1. 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? (4 Marks)

Plain English writing is a way to make written content, direct, concise, and digestible to your intended audience so that it is much easier to understand and read. We do this because before people read anything, they want to know if the content is relevant, useful, and not time-consuming; otherwise, they will leave (Briscoe, Lecture, February 26, 2025).

Using Plain English allows us to be more inclusive and improve content readability as we are using common words and terms that can be understood easily by a wide audience instead of a small group of people. We have discussed in our class lectures that many people suffer from literacy challenges, such as Canadian adults with 42% having literacy challenges (Briscoe, Plain Language Writing (W25).pdf, Slide 30) making it harder to read content and grasp the intended message or concept of content which is why Plain English writing can better accommodate them and allow content to be inclusive.

Plain English writing is focused on having a good understanding of an audience and who they are in order to create messages that they can understand, using their preexisting knowledge and what they could possibly stand to gain from reading content. When you have a good understanding of your audience you can create great content that they can actually relate to and better understand, which can help us in getting readers to follow certain steps that we have laid out for them (Briscoe, Plain Language Writing (W25).pdf, Slide 29).

Plain English is written in such a way that caters to how people behave online, no one on the web wants to read anything that is extremely long and uses difficult-to-understand words as it is difficult to approach and less fun even to those who may understand that terminology (Briscoe, Plain Language Writing (W25).pdf, Slide 17).

You would also want to consider the use of industry jargon and acronyms as these may be understood by a specific audience but for the majority of readers, they just may not relate to it which is why it is typically avoided in Plain English writing. Our class discussions have shed light on the use of Industry jargon making it more of a situational consideration, but it is typically more effective to not use it as this allows your message to be understood by more people (Briscoe, Plain Language Writing (W25).pdf, Slide 63).

b. What makes plain English writing different? (4 Marks)

Plain language writing is different because it's not about writing a lot with the most formal or elegant words and terminology but about getting a message across that tells users what content is how it relates to them and how they could possibly benefit in the shortest time possible in a way that is typically informal (Briscoe, W8 - Plain Language Writing (W25).pdf, Slide 68). People are very direct with the way they communicate online and send messages similar to their own verbal communication I and many others do this which Plain English writing accommodates as it makes content feel more approachable.

Another way plain English writing is different is the fact that you must be focused on your audience and the best way of creating content for them that they feel is of value to them. We know from our class lectures that plain English writing is extremely effective in gathering a reader's attention as it helps them read more efficiently and increases their interest in the content (Briscoe, Lecture, February 26, 2025).

Additionally, this method of writing caters to how people behave on the internet in order to write effectively in a way that actually communicates with a reader and not just loads them with information. It uses the 3 Ps to craft content that is personal, and plain (Briscoe, Plain Language Writing (W25).pdf, Slide 63), which makes all content directly relate to readers in a concise way that only gives the facts that readers can gain value from. Using the 3 Ps is also a way to ensure that you are communicating to your readers as if they were in a conversation.

c. What is plain language writing for the web and in detail and in your own words, why is it important? (4 Marks) 

Plain language writing for the web is all about effective communication and keeping readers engaged, with the use of everyday words and great thought-provoking verbs and adjectives (Briscoe, Lecture, February 26, 2025). Plain language writing is also a method of structuring and organizing information to improve readability, with the use of bullet points, short sentences, and paragraphs written for action can tremendously improve readership and engagement.

(my own words)

Plain language writing is really important because it allows you to have a good understanding of who your audience is and what works best for them allowing you to create messaging that is relevant and respectful to their time. People who view content on the web do not patiently read, they scan for keywords, symbols, and thought-provoking words to determine if the content is valuable or interesting before they start reading it. Plain language writing is important because it increases readership and can catch a reader's eye as they scroll through the internet for information they relate to. Many people who use the internet don’t want to think too much or spend a lot of time looking for an answer to an issue they may have which is why with plain language writing you can position this information clearly and concisely for digestibility which can help them determine whether they would like to continue reading forward.

Plain language is really important as people have different levels of literacy and some suffer from learning disabilities, but plain language writing can make reading consistent and direct without using out-of-place words or vocabulary (Briscoe, Plain Language Writing (W25).pdf, Slide 36). Writing in a way that is focused on the reader such as through commonly used words allows for more inclusivity regardless of literacy level because it saves a lot of time and is easy to understand.

With the use of more common words, plain language writing can be understood by those who may not be well-versed in the language which is respectful to that audience.

Many people on the internet do not read carefully as they scan a lot of information which is why using common words is a great way to get your intended message understood immediately upon it being read.