Which feature do I add on the learner interface?

I was reading this articles posted by Geeta, NO Next and Back Buttons on Learnability Matters. It was great reading and reminiscing the experience of designing the course on 'Dealing with Conflict Management.' At Kern, we give a lot of importance to user and learning experience. How you ask? Let me ask you a question.

How do you decide what goes on the learner interface?
A. We use the basic buttons/features: Next, Back, Pause/Play, Audio Mute, References, Glossary
B. We decide based on the learner profile and the need for features

If your answer is A: That's incorrect! (Love telling that to the learner, but hate having to read it ourselves?) Why? Because there is no such thing called "basic" buttons. Focus on learning experiences rather than adding features. Think about it. Who says that these are the basic or the most essential buttons that your learner needs to navigate through the course? We assume this to be the case. Do a really small experiment. Take a course and test it on your learners. See which buttons they use and why. You will observe that they will not use the buttons you thought were essential. And what's worse, they may look for other features that you have not included. 

The idea is not to undermine the importance of features provided in a course. But, to ensure that you integrate the right set of features in your package. Why give the learner features he will not use? Why miss out a feature that he/she is likely to search for? What do we do to get the right set of features?

1. Do a learner analysis: Understand the following:
a. What's their typical day like?
b. Have they taken an eLearning course before? How comfortable are they with the computer?
c. If they are expected to take the course during their work hours, what are the possible distractions in the learning environment?

2. Based on the profile and instructional design strategy, pick the features that are essential for the course. For example, if your course is an audio-dependent course, do not add a mute button. Instead add a pause button. If your learner is not fluent with the language, avoid transcripts.

3. Ask why and not why not. When discussing the features that you want to add on the learner interface, always ask your team why the learner needs a particular feature. In most cases, we say 'why not; let's just include this. This is bound to be useful'. If there is a doubt, keep it out. You can always add the feature later if your learner really needs it.

4. Do not design for edge cases and what ifs: Design for your primary user and for second visits. Do not design for edge cases and try to accommodate the what if scenarios.

5. Keep it simple. You cannot go wrong if you keep it simple. It is an extremely challenging task to just keep it simple. But it ensures that learner experience is not hindered due to clutter and unnecessary choices.

6. Test your course on sample learners: Test your course on atleast 5-7 learners. If you do not have access to them, test it on people who have a similar profile. This really helps understand how your learners will react to your course. It will give you a first hand experience of what their experience is like.

It is important to understand what the learners need than to just populate the learner interface with the regular features. Are we forcing actions that the learner does not need? Learner interface, navigation in particular, plays a crucial role in making your training program a success. So, think it out well. Spend some time getting it right.    
   

Issues with Second Life

Virtual worlds (VWs) must take user experience seriously. Are these VWs usable? Let us look at Second Life. This is based on my experience and are only thoughts (not expert opinions). I wish Second life would relook at the following:

• Navigation: Why does the user have to spend time learning how to use the controls? Why isn't the navigation intuitive enough? Why is the Search option so confusing? As a new user, what do I search for? How do I decide where I would like to go? How do I know how big the VW is?
  
• Editing Appearance:

1. Privacy: What is the first thing a user does? Most users edit their appearance. Why is this visible to the rest? I can see another user editing the appearance. The stance is weird and the appearance and disappearance of clothing items is downright funny! Can't the user have the privacy to change their appearance?
2. Filtering: Like other social networks, I wish SL provided the option to view a user's profile. This helps understand more about the person. This may help avoid awkward conversations and situations.
3. Usability: The slider widgets used to readjust length of clothing are not efficient. Removing a part of clothing is tricky. I had trouble getting rid of a skirt my avatar had on on top of her jeans. I have also seen my friends struggle to with hair, clothing, shoes, and so on.
   

