The global pandemic has changed how students are educated. Worldwide, 9 out of 10 children, or 1.57 billion learners, are out of school (UNESCO, April 2020). Education looks different with students now at home being educated by their parents and by teachers remotely. To tackle this challenge, organizations across sectors are working together with new…
World Education Readability Features & Technology for Better Reading (Part II) This is the second post in a two-part series on the readability of digital texts and literacy. The first post defines readability and why it matters. The second post describes reading speed gains by tuning typeface alone, as well as opportunities to get…
World Education Readability Features & Technology for Better Reading (Part I) The team at Readability Matters partnered with World Education to publish an article on the importance of better readability for their audience of educators serving adult learners. This is the first article in a two-part series on the readability of digital texts and…
Research-Driven edTech Solutions Readability Matters is committed to a research-driven approach to delivering personalized reading environments empowering everyone everywhere to achieve more. In their work to accelerate innovation in education, Digital Promise shares our commitment to research-driven work. They note that “Researchers can inform product design and teaching strategy and evolve new research methodologies…
Add or Subtract Character Spacing Background: Tune Your Text to Improve Readability To improve reading performance, individuals need the ability to “Tune their Text” or change how words appear on the screen using a full set of “Readability Features.” These include character shape (base font determines character shape and also weight; additional features can…
University Student Survey of Reading Format Preference Readability Matters invited a professor at a top 75 US University to conduct a quick survey of reading format preference. Thirty-seven students aged 18-21 elected to participate. They were invited to play in the Readability Matters’ Sandbox and to design a format they would like to use…
Readability Researches Study the Impact of Fonts to Improve Reading Outcomes In a newly published paper, researchers from Brown University, Adobe Inc., University of Central Florida, and Riverdale Country School studied the impact of font change on 386 skilled readers, ages 18-71. Readers were evaluated with subsets of sixteen fonts. The results demonstrate that…
Come Play in our Sandbox! Today, Readability Matters added a sandbox to the website. Software developers often create a test environment, called a sandbox, with elements for the intended users to try before the code is built, tested and deployed. Our sandbox allows readers to Tune Their Text, to experience controlling the text format…
“Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers. I love reading both because it’s enjoyable and it plays a critical role in helping me become a better leader.” Harry S. Truman Great Leaders are Readers Most leaders read four to five books a month. Leaders from the c-suite, the board…
“Fluency is defined as the ability to read with speed, accuracy, and proper expression. In order to understand what they read, readers must be able to read fluently whether they are reading aloud or silently. When reading aloud, fluent readers read in phrases and add intonation appropriately.” Reading Rockets Fluency: The Canary in the…