Low-Literacy Survey Design Toolkit
"## Low-Literacy Survey Design Toolkit
10 documents for designing feedback surveys that anyone can understand — regardless of reading level.
Traditional surveys assume literacy. That assumption excludes the very people whose voices matter most: people experiencing homelessness, individuals with limited formal education, non-native speakers, and people with cognitive disabilities. This toolkit ensures your feedback system reaches everyone.
What's Inside
- Sentence Simplification Methods — Rewriting questions at a 3rd–5th grade reading level
- Visual Response Scale Library — Emoji, thumbs, color-coded, and pictorial scales
- Cognitive Load Reduction Guide — One concept per question, minimal working memory demand
- Plain Language Checklist — Screen every question before deployment
- Font, Size & Spacing Standards — Typography that supports comprehension
- Multilingual Adaptation Framework — Beyond translation to cultural adaptation
- Pilot Testing Protocol — Test with your actual population before launch
- Kiosk Interface Design Rules — Touch targets, contrast, and navigation for low-literacy users
- Audio & Read-Aloud Integration — When and how to add audio support
- Comprehension Verification Methods — Ensuring people understand what they're answering
Who It's For
Organizations serving populations with variable literacy levels who need feedback systems that don't accidentally exclude the people they exist to serve.
Why It Matters
If your survey requires a high school reading level, you are collecting feedback from your most resourced participants and calling it representative. This toolkit fixes that."