Writing for Global E-Learners
By Marilynne Rudick and Leslie O'Flahavan

The Web has brought e-learning to all parts of the globe. Your students may be across town or across an ocean. How should you write so that learners around the world or from different cultures can easily read and understand your instructional materials?

Whether you're developing distance learning for a multinational company or communicating with global learners via email, you must ensure that your writing is inclusive. Here are tips for making your e-learning universal.

Beware of idioms. English contains thousands of idioms, accepted phrases not meant to be interpreted literally. We use them automatically in our speech and in our writing, so they're bound to turn up in your e-learning materials. Think of the literal meaning of these common idiomatic phrases--hands-on workshop, just-in-time training, brush-up course--and the confusion they might cause a global learner. (Try practical for hands on; as needed for just-in-time and refresher for brush-up.)

Even a short email message may contain several confusing idioms. Can you find the six idiomatic phrases in this email to a global learner who inquired about an online course for pharmacy assistants?

To: raoul@webmexico.com
From: instructor@pharmacylearning.com

Dear Raoul,

Thanks for getting in touch with me about our online course, Basic Skills for Pharmacy Assistants. I'm sure you will find this a rich learning experience with many hands-on activities. Our faculty bends over backwards to ensure that each student successfully completes the course. You'll be a practicing pharmacy assistant before you know it. It goes without saying that I'd be delighted to have you enroll in the online course.

Sincerely,

Jack Smith

Did you find the idioms? The version below highlights them in bold. We've provided substitutes in parenthesis.

To: raoul@webmexico.com
From: instructor@pharmacylearning.com

Dear Raoul,

Thanks for getting in touch with (contacting) me about our online course, Basic Skills for Pharmacy Assistants. I'm sure you will find this a rich (valuable) learning experience, with many hands-on (practical) activities. Our faculty bends over backwards (does everything possible) to ensure that each student successfully completes the course. You'll be a practicing Pharmacy Assistant before you know it (quickly). It goes without saying (it's understood, or delete the phrase entirely), I'd be delighted to have you enroll in the online course.

Sincerely,
Jack Smith

The idioms in this email are relatively easy to spot and edit, but many have become so common that we use them without realizing they're idioms. You'll probably find it almost impossible to write more than a few sentences without using such idioms as by the way, as well as, or just as soon. (Try substituting incidentally for by the way, in addition to for as well as, and as quickly for just as soon.)

While idioms may show up occasionally in your instructional materials, they proliferate in marketing materials. Here's how one online learning institution describes its brand new (newly introduced) course:

"You won't believe it! Our eye-popping video streamed directly to your computer has to be seen to be believed."

(Think about the literal meaning: The course is based on lies, my eyes will pop out if I take it, it will come to me in the river, but if I see it, I'll believe the lies?)

Avoid jargon. So maybe you've idiom-proofed your writing, but have you looked at jargon in your e-learning materials? If you're designing a course on auditing for accountants, industry terms or jargon might be appropriate. But beware of gratuitous jargon. Remember that terms you use every day in your work may be unknown to global readers.

E-learning is filled with expressions such as virtual classroom and digital collaboration. In describing your e-learning system you might write, "Our online network is based on seamless technology." (Does it use a zipper? Perhaps it uses well-integrated technology.) Or you may describe your system as using a thin client (what will happen if the client is overweight?) rather than stating that your system software is stored on a server. If your e-learning materials must include technical terms or industry jargon, consider using a hyperlinked glossary to explain the terms. One to try is Learning Circuits’s E-Learning Glossary, which includes more than 350 terms and definitions.

Jargon may even appear in your course title. Consider how baffled a global learner might be by these titles for online courses: End-User Business Development Skills (rewrite as Developing Business Skills) or
Anti-Hacking Boot Camp (rewrite as How To Overcome Threats To Your Computer Network Security).

Write clear, concise sentences. All learners appreciate clear, concise writing, but it's particularly important for global learners. Avoid bureaucratic language. A global learner might not finish course registration if he sees this sentence: "Failure to enter your password will result in an invalid entry message." Rewrite that as, "If you don’t provide your password, our system can't identify you."

Keep your course descriptions clear and useful. Here's a bureaucratic description: "This one-month course provides a student with the skills needed to assume the role of an entry-level dental receptionist." Simplify that to, "This month-long course will teach you the skills you need to get a job as a dental receptionist."

Here's an instruction from an online PowerPoint course that would confuse even a local learner:

"The Don't Show This Dialog Box Again check box on the New Slide dialog box lets you set a default slide layout for each time you insert a new slide. The layout will be whichever slide type is selected when you mark the Don't Show This Dialog Box Again check box."

Eliminate cultural references. Beware of references that are specific to one culture--for example, mentions of American sports, books, TV, movies, or history. A global learner may not understand this baseball reference in an email: "I will touch base about your assignment later." Even this sentence would confuse global learners or instructors not familiar with U.S. school systems: "Our curriculum is designed for teachers of grades K-12."

Avoid humor. Have you ever watched a British comedy and you didn't get the jokes? Would a global reader find this American joke funny? "The CEO of an HMO died and went to heaven. Of course, he had to check out after 48 hours." Clearly, humor doesn’t work well across cultures or languages.

Here’s a culturally based attempt at humor, promoting the ease of registering for an online course: "Sign up in 37 seconds (highway mileage may vary)." The humor would totally confuse someone who'd never seen ads for cars on American TV.

Express measurements, dates, and times universally. When you provide information that involves numbers, remember that systems and conventions are not universal. Keep these points in mind:

• Most of the world is metric, so if you're giving U.S. measurements, be sure to include metric equivalents. For example, in a course in quilt making, your instructions would say, "Each quilt square should measure 8 inches (20.32cm)."
• Write out the complete date. Many countries express the date as day/month/year. And the international standard is year/month/date. Write, "This assignment is due on January 10, 2003,” not, "This assignment is due on 10/2/03."
• If you're scheduling a chat, Webinar, or other synchronous event, make sure you include your time zone. For example, "The Webinar is March 3, 2003 at 10 a.m. Eastern Standard Time."
• Remember that the ubiquitous phrase 24/7 may be unclear to global readers. Don't write, "You have access to course materials 24/7." Instead write, “You have access to course materials 24 hours a day, seven days a week.”

Test and edit. Before launching your course materials, you may want to test them on global learners. They can point out unclear idioms or cultural references that you missed.

Writing globally is a challenge. It's often difficult to think of substitutes for common idioms; you might just substitute one for another. Or your writing may seem stilted. Writing clearly and concisely may require a few edits. Be patient, try again, and you will be writing for everyone.

Marilynne Rudick and Leslie O'Flahavan are partners in E-WRITE, a writing training and consulting firm. They have written e-learning materials for global learners at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and are the authors of Clear, Correct, Concise E-Mail: A Writing Workbook for Customer Service Agents (December, 2002); www.WritingWorkbook.com.