Visual Research Unit 1.3
MA CTM Visual Research/Unit 1.3 Maya Littman
Contents
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Dyslexia Dyslexic reader. What is it? The effect of dyslexia on the printed word. The extra symptom/syndrome
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How is dyslexia diagnosed?
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Families/Typography Classification
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Pro-dyslexic Typefaces Mencap Read Regular Dyslexie Gill Dyslexic-Mono Dyslexic Lexia Readable Sylexiad Open Dyslexie Rosemary Sasson
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Not designed for dyslexic readers but advised Dyslexic readers like Bibliography
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Dyslexia
Dyslexic reader. What is it? 6
Dyslexia is a very broad term defining a learning disability that impairs a person’s fluency or comprehension accuracy in being able to read, and which can manifest itself as a difficulty with phonological awareness, phonological decoding, orthographic coding, auditory short-term memory, or rapid naming. Dyslexia is separate and distinct from reading difficulties resulting from other causes, such as a non-neurological deficiency with vision or hearing, or from poor or inadequate reading instruction. It is believed that dyslexia can affect between 5 and 10 percent of a given population although there have been no studies to indicate an accurate percentage. There are three proposed cognitive subtypes of dyslexia: auditory, visual and attentional. Reading disabilities, or dyslexia, is the most common learning disability, although in research literature it is considered to be a receptive languagebased learning disability. Researchers at MIT found that people with dyslexia exhibited impaired voice-recognition abilities. Accomplished adult dyslexics may be able to read with good comprehension, but they tend to read more slowly than non-dyslexics and may perform more poorly at nonsense word reading (a measure of phonological awareness) and spelling. Dyslexia is not an intellectual disability, since dyslexia and IQ are not interrelated, as a result of cognition developing independently.
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The effects of dyslexia on the printed word. 8
River effect Dyslexic users may sometimes see the river effect in the text they’re reading. This is when large gaps occur within consecutive lines of text. It can often look like a river of whitespace flowing down the page, which can make reading fluently and accurately difficult. There are a couple bad practices that make the river effect happen.
Blur effect Another kind of visual distortion effect that can occur among dyslexic users is the blur effect. This is when dyslexic readers see their text blurring or swirling or together. This can significantly affect a dyslexic user’s reading ability, and make reading very tiring for them. You can lessen this effect by avoiding a couple of bad practices. 9
Washout effect Sometimes dyslexic users can experience the washout effect. When this happens, the text looks faint and indistinct. This can make reading slower and cause dyslexic users to guess what a word is because of the difficulty seeing it. To lessen this effect, there are two bad practices you should avoid with your text.
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1. Justified text When you use justified text, you’re not only making text difficult to read for non-dyslexic users, but even more so for dyslexic users. Justified text creates large uneven spaces between letters and words [8]. When these spaces line up above one another, a distracting river of whitespace prominently appears. This can cause dyslexic readers to lose their place repeatedly. You can avoid creating the river effect by using left aligned text, instead of justified text for your paragraphs.
2. Double spacing after periods Most of us were taught to double space after periods at the end of a sentence. This practice originates from the typewriting days of the past. Because typewriters used monospaced fonts, people thought that double spacing after periods would make the end of sentences more distinct. However, on the web, single spacing after periods are enough because most websites use proportionally spaced fonts. Double spacing after a period can create “rivers” within text that make it difficult for users to find the end of sentences. On the web, single spacing wins.
3. Pure black text on a pure white background There’s a reason the text you’re reading now is not pure black (#000000), and the background that it’s on is not pure white 11
(#FFFFFF). It’s because many dyslexic users are sensitive to the brightness of pure black text on a pure white background due to its high contrast. This can cause the words to swirl or blur together. To avoid this, use a slightly off-white color for your background, like a light gray. You can also use a dark gray for your text instead of a pure black to cut the glare even more.
4. Long blocks of unbroken paragraphs Long blocks of unbroken paragraphs are hard for non-dyslexic users to read, but even harder for dyslexic readers. It’s easy for dyslexic readers to lose their place with long paragraphs. That’s why it’s better to use short paragraphs that express one idea. This is because dyslexic users need more breaks between ideas than non-dyslexic users. Breaking up your text to one idea per paragraph makes reading a lot easier for both dyslexic and non-dyslexic users.
5. Serif fonts Serif fonts have hooks at the ends of the letter strokes. They may look decorative, but they can cause reading problems for dyslexic users. Serifs tend to obscure the shapes of letters, making the letters run together. A sans-serif font would allow dyslexic users to see the shapes of letters more clearly because they don’t have hooks at the ends of the letter strokes. This also increases the spacing between letters, making words more 12
distinguishable. If you want your users to read your text easily, go with a san-serif font.
