Introducing the ISO Plain Language Standard
Plain language is essential for communicating information precisely and clearly. Appropriate language and making things easy to understand is a requirement for content and UX professionals but it often takes a lot of time and hard work to say something succinctly.
When writing in plain language there are very few universal guidelines so it can be a subjective task. To bring some standardisation, a new ISO Plain Language Standard has been created.
In this post, we summarise the talk that standard’s editor Gael Spivak gave to the Crocstar content community including the timeline for creating the standard, the value and principles and what it covers.
About INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS
ISO is the International Organization for Standardization. It develops and publishes international standards. In its own words:
ISO standards are internationally agreed by experts. Think of them as a formula that describes the best way of doing something.
It could be about making a product, managing a process, delivering a service or supplying materials – standards cover a huge range of activities.
Standards are the distilled wisdom of people with expertise in their subject matter and who know the needs of the organizations they represent – people such as manufacturers, sellers, buyers, customers, trade associations, users or regulators.
There are 24,673 international standards covering almost all aspects of technology, management and manufacturing.
developing the plain language standard
The process for developing the ISO for plain language started in 2007. The International Plain Language Federation was formed in 2008 by 3 organisations, Clarity, the Center for Plain Language and PLAIN. The Federation is the face of all of the work around the Standard.
In 2010 Clarity, the Journal of the international association promoting plain legal language, discussed several key issues on a published Options paper:
definitions of plain language
the type of standard needed - whether it should only have the elements of plain language or be outcome based
whether the standard should be national or international
training and certification options
advocacy options
It was in 2013 when the Federation adopted an international definition which would then form the basis of the Standard.
A definition of plain language
The definition agreed is:
A communication is in plain language if the language, structure, and design are so clear that the intended audience can easily
find what they need
understand what they find
use that information
Turning an idea into a standard
A standard for plain language falls within Technical Committee 37, which is responsible for all standards around language and terminology. In 2019 the committee approved the idea of a plain language standard.
An international Standard needs widespread input and there was input from the international community including:
Being international also meant there had to be particular considerations so the ISO Standard is language neutral. It’s not for English and nor is it word based.
Four principles of the ISO Plain Language Standard
The standard has 4 principles that are directly tied to the definition that mentions finding, understanding and using.
Readers get what they need (relevant information)
Readers can easily find what they need
Readers can easily understand what they find
Readers can easily use the information
There are multiple supporting guidelines for each principle, which are available within the Standard.
The value of a standard
A standard means that across all sectors, industries and contexts, plain language is thought of in the same way with a goal of making as much communication as possible clear, useful and accessible.
What the ISO Plain Language Standard covers
Part 1 of the standard focuses on print and digital documents only.
The official name for the standard is ISO 24495-1 Plain language - Part 1: Governing principles and guidelines.
There is a fee to buy the standard (around US $100), fees vary depending on the country.
Watch the ISO plain language talk
See the whole talk with Gael by joining the Crocstar content community.