There are gender wars, and then there are casualties. It wasn’t until 2011 that the behemoth toymaker LEGO acknowledged girls’ desire to build with bricks, even though the company had long before made a seemingly effortless pivot to co-branding, video games, and major motion pictures. So it’s little wonder that girls face all-too-real obstacles when […]
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Capturing interest with personal comments. Problem You need to lend a sense of context and mood to your web site. Solution Add a short audio clip that incorporates a personal recount or reflection. Include volume control, play/pause, and restart options. Discussion Personal comments are invariably more interesting and engaging that factual monologues. A simple phrase
Insight & context
November 1st, 2005 by IDEA
Developing a narrative to engage visitors. Problem Your web site isn’t enticing and engaging to visitors. Solution Maintain a sense of realism and narrative to your website. Discussion Adding multimedia, such as commentary from a noted expert, can engender realism. Narrative can be maintained by removing extra information from the core presentation, and allowing visitors
Dynamic navigation
August 2nd, 2005 by IDEA
Asking questions of the visitor can trigger more personalized information. Problem Your web site needs to meet the needs of different users. For example, you need versions of the site for elementary kids, teens, adults, and teachers. Solution Direct the visitor to the appropriate information by employing the following techniques: Initial interview, or preferences: Ask
Adapting your web content to different audiences increases the effectiveness of your project. Problem You must meet the needs of multiple audiences, each needing a different version of the same information. For example, you may need Spanish and English versions of each page, or versions geared towards different education levels. Solution Adapt your site content
More about tailoring
August 2nd, 2005 by IDEA
Defining the audience for your content is the first step in personalization. Tailoring meets the needs of the individual by defining the audience for each piece of educational material, collecting information from users, and cross-referencing content with user information. Problem While we have the ability to disseminate massive quantities of educational materials to the general
Tailoring information adds value to the user’s experience. Educational materials that attempt to meet the needs of everyone often meet the needs of no one in particular. Tailoring replaces the cookie cutter approach by personalizing content and increasing relevance. Many educational efforts suffer from a problem of relevance. For example, math teachers may struggle to
Classroom guides
January 1st, 2005 by IDEA
Teaching guides help educators master your material. Problem You need to help educators use the material in the classroom or with individuals. Solution Provide an online educator’s guide for the material. These guides can be web pages, or printable PDF format. Discussion The guide should include an outline of the curriculum and themes, specific educator-focused
Prado, Madrid In 2003, Museo del Prado had a major exhibit on Titian, the leader of the 16th century Venetian school of Italian Renaissance painters. Organized in collaboration with the National Gallery in London, this ambitious project brought together 65 paintings from various European and American museums that were commissioned by the Duke of Ferrara.