A CASE STUDY ON APPROACHES TO EASY-TO READ DISCOURSES
Abstract
In 2017, the organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development<br> estimated that around 25 per cent of the population experiences difficulties in reading<br> comprehension. The World Health Organisation (2021) has indicated that around<br> 15 per cent of the world population faces functional impairment-related problems,<br> which limit sufficient access to information unless the resources are adapted for<br> meeting the needs of this layer of society. Considering the increasing numbers<br> of the population who suffer from impairments at the language perception level,<br> the present study has attempted to examine selected approaches that might serve<br> for developing easy-to-read (EtR) discourses. Limited research has been conducted<br> in the above-mentioned field, and the contributions that exist so far have focused<br> on the linguistic and design features considered when producing EtR discourses;<br> however, other central components that govern the adaptation of authentic texts<br> for EtR needs seem to be neglected. Therefore, the present study aims to examine<br> selected discourse-pragmatic approaches that can be applied for adapting texts to<br> an EtR language. The present research is a qualitative case study targeted at EtR<br> text developers and seeks to answer the research question: which discourse-pragmatic<br> approaches should be considered to produce easy-to-read discourses? In conclusion,<br> the paper offers the implications of the findings and reflects on the value of using<br> discourse-pragmatic approaches to EtR discourse and cognitive load reduction.