How to Use the Gobbledegook Detector
- Select a paragraph (or several) from a section of a book.
- Count every word and write the number in the square box.
- Count the sentences and write the number on the line below Sentence.
If there’s more than one paragraph, put the number on the line
below Para.. There shouldn’t be more than five sentences per paragraph.
- Divide the number of sentences by the number of words and write the
average number of words per sentence in the space at the left. Aim for
an average of 15 to 20. Avoid sentences over 30 words in length.
- Select six words (or more). Analyze the number of syllables in each
word that you use. Count ‘ed’ endings if they are not sounded.
Enter the number in the proper circle under Syllables per word.
- The more words that have three or more syllables, the more difficult
the writing will be.
- The tone of the document should be neutral if at all possible - watch
for the overly formal, hostile, legalistic or patronizing.
- There’s not a lot you can do about documents that use a font
that’s difficult to read or which lack white space, but if you
are producing them yourself, you can follow these simple guidelines
to produce a more readable document. These guidelines will also allow
you to pick a more suitable document when you have a choice.
Acknowledgements
Navigation as a discrete process was first developed
and piloted at Boeing Canada Technology by a consultant, Lindsay Laidlaw.
This was possible through funding from the National Literacy Secretariat
and Manitoba Education Training and Youth. The process and teaching methods
were further refined through delivery of courses at Bristol Aerospace
Limited. In the fall of 2001, the material was delivered as a Train the
Trainer course at Boeing with the objective o having the skills included
in technical training. |