Problem
Tablet PC does provide the ideal platform for implementing interactive applications where instant feedback reinforce education. However, current system was developed with little attention to UI considerations of the target user and web application. Our project team is challenged to redesign the current UI to support better tablet-pen based activities and make it as close to a paper/pencil environment as possible.
Our approach
Two focus setting sessions enabled us to pick the most emphasized foci: the integration of Tablet Math Whiz into the curriculum at Glendale School and on the aspect of keeping kids motivated to use Tablet Math Whiz. Cooperative Inquiry is done instead of Contextual Inquiry since children's attention is distracted fast from work when adults observe and interrupt. Contextual Design process evaluate and integrate gathered insights into work practice of the children when using the Math Whiz tablet. Heuristic Evaluation is used to evaluate the most serious issues with the current interface.
My involvement
Affinity diagraming after focus setting sessions required entire group's contribution, as well as the integration of gathered data. Cooperative Inquiry gave me insights on the child's mental model. I also did the heuristics evaluation of the existing system, and I was able to create a paper prototype based on the findings from CI and HE. As I was conducting Think Aloud with the kids, I was able to anlyze what was working and what was not so effective. Children seemed to like my drawings on avatars, but they did not seemed to understand the navigational system because of the nature of the prototype.
Deliverable
For our final design phase of the project, we visited Glendale Elementary School again to conduct Participatory Design, Paper prototyping and Think Aloud. Paper prototying did not seemed to be 100% efficient, however we found that it was because the navigation on paper is very different from that of a computer system. From the most recognized findings from these prototypings, we came up with new visual ideas.
Visual Design
Based on the results of our Think-Aloud we created a new design without the nonlinear navigation elements. This is not a complete design, but rather a vision of how Math Whiz might look with our recommended improvements implemented and a refined visual style. This design is intended to add to the high-tech appeal of Tablet Math Whiz while remaining playful and approachable. Usability features include:
- Picture based loggin
- Avartar for each student
- Progress bar with % completion and number of remaining questions
- Step-by-Step tutorial on problem walkthrough
- Continous handwriting feedback
- Simple and consistent button look and location
- Prominent time remaining and other visual feedback on the current status
Continous Handwriting Feedback
The areas of the UI most susceptible to this error were the login fields and the answer box. In both cases, a text display should be included underneath the field such that recognized text is printed continuously as it being recognized. A label indicating the functionality of this new field would aid in user understanding.
Inline Step-by-Step problem walkthrough
The current feedback display is problematic. After the student completes a problem, the next problem is shown at the same time that brief feedback is given on the completed problem. Students were observed overlooking this feedback entirely. An immediate solution is to display the feedback on the completed problem itself. If the student answered the problem correctly, this feedback would be shown briefly before the next problem loaded. If the student answered the problem incorrectly, they would be asked to click a button to continue. The difference is small, but will force the student to acknowledge that they answered the problem incorrectly.
A larger feedback problem is that Math Whiz is missing an opportunity to help students learn from their mistakes as they make them. Rather than simply progress to the next problem when a student makes a mistake, Math Whiz could step them through the problem and show them a step-by-step method for solving it. This would help students focus their efforts on improving their weaknesses. The option to require the students to work over their mistakes could be set by the teacher on a per-exercise or even per-student basis.
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