Enriching the user experience of e-learning platforms using responsive design : a case study

• Main Author: Möller Ehrnlund, Björn
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Linköpings universitet, Programvara och system 2021
• Subjects: Computer Systems; Datorsystem; Human Computer Interaction; Människa-datorinteraktion (interaktionsdesign)
• Online Access: http://urn.kb.se/resolve?urn=urn:nbn:se:liu:diva-177935

The use of online applications has grown rapidly during the last years, where 91% of the Swedish population uses internet on a daily basis, both on computers and mobile devices. Naturally, this has come to affect multiple sectors, including the educational one. The usage of online applications as tools for education, can further benefit its availability as its material is available independent of both time and location. This study aims to analyse how e-learning platforms should be designed for high responsivity, to be available for multiple device types, and connection qualities. The work is conducted as a case study, where an e-learning platform is developed to be used for courses held at Linköping University. To evaluate the platform, user tests were conducted on six students, along with performance measurements, to analyse the platform both on a subjective and technical level. The results show that consistency plays a significant part of the responsivity of elearning platforms, both internally and in relation to similar applications. In a consistent design, users can reuse their developed habits, both from other applications, and across devices, making users more effective, and lower the learning curve of the platform. To mitigate loading times of heavier assets such as images, results indicates that lazy loading may benefit the user experience if further developed along with loading indications.