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> The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level Formula is a useful tool for > estimating the U.S. grade level required to read a given > text. The formula uses the average
by bArray 6y ago
> The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level Formula is a useful tool for
> estimating the U.S. grade level required to read a given
> text. The formula uses the average number of words per
> sentence and the average number of syllables per word.
That sounds like a potentially flawed measure of grade level - and I'm not really sure it's a great measurement of debate quality. A good debating/speaking tactic would be to speak in such a way that the entire audience understands what you say and there are no other meanings.
The article opens with "at least 93 interruptions in 90 minutes" which they suggest indicates bad quality debate, then asserts that the solution is "don’t talk to us like we’re in middle school". Using more complex language and longer sentences doesn't address interruptions, it doesn't address the answering of questions and it doesn't address the discussion on policy. Using flamboyant language will simply not help here.
- Wowfunhappy 6y agoTiny thing, you might consider quoting without those line breaks, except when separating paragraphs. So, the bit you quoted would go: > The Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level Formula is a useful tool for estimating the U.S. grade level required to read a given text. The formula uses the average number of words per sentence and the average number of syllables per word. I find this way easier to read!
- ajmarcic 6y agoA better metric for text difficulty might be mean tf-idf. Essentially the average "rareness" of each word used. This topic is fun to analyze, but it's not really aligned with the objective of a political debate. Simple words can broadcast competence, and big words can be taken as pretentious.
- posterboy 6y agoThey want to address those at middle school grade level, too, why wouldn't they?