• Conversation: Why should avatar's type as you type on your keyboard? Let's admit it looks very funny. Is there no other intuitive way of letting another user know that you are typing?
• Actions: It is hilarious to watch a user master the art of sitting at SL. Most times, they face away from us or just run around the place. :) This is a usability issue. A user need not have to practice several times to sit to get it right.
  

In terms of SL for learning, I like the thought of letting the learner create something. But, most objects in SL (atleast those I have come across in my brief time there) are PPTs. SL also has virtual classrooms. When we avoid making the learner read lengthy notes and sit through lectures, why use it in SL? When the fancy of the VW wears off (as it did with me), learner motivation is bound to dwindle. What then? Is there no other interesting format? Check these posts by Karl Kapp on how VWs effectively.
Examples of usaing virtual world 3d spaces learning
Virtual Hospitals Protocol
Three Virtual World Learning Best Practices

Expert Usability Evaluation and Learning Audit of an Online Course

You do not have access to learners or you are really short of time. However, you want to find out if your online course is easy to use and learn. What do you do? You can conduct an expert usability evaluation and expert learning audit. Both these evaluation techniques have their roots in usability inspection. Before I proceed further, these techniques have evolved from usability, but have been modified to suit the requirements of the learning field. If you use some other techniques, please do share. We are always eager to learn more effective ways of doing things.

How are these evaluations conducted?
An expert (usability/learning) judges the effectiveness of the course. The expert will go through the course and try everything a learner would if he/she were to take the course. They look for obstacles, ambiguity, functionality, and several other issues that hinder progress. Detailed reports are generated at the end of the evaluation.

What is an expert usability evaluation?
Using this technique, you evaluate the usability of an online course. An expert lists the parameters based on which the evaluation will take place. These could include:

1. Navigation: What is the primary form of navigation? Is this intuitive enough? This would ideally mean that we do not include 'Click Next to proceed' kind of instructions. The learner should intuitively know what the primary navigation is.
   
2. Visual hierarchy: Is the information organization in a logical manner? Eye movement is typically from left to right and from top to bottom. Are all elements positioned keeping this in mind? Will the learner know where the information starts and where it ends?
   
3. Accessibility of information: Are important elements placed upfront? Will the learner be able to access the most important information easily.
   
4. Affordance: Do buttons have the affordance of a click? Will the learner know when a click is required? Will he/she know what is expected on an interactive screen? During learner testing, I have seen learners click images that are not clickable or miss buttons that need to be clicked. This is because the element does not have the affordance of a click. Therefore, it is important to identify such issues.
   
5. Fonts and font sizes: Will the learner be able to read the text easily? Do font colors hinder readability? Are these fonts and font sizes consistent across?
   

What is the difference between a QA and an expert usability evaluation?

• A QA checks whether the online course maps to the signed off storyboard/wireframe. It also checks functionality, consistency, and whether the course has any bugs.
  
• Expert usability evaluation, on the other hand, checks whether the elements in the course are usable. It also takes into account user experience. Does the eLearning application cater to the five principles of usability - learnability, efficiency, memorability, errors, and satisfaction?
  

A QA is more content-centric while an expert usability evaluation is more user-centric. This is the main and the most crucial difference.

What is an expert learning audit?
Using this technique, you can evaluate the learning effectiveness of a course. An expert lists the parameters based on which the evaluation will take place. These could include:

• Learning objectives - content mapping: Are the learning outcomes addressed? Can the content be directly mapped to the learning objectives? Is there more information than is stated in the learning objective?
  
• Learner-content mapping: Is the content specific to the learner profile? Is it relevant? Will it help the learner meet the learning outcomes?
• Learner motivation: Is the course motivating enough for the learner? Why will he/she complete the course? Will they find it interesting? Will he/she be motivated to take an exercise?
• Vizualization: Do the visual elements aid learning? Are they similar in look and feel across the course?
  
• Language: Will the learner understand what is written? Is there any ambiguity?
  