6. Italicized text Italics are sometimes used to highlight text. However, the reason you shouldn’t use italicized text is because they are hard to read. The letters have a slightly jagged line compared to non-italic fonts. The letters also lean over slightly making it hard for dyslexic users to read words accurately. When the text size is small, the text is practically illegible. A better way to highlight is to use bold text because the letters are clearer and give better contrast. There are many dyslexic users that suffer from badly designed websites. All of these bad practices are quick and easy to fix. It’s a matter of knowledge and understanding that will get people to change. Hopefully, this article has shed some light on how dyslexic users experience the web, and what designers can do to make their reading experience better.
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The extra Symptome/ Syndrome 14
Meares-Irlen Syndrome Meares – Irlen Syndrome is a form of visual stress which leads to difficulties with fine vision tasks such as reading. This eye condition was identified in 1980 by an American psychologist and although the condition is not yet fully understood, it is known to affect reading ability. The condition affects about 50% of dyslexics, as well as epileptics, migraine sufferers, people with ME and MS, and others. Like dyslexia, it is not curable but can be treated, and significant improvements can be made. For dyslexics, Meares – Irlen can often be the cause of reading difficulty.
Symptoms The symptoms will have been present throughout your life but some people experience symptoms after a minute of reading, others find the symptoms take longer to appear. The degree of symptoms can also vary from person to person with more marked symptoms creating barriers to successful reading.
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How is dyslexia diagnosed? 16
A formal evaluation is needed to discover if a person is dyslexic. The evaluation assesses intellectual ability, information processing, psycho-linguistic processing, and academic skills. It is used to determine whether or not a student is reading at the expected level, and takes into account the individual's family background and overall school performance. The testing can be conducted by trained school or outside specialists.What are the signs of dyslexia? The problems displayed by individuals with dyslexia involve difficulties in acquiring and using language - reading and writing letters in the wrong order is just one manifestation of dyslexia and does not occur in all cases. Other problems experienced by dyslexics include: • Learning to speak • Organizing written and spoken language • Learning letters and their sounds • Memorizing number facts • Spelling • Reading • Learning a foreign language • Correctly doing math operations • Not all students who have difficulties with these skills are dyslexic. Formal testing is the only way to confirm a diagnosis of suspected dyslexia.
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Families/ Typography 18
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Classification
Classification of typefaces: Since many words describing typefaces (example : gothic, antique, humanist..) have different and sometimes opposite meaning in different languages, French designer Maximilien Vox (1894-1974). Maximilien Vox created the Vox Atypl in 1954 where he made it possible to classify typefaces in eleven general classes. It was adapted in 1962 by the Association Typographique Internationale (ATypl) and in 1967 as a British standard. This classification tends to group typefaces according to their main characteristics, often typical of a particular century (15th, 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th, 20th century), based on a number of formal criteria: downstroke and upstroke, forms of serifs, stroke axis, x-height, etc. Although the Vox-ATypI classification defines archetypes of typefaces, many typefaces can exhibit the characteristics of more than one class. 20
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Pro dyslexic typefaces 26
Mencap (FS Me) FS Me A new standard in Legibility The UK’s leading charity for people with learning disability, their families and supporters, to create a new corporate typeface as part of a complete rebranding exercise. Mencap provide services, advice and support to meet people’s needs and choices throughout their lives, as well as fighting for equal rights, campaigning for greater opportunities and challenging attitudes and prejudices. They needed a bespoke font to reflect this, as well as having the opportunity to create a ‘benchmark’ in terms of design and legibility.
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Read Regular is designed with an individual approach for each of the individual characters, creating difference in the actual characters of b & d itself (not mirroring the b to make the d), to create a large character differentiation. The character shapes are simple and clear, creating consistency. The characters have been stripped down from all unnecessary details –such as a two storey a and a two eyed g. The individual approach creates striking outlines that make sure that each character stands on its own and works together with its previous or next character. Used in the content of words, sentences and text, the following or the previous character does not try to interfere in its readability process. Ascenders (bdfhkl) and descenders (gjpqy) are long to ensure their legibility. Inner shapes for example within the o, e, a, u and openings in e and g are kept open to prevent from visually closing in. This makes Read Regular a friendly character and a pleasant balance between black and white. It has been create by Natascha Frensch while stuying at the RCA London.
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Dyslexie the font dyslexics This font is specially designed for people with dyslexia. When they use it, they make fewer errors whilst they are reading.
