This link has been bookmarked by 34 people . It was first bookmarked on 06 Jan 2007, by Jean Thorpe.
-
19 Feb 13
-
06 Nov 11
Maryann Angeroth"The term readability refers to all the factors that affect success in reading and understanding a text.
These factors include:
The interest and motivation of the reader.
The legibility of the print (and of any illustrations).
The complexity of words and sentences in relation to the reading ability of the reader. " -
01 Nov 11
-
28 Sep 11
-
27 Sep 11
-
20 Jul 11
-
16 Jul 11
-
24 May 11
-
03 Mar 11
-
If the size of type or length of line is changed, then the leading should be altered to maintain efficient eye movements.
10 point, 11 point and 12 point type seem to be the best sizes for fluent reader
-
-
15 Dec 10
-
11 Nov 10
-
05 Aug 10
-
21 Jan 10
-
- The interest and motivation of the reader.
- The legibility of the print (and of any illustrations).
- The complexity of words and sentences in relation to the reading ability of the reader.
-
In practice, this means that the prose in a school book usually should be much simpler than the readers are capable of reading.
-
Lower case print is preferred by most readers, and is read about 10 per cent faster than words in CAPITAL letters.
-
sans-serif for sub-heads and serif for the body text.
-
n addition, the right-hand sides of letters give more information than the left.
-
bold type is read more quickly than italics or CAPITALS.
-
-- the size of type,
-- the length of line,
-- the spacing between the lines (the 'leading') and,
-- the weight of print. -
10 point, 11 point and 12 point type seem to be the best sizes for fluent readers.
-
6 - 9 cm
-
Lines which are too short or too long cause inefficient eye movements.
-
In one study [5], a text in 18 point type set in 10 cm line length on a 21 point leading was ranked fourteenth in speed, but second in comprehension scores.
-
line lengths of 7 - 12 average words seem to be optimum.
-
Unjustified lines (ie. where the right-hand edge of the text is not straight) are better, because they help the reader's eye to scan the lines more accurately.
White-space (between paragraphs), and sub-heads, help for the same reason. -
The size of margin does not seem to affect the speed of reading, but may cause increased eye fatigue if it is too narrow.
-
Matt paper causes less eye fatigue than glossy paper
-
Black type on white paper (or a white screen) is more legible than any other colour combination. Blue, red and green on white are often acceptable. The worst combination is black type on a purple background.
-
The reading level (reading age) predicted indicates that an average reader of that age could just cope with the text (but see the comments in point 3 of the final summary).
-
Six of the most widely recognized tests are given in more detail below.
-
The formulae give a numerical value which is the American grade level. Following normal practice, these grade levels are converted to reading ages by adding a value of 5.
-
Select samples of 100 words
-
Calculate L, the average sentence length
-
count the number of words with 3 or more syllables.
-
Find N, the average number of these words per sample
-
This 'FOG' measure is suitable for secondary and older primary age groups.
-
the average number of sentences per 100-word passage
-
the average number of syllables per 100-word sample.
-
from infant to upper secondary.
-
the average sentence length
-
the average number of syllables per word
-
primary age books.
-
Select samples of 100 words.
-
This test is NOT suitable for secondary age books, and is most suitable for material in the 7 - 10 age range.
-
Then grade leve
-
Reading Age =
-
This test tends to give higher values than the other formulae, because Mclaughlin intended it to predict the level necessary for 100% comprehension of the text (whatever that means), whereas other tests were validated against lower comprehension levels (see also the final comments, below).
-
Flesch Reading Ease, Bormuth, and Coleman-Liau.
-
So if a book has reading level of 14 years, an average 14-year-old pupil would score only 50 per cent on a test of comprehension of that text !
. . . and 50 per cent is a long way from full comprehension ! -
The intended level of a book, as stated in its introduction or the publisher's catalogue is often a poor guide to the reading age need to study the text.
-
the size of type and length of line, sentence structure, the number of words per page, the use of colour, the use of diagrams, the page layout and whether confusing cross-references such as 'see Fig. 39.27' are required, the number of concepts per paragraph, the use of white-space between paragraphs, whether the text is 'interactive', the human interest score, etc.
-
the reading level of the text should be two years below the pupil’s reading level.
-
-
13 Nov 09
Cherice MontgomeryHelpful overview of key concepts in readability
reading literacy ESL FL SNS English LanguageArts lexiles science readability
-
12 Oct 09
-
01 Oct 09
-
20 Sep 09
-
23 May 09
-
08 Apr 08
-
19 Mar 08
-
06 Mar 08
-
24 Aug 07
-
10 Oct 06
-
Introduction When writing a textbook, a work-sheet or an examination paper, an author is intent on transmitting information to the reader. How well the author succeeds will depend on the readability of the text. Readability is concerned with the problem of matching between reader and text. An accomplished reader is likely to be bored by simple repetitive texts.
-
-
-
This article outlines the subject of readability, and its relevance to school books. The 4 main sections of the article are: 1. The effect of interest and motivation. 2. Legibility, including type, layout and reading conditions. 3. Sentence structure, including readability formulae. 4. Reading ages for school textbooks, especially in science.
-
Would you like to comment?
Join Diigo for a free account, or sign in if you are already a member.