The Impact of Words Is Felt Beyond eLearning

That old schoolyard taunt claiming that “Sticks and stonescan break my bones, but words will never hurt me”? It’s wrong. Words canhurt. They can exclude, marginalize, trivialize, erase … or they can includeand empower.

Clear, accessible language says what the writer means inunambiguous terms. Accessible eLearning avoids clichés and cultural referencesthat might exclude some learners. It also avoids stereotypes that could excludeor harm some learners. Examples of bias and stereotyping abound:

• Voluminous paperwork is a feature of manyonboarding processes, and these forms often collect demographic information—andprovide insight into the company’s culture. Are employees asked to choosebetween binary gender options and narrowly defined ethnic categories? Does thecompany holiday schedule recognize only Christian holidays? Intake documentsare employees’ first contact with the corporate culture; new hires can feelmarginalized and “other” before they’ve even met their co-workers.
• Examine eLearning for gender bias. Are examplesin your eLearning written with male pronouns? Are the “executive” charactersall white men? In simulations, does a female avatar make coffee or clear thetable at the end of a meeting?

Some ways that eLearningreflects assumptions about learners are less obvious:

• Does eLearning assume familiarity withtechnology? Do examples allude to Pokémonor Game of Thrones? Is the eLearningprogram built on an expectation that all learners are eager to jump into acompetition to earn points, badges, and “bragging rights” for “beating” theircolleagues?
  Instead: Ensure that introverts,tech newbies, and people of all ages and social styles can access and engagewith eLearning.
• Does eLearning have a heavy reliance on sportsmetaphors that may turn off learners who are not interested in sports?Remember, sports jargon can be incomprehensible to learners who never playedthe sport or who grew up in a part of the world where, say, baseball is notpart of the culture.
  Instead: Look for metaphors that arelikely to have broad cultural recognition for your predicted learners.
• Whose images appear on your eLearning screensand in simulations? Do your graphics present a mix of individuals? Do any ofthem have visible disabilities?
  Instead: Get in the habit ofpresenting diverse characters performing all levels and types of work.
• Do eLearning personas—including the namesselected—reflect stereotypes about learners’ age, gender, ethnicity, oreducation level? Are details about family life, such as number of children,provided for female personas but not for male personas?
  Instead: Ensure that personasreflect real people—and the variety of preferences, experiences, andbackgrounds that members of your community bring to the company.

Language is an accessibility issue, and it is onethat goes far beyond learners with disabilities or limited English or literacyskills. And “plain” or clear language is only partially about the number ofsyllables in a word or the length and structure of sentences. Research onstandardized testing, for example, finds that unfamiliar names or concepts slowdown test-takers; it adds to their cognitive load, reducing the energy they have available to devote to the actual taskor learning.

Empower and engage with words

The power of words—the power of precise, accurate, inclusiveword choices—drives the Conscious Style Guide. The website includes links to several style guides, eachaddressing a different area where word choice can help or harm, welcome orexclude. Style guides exist for writing about disability, age, gender, ethnicity,health, and more. Articles address topics as disparate and universal as using disempoweringlanguage in everyday speech, the way unconscious biases and stereotypes creepinto our daily conversations, the ways word use has changed, and choosing wordsto handle conflict, resolve disagreements, or diplomatically turn down requests.

A linked article in the empowerment section, for example,offers tips for providing positive feedback that encourages future stellarperformance, rather than offering perfunctory “good job”–type praise. Anotheroffers language that reframes choices and options in ways that let employeestake more ownership or control of their work and decisions.

The website also features several links to resources andarticles on plain language, a topic that Learning Solutions Magazine and The eLearningGuild have addressed in coverage of accessible content. Some tips found here couldbe useful to eLearning creators, as well as to anyone writing a business memoor email. (Take a look at this list of simple words and phrases for an example.)

Examining eLearning and ensuring that it has universaldesign, accessible features—and inclusive language—can add up to an engagingexperience for all learners.