1	Easy Access for ALL Kathleen Biersdorff, Ph.D. K. K. Biersdorff Consulting Supporting Organizational Excellence & Innovation May 16, 2005 Westlock, AB
2	My Main Point Anything you do that increases accessibility for ONE group benefits EVERYONE. Curb cuts & ramps
3	Kinds of accessibility Physical space Financial affordability Procedural rules Information understandability Emotional availability
4	Physical space Doors to building and washrooms
5	Financial affordability Library membership fees
6	Procedural rules How to get a library membership Rules about noise How to borrow materials
7	Information understandability What does this mean? During the several hundred years since the time of Robert Hooke, the “scientific” view of cells, defined by the prevailing cell concept at any particular time, has changed dramatically. As long as cells were thought of as hollow spaces within tissues, they could not be thought of as the basic building blocks of which tissues were composed. As long as the production of progeny cells during cell division was believed to involve direct reproduction of all the cell contents, the role of the nucleus and genetic material in cell division could not be discovered.
8	Information understandability How did reading it make you feel? Someone else’s jargon Frustrated
9	Canadian Literacy in 2003
10	Plain language “Plain language is a ramp for people with learning difficulties.” How to do it Readability analysis built into word processing programs.
11	Plain language rules Active voice (subject first). Short, simple words – but not lots the same length or shape in a row. No contractions. No jargon unless explained. No metaphors or clichés. No acronyms. “Finding and shipping items that are not picked up or cancelled by customers impacts the library’s already limited resources and makes waiting lists longer for everyone.”
12	Plain language rules No Roman Numerals in outlines. Turn hyphenation off. Break lines with reading aloud in mind. Make periods big and bold. DO NOT CAPITALIZE EVERYTHING. Do not use full justification. Left-justify text.
13	Plain language rules Use 16 pt font or larger, depending on viewing distance. Use a clean font – not Script. Serif – Times Roman Sans Serif – Arial, Verdana or Helvetica Sculpted – Zapf Humanist or Optima Black on white is easiest to read.
14	Plain pictures Support text with pictures that are Realistic, not stylized.
15	Emotionally available Perception of your job as librarian: Sign out materials & reshelve books.
16	Resources Physical Accessibility Universal Access: Electronic Resources in Libraries. http://www.washington.edu/doit/UA/PRESENT/ http://www.washington.edu/doit/UA/PRESENT/libres.html http://www.washington.edu/doit/UA/PRESENT/libwt.html http://www.washington.edu/doit/Brochures/Academics/equal_access_lib.html Texas accessibility standards & architectural barriers http://www.license.state.tx.us/ab/tas/abtas.htm Literacy Learning a living: First results of the Adult Literacy and Life Skills Survey. http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepub/89-603-XIE/2005001/pdf/89-603-XW3-part1.pdf Literacy Alberta Fact Sheets. www.literacy-alberta.ca/literacy.htm Plain Language Message sent, message received: A plain language approach to communication. Rehabilitation Review 7(12). Call Tighe Resource Centre at Vocational & Rehabilitation Research Institute (VRRI) for a free copy (403) 284-1121. What works and what doesn’t: More on plain language. www.vrri.org/rhb0201.htm Plain language: Making it look good. www.vrri.org/rhb0301.htm Janet Pringle (plain language writer/editor). Call (403) 277-2806 or e-mail j_pringle@telus.net Plain Pictures Creating useful pictures for plain language material. www.vrri.org/rhb08b98.htm Readability Colin Wheildon. (1995). Type & Layout: How typography and design can get your message across - or get in the way. Berkeley, CA: Strathmore Press. (ISBN 0-9624891-5-8) Internet Use by People with Developmental Disabilities Harnessing the power of computers to better the lives of people with developmental disabilities. www.vrri.org/rhb0197.htm Self-advocates explore the Internet. www.vrri.org/rhb0598.htm AbleLink Technologies. www.ablelinktech.com