The MATSEC Support Unit has conducted research to gain information on whether different typefaces provided different degrees of readability to examination candidates, and whether candidates with dyslexia have different preferences. The aim of this brief article is to provide a summary of findings while encouraging the public to provide informed feedback to the MATSEC Support Unit.

MATSEC examinations are currently written using Times New Roman because this font, apart from the fact that it was the standard font in Microsoft Word, allows readers to distinguish between the number ‘1’, capital letter ‘i’, and letter ‘l’. However, different bodies have suggested the use of other typefaces such as Arial, Georgia, Verdana, and Helvetica amongst others. Other fonts, such as Comic Sans, have been specifically suggested for candidates with dyslexia.

The MATSEC Support Unit has constructed two surveys aimed to discover which typeface out of a selection of nine fonts is preferred by respondents. The first survey yielded the following findings:

(i) did not account for differences in font size, (ii) was sent to 3,000 past MATSEC candidates, (iii) had 458 respondents, and (iv) suggested that Verdana is the preferred font.

 

Meanwhile, the second survey yielded somewhat different results: (i) included responses from 314 participants (ii) Was sent to all secondary and post-secondary schools (iii) accounted for differences in font size and (iv) also suggested that Verdana is the preferred font.  

It is worth noting, however, that accounting for font size has changed the ranking of typefaces. Arial, for instance, gained considerable momentum and the difference between this font and Verdana is minimal. Comic Sans, on the other hand, was ranked as the least preferred typeface when accounting for its larger size.

 

Some differences between candidates with dyslexia and those without a condition exist.  Minor differences between males and females also exist. Arial, rather than Verdana, is the typeface of choice for candidates with a condition (regardless whether this is Dyslexia or not) and for male candidates. On further investigation, however, it was noted that Arial fails to distinguish between the letter ‘l’ and capital letter ‘i’, and is therefore not deemed to be an appropriate typeface to be used in examination papers.

Given all this information, it seems that the font Verdana is the font of choice for text readability. However, the MATSEC Support Unit welcomes   informed feedback until 31 March 2017. The full report is available in the Research Reports section of the MATSEC Website at:

www.um.edu.mt/matsec/reports/researchreports. Feedback is accepted on matsec@um.edu.mt