Hello All,

I've been researching health and safety for the National External Diploma Program. Going through the NIH site, I was struck with the differences between the general audience pages ("Eating a diet low in cholesterol may decrease the LDL.") and the for minority pages ("John starting eating less cholesterol by cooking with canola oil instead of butter. Now his LDL is in the healthy range"). Those are not direct quotes, but I see several brain based differences.

Tell stories of real people. That's who we are and who we identify with. My father-in-law, an MD, was pretty low after his quadruple bypass surgery, but then he thought of my dad who was a 15 year heart attack survivor. Both lived many more years. One good example can really help.

Let the students/clients be the teachers or explainers as much as possible. And start with where they are, current understanding. 

These points may not be exactly where your focused. They can help with some strategizing. 

Enjoy the adventure,


Mary Jane Jerde
NEDP Assessor 
Howard Community College



________________________________
From: "AboutDiabetes at aol.com" <AboutDiabetes at aol.com>
To: healthliteracy at nifl.gov
Cc: Lendoak at aol.com
Sent: Saturday, November 29, 2008 4:29:02 PM
Subject: [HealthLiteracy 2521] Re: Writing for the masses

Hello Ann:
 
My suggestion is you direct your writer to shoot for the 6th- rather  than the 8th-grade reading level. If your writer has limited  experience writing at this level with design considerations in mind, he or she  will probably end up giving you something between the 6th- and 8th-grade  level anyway.  You can then edit each item based on the feedback you  receive from diabetes support group participants in the areas the programs will  be used in prior to finalizing the text and design. 
 
This is a relatively inexpensive way to reach a majority of your  intended audience. This said, as you mention, there will be a large number  of people with reading skills below the 6th-grade reading level in the  areas you wish to serve that will require other learning tools, such  as simple, interactive videos and audiotape programs, but few  are available.  
 
For more specific suggestions for this worthwhile project, you may want to  contact Leonard Doak (aka the "Godfather of Health Literacy") at the above  address.   
 
Best of luck with your project,  
 
Paul Tracey
Learning About Diabetes, Inc.
www.learningaboutdiabetes.org 




________________________________
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