Engineering Design for Educational Interfaces
Nathan Balasubramanian
Nick Joseph
Jodi Kiefer
Isaac Sanders
IntroductionIntroduction
o Educational ConsiderationsEducational Considerations 6 Basic Criteria6 Basic Criteria Criteria Tradeoffs Criteria Tradeoffs Relationships Between CriteriaRelationships Between Criteria System Evaluation – The SwikiSystem Evaluation – The Swiki
Simplicity & Consistency
1. Simplicity limited type & color styles short text lines simple structure
2. Consistency navigation text formatting
3. Coherence
Eliminate extraneous material (i.e. pictures/sounds/words)
Remove unnecessary text (i.e. in-depth explanations) Similar to Reseeding Phase in SER Model
Usability & Accessibility
4. Usability Good labeling Spatial Contiguity (text close to relevant picture) Reduce working memory load
5. Accessibility Interface accessible to everyone Minimal technology requirements
Criteria Tradeoffs
Simplicity – Less powerful features / Interfaces less useful
Consistency– User may feel “Controlled” or “Confined”
Usefulness vs. Usable– More complex = less usable
Accessibility– Advanced technology is less accessible but more useful
Coherence– User engagement issues
Relationships Between Criteria
Moderation is key to success
Hand-in-hand (“AND”) Relationships– Usability Consistency– Simplicity & Coherence
“Versus” Relationships– Usefulness vs. Usable– Usefulness vs. Accessibility
System Evaluation: The Swiki
Educational Considerations: – Motivation– Engagement
Applying the 6 Basic Criteria:– Simplicity– Consistency – Coherence– Usability– Accessibility– Usefulness
The Swiki: Pros
Supports Wiki Markup Language & HTML– Wider range of users– << Usability >>
Consistent Navigation– Navigational Side-Panel– << Consistency >>
Uploading Capability– Easy-to-use– << Usability >>