This is an audio learning experience for my dad, to try and help him with his many computer problems.
Directions.
1. Take a pre-lesson evaluation here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/5P5JKC6
2. Listen to the appropriate audio lesson below.
3. Take a post-lesson evaluation here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/56MVXC7
Installing Google Chrome
Keyboard Not Working
How To Install an External DVD Drive
Watching DVDs on the New Computer
Siri Keeps Interrupting Me
The Internet is not Working
The directions for this assignment include the option for an audio-only learning experience. This intrigued me. It seems like video is the standard for teaching experiences right now. What can you teach someone using audio alone? I got a quick retort from my boyfriend to that question: “I know I can teach someone to install a printer on Windows XP using audio alone.” I’d totally forgotten about the hours of over-the-phone tech support that I’ve provided to my parents, and to my father especially.
That got me thinking about all of the things I’ve had to teach my dad how to do, and how tedious it often is. There are definitely some questions I’ve had to field again and again. It would be convenient, for me at least, if I had some kind of stock answer for “Why isn’t the internet working?” and “My keyboard stopped working.” That lead me to record some stock answers for these questions. Right now the recordings are just up on Soundcloud, but if the wifi is down that’s not going to be much good. Maybe some kind of Jess-tech support-hotline would be better.
This kind of project doesn’t seem to line up exactly with the pre and post lesson evaluation. Because it is essentially a how-to, rather than a concept lesson, you don’t need to know as much about their skills before the lesson. Their skill level is that they cannot solve the problem. However, post-lesson evaluation is pretty useful. I’ve included a question about if the problem is solved or not, and comment area for improving the lesson. I think the most important part, though, is the question that asks how confident the listener is that they could solve the problem themselves. Most of the issues I get from my parents are caused by a lack of confidence, than a lack of understanding. These audio walkthroughs will be most successful if they can make the listener more confident in their skills.
Video dominates, but yes, the question is, what other content mediums can teach lessons? It is also very relevant considering how so many powerful tech companies see audio as the interface of the future.Reference
A pre and post test is a way to assess how your teaching approach worked. The pre can help you gauge prior knowledge as well and that may help in crafting new ways to teach a user. The pre test does not always have to be connected directly to the next event. Their data can be aggregated to get a better understanding of all learners before a learning event.Reference
This is an issue near and dear to me, as i am the tech support for both my family and in-laws. Bravo on taking this on. Some questions:
Can you describe a user this would help?
Can you describe users that this type of lesson would be a problem?
Did you make an effort at a target length?
Did you consider engagement?
What sort of lessons to your father would not work well in this format?
What do you think would be the hardest lesson you made for your father?
Think of one way you would improve this strategy the next time.
How would you create an audio lesson that had multiple solving pathways? (think of as multiple IF statements, or Case statements)
Nice lessons, and so many!!
Recognizing that hearing impaired users are a real, important audience, but perhaps better saved for a different conversation, this format (not the content) got me thinking about how recorded audio will be useful in the future. We’ve certainly all heard the hilarious calls with IVRs and Customer Service Robots, and I’d wager that without responsive Q&A, pre-recorded audio has little future. Whenever I use audio or video, I find myself pausing, playing, scrubbing back and scrubbing ahead with regularity. A poor user experience all-in-all. I wonder how this can be fixed. Obviously, AI and Machine Learning have a role to play here, but are there any easier more immediate fixes for the average content generator? This might be something cool to explore as the semester goes on.
“Whenever I use audio or video, I find myself pausing, playing, scrubbing back and scrubbing ahead with regularity.” is this a feature or a bug?
Good question, but I think it’s a bug… The ability to pause and scrub back and forth is a necessary feature right now, but only a feature because the media isn’t smart enough to know how long a task takes or integrate with my machine to know when I’ve completed a task and can progress to the next step (using something like the above for an example). I say “a bug” because as a user, I’d always rather be presented a written set of instructions, so I can go at my pace, quickly revisit content if needed, and have it couched in the context of previous and upcoming content—which obviously is not a feature of more ephemeral media like audio and video.
Did I understand your question?