ACQ Vol 10 No 3 2008

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ACQuiring knowledge in speech , language and hearing, Volume 10, Number 3 2008 101
INTERVENTION: WHY DOES IT WORK AND HOW DO WE KNOW?
“Good try, now let’s try it again!” This violates the pragmatics of working with an
expert.
If your research project needs an information statement, my advice would be to
do it first. Complete a quick draft in plain language, maybe write it for an
uninformed relative who left school young. Then put the draft away and write the
research protocol. Come back to the information statement at the end. Hopefully,
you will slip back into plain language – Anglo-Saxon words instead of Latin ones,
simple phrases to describe multisyllabic words, brief descriptions of medical terms.
Imagine telling your relatives about your research project. Watch the faces of your
aunt and uncle – smart, successful people who didn’t go past year 8 at school. Your
aunt might say “What does that actually mean, dear?” Here, they are acting like
plain language advisors. They may also need to advise you on how your
information statement might make them understand what a good thing it is that
you are doing.
And then go and ask the plain language advisor to look at it.
Correspondence to:
John Fisher
Plain Language Advisor
Ethics and Research Office
Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne
phone: 03 9345 5044
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