Running head: ASSIGNMENT 3: LEARNER-FOCUSED USABLITY
Assignment 3: Learner-Focused Usability
Tom Dolan
EDTC 6351: Web-based Multimedia
University of Texas at Brownsville
September 29, 2013
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ASSIGNMENT 3: LEARNER FOCUSED USABILITY
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The purpose of this research assignment is to use the SECTIONS framework (Boyes,
Dowie & Rumzan, 2005) to evaluate flash web sites for how well the content “meets the user’s
self-defined needs” and “how easy is it for the user to locate what they are looking for” (Schaller,
Allison-Bunnell, Chow, Marty & Heo, 2004).
Instructor-Selected Web Site #1:
A Dancer’s Journal from the Kennedy Center
http://artsedge.kennedy-center.org/multimedia/series/AEMicrosites/martha-graham.aspx
I found this site easy to explore and quickly identified the purpose of an introduction to
Martha Graham and what it takes to be a modern dancer. The Flash items were familiar but
novel, highly interactive, quickly accessed, and well organized.
Three examples of animation include the locker handle flipping up, a book moving
toward the front of the locker, and items in the journal slightly moving on mouseover indicating
each is a clickable navigation item.
Three examples of interaction include pop-up details when journal items are selected,
pop-up details when locker items are selected, and the ability to select both audio and video
tracks when an audio or video player is selected.
Three examples of multimedia elements are the audio that plays when an animated music
score is selected, the video that plays when an animated DVD is selected, and the sounds of
lockers opening and closing when the locker image is shown. These elements were well
executed in terms of color scheme, layout, readability, visual acuity, and appropriate
interactivity. This site meets the SECTIONS framework except the cost structure which I guess
would be expensive for most organization with which I’ve worked.
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Instructor-Selected Web Site #2:
Orisinal: Morning Sunshine
http://ferryhalim.com/orisnal/
The Orisinal games exhibit several SECTIONS framework characteristics including
novelty, speed, interactivity, low cost, ease of use, and they are even student oriented as
discussed below. I played several of the games for which I lack good hand-eye coordination in
order to master the objectives.
The very definition of game theory (Game theory, 2013) implies players learn the game
rules and learn how to anticipate the action of others. Therefore Orisinal games are learning
games. However, these games may not necessarily fall under the SECTIONS framework
definition of Teaching and Learning with traditional academic learning outcomes. The primary
difference I see in Orisinal games compared to popular video games is that Orisinal games have
one level while popular games are multi-level.
The “Bird and the Sea” (Halim, 2004) exhibited several elements making it effective. It’s
animation includes a bird flapping its wings and flying over a sea with fish shown below the
surface. The player interacts with the bird by holding the left mouse button down to make it
dive. Clicking the mouse button repeatedly makes the bird fly up again. The game includes the
multimedia elements of music audio which constantly loops along with other audio elements
which sound when the bird hits the water, catches a fish, and comes up out of the water.
Instructor-Selected Web Site #3:
Stop Bullying Now
http://stopbullying.gov/
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Stop Bullying Now is a federal government website managed by the U.S. Department of
Health & Human Services. It took me a while to find the only Flash animation under Respond to
Bullying, Be More Than a Bystander. The rest of the site was images, text, and YouTube videos.
The target audience of the Flash animation is probably intended to be junior high and
lower division senior high school students as the age of the student in the videos and the students
in the images indicates. However, in my opinion, the content and navigation of the site says the
real audience is teachers and parents. For example, the number of clicks it takes to get to the
Kid’s Perspective video is too many for most kids to wade through. And, the default is for
Advocates, not kids. Finally, the amount of information one has to scroll through and the length
and content of the videos indicates to me the site was developed by adults for adults.
The site attempts to target kids by using engaging images with nice text boxes with
scroll-over pop-up animation. However, I believe the subsequent sub-topic “Tip” pop-up screens
exhibit cognitive overload with too many things going on at one time. I like the links to
supplemental material, but find no pathway to a specific objective or go “Take the Pledge.” I
find this Flash animation useful in that I can pretty easily figure out what items are clickable. I
don’t think the site motivates the intended audience to the intended purpose because the content
seems to be aimed at a different audience, and the clutter may cause cognitive overload.