What is the difference between an ID review and learning audit?
By the time the course is developed, several ID reviews have already been done. The learning audit is conducted by a third person who has not been a part of the design phase. Therefore, the course is looked at by a fresh eye and this makes a world of difference. The expert looks at the course without considering the constraints. I believe this is a good thing because several times we compromise on learning because of we are thinking about the constraints. He/she looks to identify the obstacles that will hinder learnability. An expert can help us identify where we have compromised.

Keep the following in mind if you are evaluating:

• Ensure that there are no distractions. This requires a lot of concentration, else you may miss a crucial issue.
  
• Try everything. What is the learner were to click this? What would happen if I go here instead of there?
  
• Use screen grabs to highlight issues. This is helpful as the reader will not have to shuffle between a report (xls, word) and the course.
  
• Include suggestions wherever possible. Provide two or three alternatives if possible. It would be very effective to show a suggestion visually.
  
• Ensure that you mark the repetitive issues as a global comment. But, it is also important to identify all those screens in which the issue is present. This will help save time when the reader is fixing the issues.
  
• If you have set parameters, you could check each screen for each parameter in a logical manner rather than just scan a screen. This way you will not miss anything.
  
• It can become very tedious, tiring, and repetitive. So, be prepared.
  

The reports generated from both the expert usability evaluation and the learning audit is valuable source of feedback. You will be able to identify the things that can be worked on based on the suggestions provided by the expert. Use these techniques to evaluate your online course. Try it once and see how much of a difference it actually makes. But, remember, this is still no match for direct feedback from the learner.

Can Online Learning Environment Kill Motivation?

Ros Aini posed a question in my previous post, "Online learning environment can demotivate online learners. What do you think are the aspects that contribute to this matter?"

I am going to try an attempt answering this question based on my experience and what I have read/heard. If you think you disagree, please help me learn more by sharing your thoughts. If you agree and would like to add and give more clarity, please feel free to do so.

First let me clarify, online learning environment can demotivate online learners is a generalization. What aspects of online learning environment kill learner motivation?

1. Choosing the wrong learning environment for your learner
Your research should help you identify which is the most suitable learning environment in which your learner will learn. A virtual world such as second life may not be suitable for all online learners. You may realize that your learner prefers to read/write than actually 'be' in an environment where they can explore.
Tip: Always arrive at a solution (whether online or otherwise) based on research. You will be closer to getting it right.

2. When the learner control is zero
When you opt for a learning environment, ensure that it is designed such that the learner can decide their own learning path. Most online learners prefer to decide what they learn and how they learn. Avoid forcing your learners down a structured learning path. Several clients insist that the Next button be disabled till they attempt a practice. Give them the choice. If the practice is challenging enough, they are going to want to take it.
Tip: Give them several options such read, listen, do, experiment, share, and so on to learn.

3. When navigation is poor
Navigation plays an important role. Think about this, you have used a virtual world (VW) to teach. Your learner spends ages learning how to navigate within this VW and is not comfortable with the controls. Finally, he gives up frustrated about the fact that he is not getting it right. Poor navigation makes the learners feel dumb. And, no one enjoys this feeling. Navigation can kill motivation even if the training material is really good.
Tip: Ensure navigation is intuitive. The learner should spend minimum or no time learning how to navigate in the learning environment.

4. When system specifications are not shared upfront
Imagine this. You have provided several hyperlinks to blogs and wikis. The organization in which your learner works provides restricted Internet access. The learner tries to click on the link, but gets a 404 error. How frustrating would this be for the learner?
Tip: Always state the system and bandwidth requirements. Or design keeping the learner's bandwidth in mind.

Other than these, what else could demotivate an online learner?
- A know-it-all-peer who makes the learner feel very small, thereby making him reluctant to share his thoughts online again
- The learner may constantly doubt the authenticity of content and feel confused about what to internalize
- No access or an opportunity to interact with 'true' experts
- A learner may feel overwhelmed with the amount of information that is out there