Conducting Usability Testing for an online course
User Acceptance Testing for courses at Valdymas college goes through both a Performance Testing, Load Testing and Usability Testing. At Valdymas College, we are using Learn Dash as out LMS tool which we integrate with Google Classroom to drive collaboration and project-based work. The school IT team had already been using Learn dash for other courses and we have subscription ongoing.
Testing Objectives:
- Evaluate how easily stakeholders/peers navigate the Introduction/Overview/Start Here section of the course.
- Assess their ability to locate and engage in a short activity from the first module.
- Identify any potential obstacles that hinder a smooth learning experience.
- To create a significant learning environment that fosters deeper engagement, empowers learners, and ultimately leads to a more successful learning experience.
Target Participants: School Administrators, HODs, Student Representatives, ICT team representative, and Colleague on the EDLD program.
- Ideally, recruit stakeholders and peers who represent your target audience for the online or blended course (Krug, 2009). This could include potential students, educators, or industry professionals depending on the course content.
- If recruiting your ideal audience proves challenging, consider colleagues or friends unfamiliar with the course but with some experience using online learning platforms.
- I find out that recruiting stakeholders or peers may be difficult, online usability testing services can connect you with a pool of potential users (https://www.usertesting.com/).
Test Duration:
Aim for a test session lasting approximately 20 – 30 minutes. This timeframe allows participants to provide valuable feedback without feeling overwhelmed.
Platform Impact on the Activity Criteria:
Introduction/Overview/Start Here:
- Participants will be asked to navigate to the Introduction/Overview/Start Here section of the course prototype.
- They will be encouraged to verbalize their thoughts and feelings as they navigate this section.
- Observe their ability to locate key information and understand the course objectives.
Engaging in a Short Activity:
- Select a short activity from the first module that represents the typical learning experience within the course.
- Participants will be tasked with locating the activity and completing it. During the course loading phase by the IT team, the link is shared with all stakeholders including the student representative for review and feedback. We all evaluate introduction to each course, the modules, if there are quizzes, we check if the process of quiz completions is good and how the scores will be extracted, flow of the learning content, ensure the module sequences are correct, and that the interaction platform is organized for learning. The student representatives are then allowed to register for the course to test it in the training environment before it is finally deployed live.
- Ask them to describe their experience, including any difficulties encountered.
Lessons Learnt:
- Multiple stakeholders give different perspective and feedback.
- Engaging the students and giving them more voice brings more feedback. However, it is better for the teachers to be present to present a balanced view.
- Ensure the ICT team also listen in during Useability testing and discuss platform or IT architectural limitations.
Reporting Method:
I will utilize a combination of methods to gather comprehensive feedback:
- Think Aloud Protocol: I will encourage participants to verbalize their thoughts while navigating the course on Zoom with me. This provides valuable insights into their thought processes and potential points of confusion.
- Alternatively, they can use the Screen Recording Software: We may utilize tools like Screencast-O-Matic or Camtasia to capture participants’ screens while they complete the tasks. This allows you to observe navigation patterns and identify any difficulties they encounter.
- Also we can embrace a Post-Test Questionnaire: At the end of the session, I may provide a brief questionnaire to gather participants’ overall impressions of the course navigation, clarity of instructions, and their experience with the activity.
Benefits of Combined Approach:
While screen recording software offers valuable data, observing participants directly can provide additional insights. One can observe their facial expressions, body language, and any moments of hesitation or frustration (Krug, 2009). This can help me identify areas that might be confusing or require improvement even if participants don’t explicitly verbalize them to me.
Creating a Significant Learning Environment:
By analyzing the gathered data from this usability testing, I can identify areas for improvement to ensure my course prototype:
- It has helped us adapt more to the outcome-based learning approach and give reasons to combine learning or collaboration platforms or get more plug-ins where necessary to achieve the learning activities and outcome and competence-based learning approach where necessary.
- Promotes Choice and Ownership: The navigation and activity structure should empower learners to make choices about their learning path.
- Facilitates Voice and Expression: Consider opportunities for learners to share their thoughts and express themselves throughout the course.
- Emphasizes Authenticity and Real-World Applications: Ensure the activities and content address relevant and authentic challenges faced by your target audience.
Addressing the infrastructure, system, and support needs and issues the learner may face?
- By incorporating these usability testing methods, one can gain valuable feedback on the online or blended course prototype. This will help me to create a significant learning environment that fosters deeper engagement, empowers learners, and ultimately leads to a more successful learning experience. It will help to plan ahead and adapt all the teaching methodology available to achieve the learning outcomes.
- We also work with the ICT team to ensure hardware and internet access are available for students without regular access. And should they have any question, they have a number to call.
Bibliography
- Krug, S. (2009, March 17). Rocket Surgery Made Easy: Usability Testing Demo [Video]. YouTube. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1UCDUOB_aS8