For this week’s Moveable Feast, we are diving into the world of Experience Design (UX).
But first, what exactly is Experience Design?
Experience Design (UX) focuses on creating products and environments that provide meaningful and relevant experiences to users. This involves the design of the entire process of acquiring and integrating a product, including aspects of branding, design, usability, and function. UX design aims to enhance user satisfaction by improving the usability, accessibility, and pleasure provided in the interaction between the user and the product.
On our website, we delve deeper into what Experience Design entails. We also explore UX in the classroom, discuss how UX has evolved and will continue to change, and provide a selection of apps and tools with excellent UX design for you to use in your own classroom. Throughout the website, you will find several collaborative Padlet activities, and we highly encourage your participation. Additionally, we welcome your feedback on your overall user experience either here or on our interactive Menti feedback page. We hope you enjoy learning with us!
Google Site: https://sites.google.com/view/etec523-user-experience-design/home?authuser=0
After you have gone through our OER, we encourage you to engage in the blog discussion by answering one or more of the questions below:
- What skills do educators need to develop to effectively integrate experience design into their teaching practices?
- How does experience design differ from traditional instructional design?
- Can you share an example of a learning experience that was particularly well-designed? What made it effective?
- What are some strategies to ensure that experience design is inclusive and accessible to all students, including those with disabilities?
- How can schools and educators address issues such as screen time, digital distraction, and technology fatigue while implementing these tools?
- How does experience design enhance the learning experience for students in today’s classrooms?
Thank you all,
Momina Abid, Jasmine Chapman, and Olivia Barratt
Hey Momina, Jasmine & Olivia,
Thank you for this post on UX design. It was deifnitely very comprehensive and included such a variety of digital tools that we use in the classroom. Sometimes I do feel like simplicity is the best, as if we go back in time and continue to use iClickers in all classrooms at UBC, and that we systematize and use something as simple as Plickers with the QR code sheets for classrooms with less availability to technology tools.
I especially enjoyed the component of Teacher vs. Student view, which also mimics in a sense of having a backend versus a frontend, where the layering of UX is so vital for how we operate platforms that are for educational purposes. I feel like this market is always so lacking and that we do need more platforms that can mimic the capabilities of Google Sites, but meet the diverse educational needs of learning.
On an ending note, I wanted to connect this question for thought to a personal anecdote. I always found a distaste for Apple ecoystem OS and UX because of the lack of customisations I was able to make in comparison to Android or Windows. I wonder if, throughout your investigations, were there any issues in conflict with function/choice vs. aesthetics? And ultimately how do the two fronts affect creative thinking or critical thinking? What exactly did you see in some of your research on how these two (often conflicting) objectives of function or aesthetics are best balanced to achieve the greatest learning outcomes?
Hi Momina, Jasmine & Olivia,
Thanks for this week’s OER on User Experience Design.
I believe UX design has always been important, and with the exponential increase in apps and competition, it is even more critical. If an app has poor UX design, users (whether educators or learners) can easily become frustrated, and it is easy for us as users to switch to a competitor that offers a similar product. The number of alternatives is high, and the switching costs are low.
On the topic of costs, would you consider the cost of access (i.e. the dollar value) part of the overall user experience? I bring this up because often with apps, I opt for the free version, but then this often comes with things that negatively impact my user experience such as limited features / functionality or constant ads to upgrade for premium / paid versions. I can only imagine the amount of resources needed to optimize the user experience of an app and it is something that companies should not overlook as a positive user experience is something I believe we have grown to expect. However, are we willing to pay for it? And when talking about educational apps specifically, how does the cost of ensuring a positive user experience affect accessibility?
Hi Shannon,
Thank you for your thoughts!
Cost is definitely a huge attribute to the overall experience of the product. Due to a variety of reasons.
1) Paid versions offer a better UI and UX with the goal of increasing their sales. Which from a business perspective is great.
2) When the trial is great for a product and extremely usable and beneficial, the sudden cost will cause for re-evaluation of the product’s usefulness. For example, I used Quizizz a lot for a week and then found out I had to pay almost $200 to continue to use it because they only have a yearly subscription. So I cancelled it because at the time I was extremely low on cash. As you said, there are so many products that do similar things and sometimes cost is a huge attribute that can either enhance or hinder the user experience.
Jazz
Hi Jazz,
Right, exactly. So in your case, after opting not to pay for the yearly subscription, were you able to find a different app that had a similar product offering?
The challenge seems to be around ensuring a good user experience which is costly, without always passing those costs onto consumers, as this can result in a bad user experience or a loss of a customer altogether. So how do companies do it – maintain or improve the user experience, while offering a cost-effective and accessible product to consumers?
Hi Shannon,
To be honest, I didn’t replace it with anything right away. I just adjusted what I was doing. However, there are several different applications that can build quizzes from videos and documents. I am still debating what to use next year.
Cost is really up to the user, whether they think the application can help them to a high enough degree that it is worth the cost. But again, how do companies determine the cost of their product and determine what people can’t live without in order to attribute a cost to it? I am sure each website/application has their own reasoning…
Jazz