{
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    "title" : "Community Research Explores Ways To Improve Access To Multilingual Content |Digital.gov",
    "description": "Community Research Explores Ways To Improve Access To Multilingual Content",
    "home_page_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/","feed_url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/2022/08/09/community-research-explores-ways-to-improve-access-to-multilingual-content/index.json","item" : [
    {"kicker" : "<no value>","title" :"Community Research Explores Ways To Improve Access To Multilingual Content","deck" : "","summary" : "A group from the Multilingual Community noticed inconsistencies in access to languages other than English across government websites, and have started working on a solution.","date" : "2022-08-09T11:31:00-05:00","date_modified" : "2024-04-02T09:45:13-04:00","authors" : {"mara-goldberg" : "Mara Goldberg"},"topics" : {
        
            "accessibility" : "Accessibility",
            "content-strategy" : "Content Strategy",
            "multilingual" : "Multilingual"
            },"primary_image" : { "uid" : "dept-edu-language-menu-closeup", "alt" :
  "A screen capture of upper right corner of the U.S. Department of Education&#39;s homepage. The language menu is activated, showing a drop-down list of seven languages, each written in the language they are for; English, Spanish, Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Tagalog, and Russian.", "width" :
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      "filename" :"2022-08-09-community-research-explores-ways-to-improve-access-to-multilingual-content.md",
      
      "filepath" :"news/2022/08/2022-08-09-community-research-explores-ways-to-improve-access-to-multilingual-content.md",
      "filepathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/blob/cm-topics-button-component/content/news/2022/08/2022-08-09-community-research-explores-ways-to-improve-access-to-multilingual-content.md",
      "editpathURL" :"https://github.com/GSA/digitalgov.gov/edit/cm-topics-button-component/content/news/2022/08/2022-08-09-community-research-explores-ways-to-improve-access-to-multilingual-content.md","slug" : "community-research-explores-ways-to-improve-access-to-multilingual-content","url" : "/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/2022/08/09/community-research-explores-ways-to-improve-access-to-multilingual-content/","weight" : "1","content" :"\u003cp\u003eGovernment websites must be accessible to all, which includes those who speak languages other than English. There has been a lot of progress in this area, and government websites typically provide access to content that helps users find information in their own language.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"current-state\"\u003eCurrent State\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne common problem, however, is an inconsistent method of displaying access to information for limited English proficiency (LEP) users. This comes from a lack of clear guidance on how to indicate content in languages other than English. For example, some websites display a language toggle in the header, while others display it in the content area or footer. This can hinder the ability of users with limited English proficiency to find the information they need to complete their tasks.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"the-need\"\u003eThe Need\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt has become clear that there is a need for consistent guidance for government developers, content specialists, and designers on how and where to display content in languages other than English.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn response, a group of members from the \u003ca href=\"https://digital.gov/communities/multilingual/\"\u003eMultilingual Community\u003c/a\u003e conducted research, discussed their findings, and drafted solutions based on the number of languages and content being offered.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"box \"\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eThank you to the six community members representing four agencies who led this effort!\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFedora Braverman\u003c/strong\u003e—National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMikelyn Meyers\u003c/strong\u003e—U.S. Census Bureau\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eYazmin Garcia Trejo\u003c/strong\u003e—U.S. Census Bureau\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMike Mulé\u003c/strong\u003e—U.S. Department of Justice\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLaura Godfrey\u003c/strong\u003e—U.S. General Services Administration\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMaria Marrero\u003c/strong\u003e—U.S. General Services Administration\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\u003ch2 id=\"approach\"\u003eApproach\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe group came together to review websites across government and industry. They considered usability testing that had already been performed on these websites, and they took into account accessibility requirements. Finally, they recommended future usability testing with limited English proficiency users — with the understanding that guidelines should be updated based on those findings.