Research Independent research undertaken by the University of Twente proved that the dyslexie font improves reading results. The study at the University of Twente has shown that people with dyslexia make fewer mistakes when they use dyslexie compared to standard fonts. Created by Christian Boer.
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Gill Dyslexic
Mono Dyslexic
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Lexia Readable was designed for maximum legibility, an attempt to capture the strength and clarity of Comic Sans without the comic book associations. Features like the non-symmetrical b and d, and the handwritten forms of a and g may help dyslexic readers. The Regular and Bold weights can be used freely without a licence by educational and charitable institutions as well as by individuals. The Italic/BoldItalic and Heavy/Outline packages must be licensed.
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Sylexiad was developed by means of comparative typeface testing. This involved a series of formative and summative small-scale tests that accommodated two established word recognition models – word shape and parallel letter recognition. This novel method of measuring legibility and readability is called developmental typeface testing. The data was gathered by means of qualitative and quantitative techniques from dyslexic and non-dyslexic groups based at Norwich University College of the Arts and The University of East Anglia. These techniques included questionnaires, interviews and observations. The research was inductive and practicebased in approach. The findings identify which typographic characteristics adult dyslexic and non-dyslexic readers preferred and why. For the majority of non-dyslexic readers tested, it was the combination of serif-style, lowercase forms, large x-heights, medium weight, variable strokes and normal inter-word spacing that was preferred. The non-dyslexic readers also favoured the form of Times New Roman. Conversely, for the majority of dyslexic readers tested it was the combination of handwritten style, uppercase forms, long ascenders and descenders, light weight, uniform strokes, perpendicular design and generous inter-word spacing that was preferred. The dyslexic readers also favoured the form of Serif Sylexiad. The conclusions have raised issues that confirm 32
and contradict current typographic principles of legibility. In particular, from a dyslexic perspective, the word shape model has been challenged. The outcomes and issues that have been identified as a result of developmental typeface testing have therefore contributed to new knowledge within the field of dyslexia typographic research. Author: Dr. Robert Hillier
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Open dyslexic is a new open sourced font created to increase readability for readers with dyslexia. It is being updated continually and improved based on input from dyslexic users. There are no restrictions on using OpenDyslexic outside of attribution.
OpenDyslexic Regular
Tasting the mint and tasting the whiskey
OpenDyslexic Italic
Tasting the mint and tasting the whiskey
OpenDyslexic Bold
Tasting the mint and tasting the whiskey
OpenDyslexic Bold Italic
Tasting the mint and tasting the whiskey
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Rosemary Sassoon Rosemary Sassoon has been involved in letterforms all her life. She trained and worked as a scribe and designer, before investigating methods of teaching calligraphy and using it as a decorative art to help bring it back to public notice in the 60s and 70s. She has specialised in the educational and medical aspects of handwriting since 1980. The University of Reading awarded her a Ph.D. for her work on the Effects of Models and Teaching Methods on Joining Strokes in Children’s Handwriting. Research with children led to the design of the Sassoon Primary typeface which was intended for reading. She discovered that no one had previously consulted and tested children for their preferences. To date there are over a dozen typefaces in the family for different educational purposes - for teaching handwriting as well as reading. Her interests have extended to the design of educational software and how typographical design factors can influence the assimilation of knowledge from the screen.
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Sasson Sans
Sasson Primary
Sasson Infant
Sasson
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Not designed for dyslexia but advised 38
Myriad Pro Verdana Arial Comic Sans Trebuchet Cambria
Centuary Gothic
Helvetica Times New Roman
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Dyslexics readers like: 40
Dyslexic people like: Good ascenders and descenders, b, d, f, h, k, l, t, and all capitals; G, j, p, q, y. b and d; p and q distinguished, not mirror images. Different forms for capital I, lowercase l and digit 1. Rounded g as in handwriting. Most liked rounded a, although perhaps some felt that it may be confused with o. Letter-spacing, e.g. r, n together rn should not look like m.
