Interactivity helps explain why the sky is blue.

Problem

Some subjects are naturally difficult to teach, while others are perceived as tedious. Teaching through the use of static text and images leads to a passive learning experience that doesn’t engage students. As a result, students’ attentions wane and the information isn’t assimilated.

Solution

Introduce interactivity to your web site and enhance the learning experience. Interactivity makes information come alive, and is the next best thing to hands-on learning.

Interactivity can be incorporated through a variety of techniques, including comparing data and images; interacting with objects; providing visitors with insight and a context for which to assimilate information; implementing an inviting user interface; designing content for easy navigability; and creating an online community.

Interactivity makes students into detectives. Here, students look at X-ray images of a painting through a spyglass.

Discussion

Over the last two decades, many notions for displaying data and information have passed through phases of theory, exploration, abstraction, and demonstration. Computers capable of real-time visual manipulation are now mainstream and commonplace. The vast majority of online visitors now have browsers capable of advanced interactivity. Network connections and hardware allow ever-faster data transfers, and video will soon be a common component of the online experience.

Cooperative learning theory stresses that the best learning occurs when students are actively engaged in the learning process and working in collaboration with other students to accomplish a shared goal. Online education is an excellent way to facilitate cooperative learning because traditional text can be intermingled with interactive exercises, so that students have a balanced approach. For example, students can pace themselves while reading some sections and completing additional interactive experiences alone or in cooperation with others.

The best learning is experiential, as when students really go out into nature, or on ships, or to hospitals, or into outer space. Although such real-world travel is unrealistic or impossible, the use of web technology creates interactive possibilities that are limited only by the imagination.

Linking as a navigational aid.

Problem

You need to let visitors move to neighboring pages.

Solution

In addition to the other navigational tools on the page, add previous and next links.

Discussion

For ease of navigation, add a small arrow, or a bracket, such as “>” or “».” These links should be obvious, and placed on the bottom of every page.

If there are several pages in a long series, also add “Page: 1-2-3-4-5-6” links, in which the current page in the series is visually distinctive. Alternatively, you can label the pages as a sequence, “First,” “Second,” “Third,” etc., or by name.

Organizing material for multiple navigation methods appeals to a variety of learning styles.

Problem

You need to organize the content of your web site.

Solution

Design the site so it can be navigated several different ways, but choose an overall organizational model that fits the subject. There are several approaches from which to choose:

1. Organize by conceptual topic. For example, examine various aspects of a painting, such as perspective, color, and motion. Examine van Gogh’s life in terms of his family, painting, and illness.
2. Organize by chronology. Use a timeline as the primary navigation tool. Web sites generally have a wide timeline on the bottom of the screen that extends beyond the boundaries of the screen. A timeline may be used, for example, to explain the stages of embryonic development, the maturation of a caterpillar, or the evolution of the earth.
3. Organize by structure. Explain the workings of the New York subway, for example, by examining all the pipes and tunnels beneath the streets of the city.
4. Organize by first-person account. For example, tell the story of the discovery of DNA from the point of view of Watson, Crick, and contemporary scientists. If possible, augment the narrative with audio clips.
5. Organize hierarchically. Start simply and increase the complexity of the site. For example, if you are explaining how a complex device works, start by explaining the basic principles and theory that govern the workings of the device. Give examples of similar, but simpler devices.
6. Organize by pigeon hole. Present numerous little facts, and let the visitor synthesize them in his or her own mind. In effect, the entire site is a collection of small sidebars. This works well with a set of disparate objects, such as information about the planets and moons.
7. Organize by question/answer. This is a style of pigeon holing. This is the common “Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)” format. Focus on narrow questions, such as “Why are days longer in the summer?” Note, that you should not ask mandatory questions that require a correct answer, like a quiz. Visitors prefer to browse your site and pose their own questions.

Discussion

Maintain a narrative thread in your web site to help the visitor grasp the big picture. Make your interactive site an experience, rather than an encyclopedia. The difference is that an experience has a flow. An encyclopedia is merely cross-referenced information.

Consider more than one navigational scheme. For example, an archive of Charles Darwin’s observations could be organized by subject in a hierarchical table of contents, or in forward or reverse chronological order.

Integrating search concepts into web design enables visitors to find relevant information.

Problem

Visitors must wade through extraneous information to find relevant content, or your web site is not picked up by search engines.

Solution

In addition to making the content of your web site available through remote and local search engines, integrate central search concepts into your web design.

Discussion

As the amount of information online continues to mushroom, finding information has become more and more complex. Not only is searching a critical task for web users, but beginning in 2005 and 2006, major computer operating systems from Apple and Microsoft are expected to incorporate searching as a central feature. Searching will be the primary way to find information.

By keeping in mind that searching is a key element in ease of use when designing your website, you will help visitors find information and make the information they find more relevant to their lives.

You can help visitors find and access information by choosing content wisely; successfully adapting real-world content to the virtual world; incorporating classroom guides, when appropriate; organizing your site for maximum accessibility; overcoming the inherent constraints of web browsers; using “next” and “previous” judiciously; using a local search engine; making the site accessible to both humans and search engine web crawlers; utilizing dynamic navigation; using dynamic content and localization; and including interactive encyclopedias and browsable databases.