avoiding wordiness, creating infographics, and utilizing color.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chunking Content<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

What does \u201cchunking content\u201d mean? Chunking means breaking content into smaller chunks to make it easier to understand. This strategy originates from the field of cognitive psychology, which has proven that the human brain can \u201cprocess, understand, and remember information better when broken into smaller pieces\u201d (Moran, 2016).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s demonstrate!<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Below are the first two paragraphs of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer\u2019s Stone<\/em> by J.K. Rowling:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chapter One
The Boy Who Lived
Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When reading through this excerpt, it\u2019s easy for your eyes to scan through the information without comprehending it.  There are a few common methods that will help with chunking your material: make your paragraphs shorter, add space between your paragraphs, and develop clear hierarchies of text.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Utilizing these methods, let\u2019s make this paragraph more readable:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

Chapter One<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Boy Who Lived<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Using Whitespace<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Whitespace is defined as \u201cempty space between and around elements of a page\u201d (Babich, 2017). Whitespace creates a backdrop or frame to make your content easier to read.  Like chunking information, whitespace allows the eye to find information easily.  Take these slides for example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
\u201cPlastic Coffee Cup on Book\u201d by Anna Shvets from Pexels<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Do you notice how much easier it is to read the different types of coffee drinks on the slide that has more white space? In a study done by Wichita State University, research confirmed that increasing the amount of whitespace actually improves reading comprehension!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avoiding Wordiness<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve all experienced reading material that has excessive wordiness. In a manner of speaking, \u201cwordiness means using more words than necessary within a sentence, especially short, vague words that do not add much meaning\u201d (Eliminating Wordiness<\/em>, 2022). Unfortunately, the overuse of unnecessary words can muddle ideas and cause confusion for students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To decrease wordiness, focus on the key points you want to convey and use an active voice instead of a passive voice. Consider the following example:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

“All of the<\/strong> students who are new to this university are required ot attend an orientatin that has been scheduled<\/strong> for December 1st<\/sup>.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

When reading this sentence, it\u2019s difficult to decipher what the necessary information is for the reader to understand. Instead, let\u2019s focus on the key points and use an active voice in this sentence:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

“New students are required to attend orientation on December 1st<\/sup>.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Here, we eliminated the unnecessary wording, allowing readers to understand the message the sentence is trying to convey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Use Visuals<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Pictures speak louder than words! Using visual media, such as infographics, pictures, videos, animations, and films, make content easier for students to understand and could decrease the amount of writing you have to do for the class! You can obtain visual media through free online resources such as Pexels<\/a>, Pixabay<\/a>, or Openverse<\/a> or created on your own (Canva is a favorite for me).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, instead of using this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cells are the building blocks of life. A cell is composed of cytoplasm, a nucleus, ribosomes, and mitochondria. Cytoplasm is made up of a jell-like structure that contains the contents of the cell. The nucleus serves as the command center and is typically the largest part of the inside of the cell. Ribosomes are tiny parts of the cell that make proteins and mitochondria are jelly-bean shaped and create energy from the food we eat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Try this!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Labeled
Image by brgfx<\/a> on Freepik<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Color<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Color makes a significant impact on the readability of your page. This can be easy to overlook, as we typically use the standard black font\/white background combination. However, adding color to words or backgrounds can bring attention to a message you\u2019re trying to convey. There are ways to do this successfully and ways to add color poorly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Color<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Looking at the red text on the first example can be challenging for someone with no vision issues. Imagine the difficulty students who have a visual impairment can have \u2013 in particular, red\/green color blindness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the second example, having a text color that is nearly the same shade as the background can make reading the text nearly impossible. It takes effort to read the quote in the example \u2013 can you imagine reading a scholarly journal with the same formatting?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t let these examples dissuade you from trying text colors and backgrounds! To verify if a color combination is readable, visit the Contrast Checker<\/a> page, enter the RGB or RYB codes and the website will notify you if the color combinations are reader-friendly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Color<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Drafting your site can be overwhelming when considering readability, but there are several steps you can take to make the course content easier to understand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n