Student-Selected Web Site #1:
Bembo’s ZOO
http://www.bemboszoo.com/Bembo.swf
The target audience is preschool children with purpose of learning the alphabet. This site
has what the student is looking for in a highly interactive alphabet, and the learning is easy to
access with simple mouse clicks. The activity is simply arranged with quick but elegant
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introduction of traditional iron zoo gates opening and then all the capital letters of the alphabet
appearing on screen in alphabetical order. The activity is age-appropriate in visual appeal with
letters of basic colors which independently oscillate size larger and smaller until the mouse
pointer is over a letter at which point that letter spins and plays an audio sound of the underlying
word the letter will become. When a letter is clicked on, a word appears and then the letters of
that word scramble around and arrange themselves into the item the word indicates. The site is
well executed in that it loads fast and it reacts as expected. This site seems to meet all of the
SECTIONS framework in that it focuses on the student experience, it’s easy to use, it probably
didn’t cost much to produce, it’s all about appropriate pre-kindergarten teaching and learning, it
is highly interactive with motion and sound, it’s well organized, it’s novel, and it’s fast.
Student-Selected Web Site #2:
Science Lab Desk
http://www.iknowthat.com/ScienceIllustrations/humanbody/science_desk.swf
Based on the vocabulary and images in the site, the target audience appears to be middle
school aged children with purpose of learning “scientific concepts and vocabulary through
inquiry and exploration.” The activity is organized as a desk with a bulletin board attached on
which interactive items are placed. The activity is visually appealing with traditional high
contrast bold colors and the expected science artifacts such as beakers, measurement devices,
magnifying glass etc. I believe the navigation of the activity will be self-evident to middle
school aged learners in that instructions appear with items to be clicked on, and links are colored
and underlined as expected. This activity loads and responds quickly and the tasks of making
various human body systems appear or disappear occur instantaneously. The animation of body
parts is appropriate for the activity, and the associated audio contributes to the effectiveness of
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learning. This activity meets most of the SECTIONS framework, however, it is rather complex
and probably cost more in terms of development time and money than most public school
teachers would be able to spend.
Student-Selected Web Site #3:
Oscilloscope Challenge
http://people.sinclair.edu/nickreeder/flash/oscilloscope.swf
The target audience for this activity is community college students as its designer is Nick
Reeder of Sinclair Community College. The purpose is to learn how to display and measure
electronic waveforms using an oscilloscope as a tool. The activity is well organized with an
interactive virtual oscilloscope with working buttons and knobs on the screen and obvious
instructions such as Introduction, Practice, and Take the Challenge! The visual display is
appealing to technical students with a background which is the traditional Hewlett Packard blue
and the oscilloscope the traditional shades of gray. The obvious navigation buttons in form of
electronic symbols are appropriately in the middle of the page and easy to understand. The
activity loads fast. I’ve used an oscilloscope since I was six years old and I can report that the
site is smooth and makes sense because the knobs, buttons, and probes work just like a real
oscilloscope.
I especially like the content and objective of the exercises and believe they are well
executed. The challenge appropriately has a time limit on each section which is very relevant in
industry with goal to correctly read waveforms in a timely manner. I wish they had this when I
was a kid because I probably would’ve done a lot more stuff with my oscilloscope than I did. I
believe this site meets all the SECTIONS framework criteria including costs because it couldn’t
have cost much if a community college professor produced it!
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References
Boyes, J., Dowie, S., & Rumzan, I. (2005). Using the SECTIONS Framework to Evaluate Flash
Media. Innovate: Journal of Online Education, 2(1), 2005. Retrieved September, 23,
2013 from https://myutb.blackboard.com/bbcswebdav/pid-3996627-dt-content-rid13575355_2/courses/2013FA_EDTC_6351_01/Using%20the%20SECTIONS%20Frame
work.pdf
Game theory (concise encyclopedia). (2013). In Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia. Encyclopedia
Britannica. Retrieved September 24, 2013 from http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/game%20theory
Halim, F. (Producer) (2004). The bird and the sea [Game]. Available from
http://www.ferryhalim.com/orisinal/g3/bird.htm
Schaller, D. T., Allison-Bunnell, S., Chow, A., Marty, P., & Heo, M. (2004). To flash or not to
flash? Usability and user engagement of HTML vs. Flash. In Museums & the Web.
Retrieved September, 23, 2013 from
http://libres.uncg.edu/ir/uncg/f/A_Chow_Flash_2004.pdf