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch2 id=\"solutions\"\u003eSolutions\u003c/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo far, the group from the Multilingual Community has proposed guidance for three scenarios:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWebsites with two languages\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWebsites with three or more languages, with all content available in all languages\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eWebsites with three or more languages, with selected content offered in other languages\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e\n\u003cdiv\n  class=\"image\"\n\u003e\u003cimg\n      src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-3-alphabetical-order-website-language-access-guidance_w800.png\"\n      \n        alt=\"A drop-down menu for six languages is shown in alphabetical order in wireframes for a website. The languages are Arabic, Chinese, English, Spanish, French, and Italian. Separated by a red dashed vertical line, the mobile view is on the left, and desktop view is on the right.\"\n        srcset=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-3-alphabetical-order-website-language-access-guidance_bu.jpg 48w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-3-alphabetical-order-website-language-access-guidance_w1200.png 1200w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-3-alphabetical-order-website-language-access-guidance_w800.png 800w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-3-alphabetical-order-website-language-access-guidance_w600.png 600w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-3-alphabetical-order-website-language-access-guidance_w400.png 400w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-3-alphabetical-order-website-language-access-guidance_w200.png 200w\"\n\n      sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"\n    /\u003e\u003cp\u003ePrototype of a potential solution for a drop-down language menu located at the top of the page.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn their solutions, the group identified the following areas that could be made more consistent when displaying content in languages other than English:\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFormat\u003c/strong\u003e style (use a button-like link or dropdown list, instead of plain text links)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePlacement\u003c/strong\u003e on the page\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eImplementation\u003c/strong\u003e of functionality (how the button works)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAccessibility and usability\u003c/strong\u003e for developers (proper color contrast, visual element, language attributes, etc.)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTreatment\u003c/strong\u003e (use of words instead of graphics or icons in the button)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eLanguage display\u003c/strong\u003e (capitalization, order of languages, etc.)\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ul\u003e\n\u003cdiv\n  class=\"image\"\n\u003e\u003cimg\n      src=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-4-html-language-accessibility-website-language-access-guidance_w800.png\"\n      \n        alt=\"A web page shows a split screen. Along the top is a menu of multiple languages. The bottom half shows the HTML language attributes used to indicate the language of text for accessibility. Red boxes around the examples and red arrows connect the text links to the corresponding HTML code for Spanish (e s) and Chinese (z h).\"\n        srcset=\"https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-4-html-language-accessibility-website-language-access-guidance_bu.jpg 48w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-4-html-language-accessibility-website-language-access-guidance_w1200.png 1200w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-4-html-language-accessibility-website-language-access-guidance_w800.png 800w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-4-html-language-accessibility-website-language-access-guidance_w600.png 600w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-4-html-language-accessibility-website-language-access-guidance_w400.png 400w,https://s3.amazonaws.com/digitalgov/figure-4-html-language-accessibility-website-language-access-guidance_w200.png 200w\"\n\n      sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\"\n    /\u003e\u003cp\u003eLanguage attributes examples in HTML code.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Multilingual Community plans to work with the \u003ca href=\"https://designsystem.digital.gov/\"\u003eU.S. Web Design System\u003c/a\u003e team to publish the final guidance that can be implemented across government websites.\u003c/p\u003e\n\n\n\n\u003carticle\n  class=\"dg-note \"\n\u003e\n  \u003ch4 class=\"dg-note__heading\"\u003e\n    \u003csvg\n      class=\"dg-note__icon usa-icon dg-icon dg-icon--large\"\n      aria-hidden=\"true\"\n      focusable=\"false\"\n    \u003e\n      \u003cuse xlink:href=\"/preview/gsa/digitalgov.gov/cm-topics-button-component/uswds/img/sprite.svg#notifications\"\u003e\u003c/use\u003e\n    \u003c/svg\u003e\n    \n      Note\n    \n  \u003c/h4\u003e\n  \u003cp\u003eEveryone can contribute to the design system. Do you have ideas on what should be included in the final guidance?\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eContribute to discussion on the \u003ca href=\"https://github.com/uswds/uswds/issues/3938\"\u003elanguage selector component\u003c/a\u003e\u003c/strong\u003e.\u003c/p\u003e\n\n\u003c/article\u003e\n\n"}
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}