General Rules Serif fonts, with their ‘ticks’ and ‘tails’ at the end of most strokes (as found in traditional print fonts such as Georgia or Times New Roman), tend to obscure the shapes of letters, so sans-serif fonts are generally preferred. Many dyslexic people also find it easier to read a font that looks similar to hand writing as they are familiar with this style, and some teachers prefer them. However these types of fonts can lead to confusion with some letter combinations, such as oa and oo; rn and m. The size of the ascenders and descenders of letters (the ‘stems’ on letters like p and b) is also important as many dyslexic readers rely on recalling the visual shape of a word due to poor phonological awareness. If ascenders and descenders are too short the shape of the word is more difficult to identify and can make reading slower and less accurate. 41
Bibliography
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Books: Baines, Phil and Haslam, Andrew, 2002, Type & Typography. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd Beier, Sofie, 2012, Reading Letter, designing for legibility. Amsterdam: BIS Publishers Berger, John, 1972, Ways of seeing. London: British Broadcasting Corporation; London : Penguin Drucker, Johanna, 1994, Visible word : experimental typography and modern art. Chicago: University of Chicago Press Garfield, Simon, 2010, Just my type: a book about fonts. London: TJ International Heller, Steven and Meggs, Philip B., 2001, Texts on type: critical writings on typography. New York: Allworth Press Helmut, Schmid, 2003, Typography today / concept and design. 3rd ed. Hall, Inc. Shinko Makoto statement Hochuli, Jost, 2003, Detail in typography: letters, letterspacing, words, wordspacing, lines, linespacing, columns. Switzerland: Hyphen Press Kane, John, 2011, A type primer, 2nd ed. London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd Lupton, Ellen, 2004, Thinking with type: a critical guide for designers, writers, editors & students. New York: Princeton Architectural Press McLean, Ruari, 2000, Thames and Hudson manual of typography. 3rd ed. London: Thames and Hudson McLuhan, Marshall, 1962, Gutenberg galaxy: the making of typographic man. Toronto : University of Toronto Press 43
Noble, Ian and Bestley, Russell, 2003, Visual research: an introduction to research methodologies in graphic design. Switzerland: AVA Publishing SA Ruder, Emil, 2001, Typographie: ein Gestaltungslehrbuch =Typography : a manual of design =Typographie: un manual de creation, 7th ed. Switzerland: Heer Druck, AG, Sulgen Spiekermann, Erik and Ginger, E. M.,1993, Stop Stealing Sheep & find out how type word. Mountain View, California: Adobe Press Sudjic, Deyan, 2009, Language of things, 2nd ed. London: Penguin  Swanson, Gunnar, 2000, Graphic design & reading: explorations of an uneasy relationship. New York: Allworth Press Tinker, Miles A., 1969, Legibility of print, 3rd ed. Ames: Iowa State University Press Warde, Beatrice, 1956, The Crystal Goblet-Sixteen essays on Typography. Cleveland OH and New York: World publishing Co
Web Links: Being Dyslexic, Dyslexia Summary, 2012 (online website), Available at: http:// www.beingdyslexic.co.uk/pages/information/general-information/dyslexiabasics/dyslexia-summary.php (Accessed 11 February 2012) Boder, Elena, Developmental Dyslexia: a Diagnostic Approach Based on Three Atypical Reading-spelling Patterns, 1973 (article), Available at: http:// onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1469-8749.1973.tb05180.x/pdf (Accessed 24 March 2012). Brain a Journal on neurology, Theories of developmental dyslexia: insights from a multiple case study of dyslexic adults, 2002 (article), Available at: http://brain.oxfordjournals.org/content/126/4/841.long (Accessed 24 March 2012). 44
Dyslexia.com, Helping the most with your abilities, 2012 (website), Available at: http://www.dyslexic.com/fonts (Accessed 24 March 2012). Dyslexia Research Trust, 2012, Available at: http://www.dyslexic.org.uk/ research.htm (Accessed 25 March 2012). FontSmith, FS Me, 2010 (typeface), Available at: http://www.fontsmith.com/ projects/portfolio/mencap-fs-me.cfm (Accessed 3 February 2012). Frensch, Natascha, Read Regular, 2003 (typeface), Available at: http://www. readregular.com/english/intro.html (Accessed 11 February 2012) Hillier, Robert , Journal of Writing in Creative Practice, 2008 (article), Available at: http://www.intellectbooks.co.uk/journals/view-Article,id=8182/ (Accessed 9 April 2012). Hiller, Robert, Sylexiad, 2007 (typeface), Available at: http://www.robsfonts. com/samples/sylex_ser_med_bo.html (Accessed 24 March 2012). KType, Lexia Readable, 2012 (typeface), Available at: http://www.k-type. com/?p=884 (Accessed 11 February 2012). Types of dyslexia, 2012 (online website) Available at: http://www.macalester. edu/academics/psychology/whathap/ubnrp/dyslexia/types.html (Accessed 11 February 2012). UX Movement, 6 Surprising Bad Practices That Hurt Dyslexic Users, 2011 (article), Available at: http://uxmovement.com/content/6-surprising-badpractices-that-hurt-dyslexic-users/ (Accessed 11 February 2012)
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