Link to Original Post: Task 10 – Attention Economy (Stiff, 2023)
Comment
Hi Amy! I enjoyed reading your response to this activity. User Inyerface did a really great job at subverting expectations when it comes to web interface design. As you mention in your post, this illustrates what is possible with web design and how similar, often subtle techniques can be used to shift our behaviours in a way that serves commercial interests or something more malicious in nature.
In your post, you mention the idea of teachers using similar techniques so manage or direct attention. I thought this was an interesting point, as I’m aware of several instructional design frameworks that address strategies for captivating learner’s interest and directing attention to important subject matter. For example, the Universal Design for Learning Framework (CAST, 2018) recognizes the variability that learners bring when it comes to their attention and interests, and suggests that teachers design learning that is relevant and authentic, while minimizing distractions. Mayer’s (2009) Principles of Multimedia Learning recognizes that learners have a limited capacity to take in new information when using multimedia for instruction, and suggests a number of principles to minimize any unnecessary effort for the learner. I noticed that Mayer’s (2009) principle addresses attention in the ‘coherence’ principle, which suggests that any irrelevant information (e.g. decorative images, background music) be reduced, and the ‘signalling’ principle, which suggests that use of verbal or visual cues (e.g. highlighter, arrows) to guide learner attention to what’s important.
Reflection
Amy’s post prompted me to reflect on how behaviour and attentional techniques, typically used for commercial interests, could instead be leveraged for instructional purposes. It was interesting to reflect on this thought and the implications it has on my own work as an e-learning specialist. Part of my role is to design engaging learning that captures the attention and interest of the learner so that they can feel motivated to achieve their goals. In fact, some of the instructional design frameworks that came to mind while reading Amy’s post were the Universal Design for Learning Principles, in particular, guideline 7 – which addresses strategies for “recruiting interest” (CAST, 2018). Additionally, Mayer’s (2009) Design of Multimedia Learning directly addresses strategies for guiding attention through signalling and the removal of any extraneous content.
While the themes and layout of our content are different, Amy and I both use UBC blogs to share our respective reflections for this task. The interface design of our blogs is clear and easy to follow. With respect to the post itself, I also noted that we both shared a screenshot from User Inyerface to indicate our completion of the weekly task (it’s clear from the screenshot that Amy got further in the game than I did).
Reflecting on The New London Group’s (1996) theory of multiliteracies and designs used for meaning-making, I noticed that Amy and I both tend to privilege written text in our posts over other modes such as video, images, or audio (aside from our use of a single screenshot). We both also use a fairly neutral tone in our writing – balancing professional language with personalized descriptions of our experience with the activity. This might be considered a constraint as we are writing within the “available designs” (New London Group, 1996, p. 74) or parameters of academic discourse, and our respective familiarity/comfortability with writing as the dominant mode of expression in academic settings.
Additionally, both of our posts appear to be written with the assumption that our key audiences are other peers in the course, and offer the option for peer engagement via the comment box (which aligns with constructivist pedagogical designs). One limitation, however, is that the comment box only affords the use of written text and not any other visual or audio modes. This contrasts with the additional options for expression (such as video and audio commenting) available in the course LMS discussion forums (i.e., Canvas).
References
CAST. (2018). Universal design for learning guidelines. http://udlguidelines.cast.org
Mayer, R. E. (2009). Multimedia learning (Second edition.). Cambridge University Press.
The New London Group. (1996). A pedagogy of multiliteracies: Designing social futures. Harvard Educational Review 66(1), 60-92. http://newarcproject.pbworks.com/f/Pedagogy%2Bof%2BMultiliteracies_New%2BLondon%2BGroup.pdf
Stiff, A. (2023, March 11). Attention economy. Amy Stiff 540 Reflections. https://blogs.ubc.ca/ajstiff540/2023/03/11/attention-economy/