The MAGIC of Web Tutorials Developing Best Practices to (Re)Focus on Users Amanda Nichols Hess e-Cornucopia 2013 | May 31, 2013

Presentation Objectives Discuss one academic library's experience making online tutorials (and their interface) more user-centered - including challenges and future goals Share "best practices" in online tutorials as developed from the literature and others' experiences Identify strategies to make online information appealing, engaging, and useful for users

Background

What are web tutorials?

What are web tutorials at OU Libraries?

Where We Were

Timeline to Redesign ca. 2011: Tutorials inventoried, categorized by librarian Fall 2012: Web tutorials redesign process begins Summer 2013: KL Faculty migrate existing tutorials into new system December 2012: Next steps (best practices and new system) developed and approved by KL faculty March & April 2013: KL faculty assess existing tutorials, create structure for new page Ongoing: Creation of new tutorials, evaluation of delivery system

Conversations with Colleagues

Not user-centered No continuity of style across tutorials Inability to keep up with changing interfaces, platforms, etc. - "ceaseless pace of change" Not accessible at point- of-need Level of quality is inconsistent and problematic Shift focus from the tool to the concept Offer increased interactivity

Research When designed and used effectively, online tutorials can effectively help students learn library and information literacy skills (Dewald, 1999; Dewald, Scholz-Crate, Booth, Levine, 2000; Su & Kuo, 2010; Beile & Boote, 2004; Silver & Nickel, 2005; Lindsay, Cummings, Johnson, & Scales, 2006; Zhang, 2006)

Research Tutorials and interfaces should be designed to meet learners' needs, particularly at the user's point of need (Detlor & Lewis, 2006; Gold, 2005; Lindsay, Cummings, & Johnson, 2006; Su & Kuo, 2010; Bowles-Terry, Hensley, & Hinchcliffe, 2010)

Research Tutorials need to be student-centered and consider who the learners are (Gold, 2005; Willis & Thomas, 2006; Oud, 2009)

Research Findability is key (Gold, 2005; Willis & Thomas, 2006; Oud, 2009)

Research Engagement in tutorials through active learning and interactivity is critical to creating lasting knowledge (Dewald, 1999; Riley-Huff, 2009; Dewald, Scholz-Crate, Booth, & Levine, 2000; Macklin, 2003; Zhang, 2006)

Research Short or chunked tutorials prove most valuable by allowing for personalization, increasing learning, and decreasing redundancies (Detlor & Lewis, 2006; Dewald, Scholz-Crate, Booth, & Levine, 2000; Su & Kuo, 2010; Silver & Nickel, 2005; Bowles-Terry, Hensley, & Hinchcliffe, 2010; Oud, 2009; Reece, 2005)

Research Focus on a single task or purpose, and eliminate fluff or attempts at humor (Gold, 2005; Bowles-Terry, Hensley, & Hinchcliffe, 2010)

Research When possible, provide alternate representations - this accommodates learning preferences or disability-related issues (Bowles-Terry, Hensley, & Hinchcliffe, 2010; Oud, 2009)

Learning from Others

Our Path Forward: MAGIC Maintainable

Our Path Forward: MAGIC Maintainable Available

Our Path Forward: MAGIC Maintainable Available Geared at users

Our Path Forward: MAGIC Maintainable Available Geared at users Informative

Our Path Forward: MAGIC Maintainable Available Geared at users Informative Customizable

Guiding Documents

Collaboration, Planning, and Design

Faculty Support

Again, Where We Were to...

Where We Are Now

Next Steps for OU Libraries Usability testing Collect usage data and statistics TodetermineifTodetermineif Our Research, Ideas, and Best Practices OU Students' Needs and Behaviors

Next Steps for OU Librarians Michaelangelo. The Creation of Adam. Accessed 29 May 2013 from

Thank you! All resources available at bit.ly/eCornMAGIC References Beile, P. M., & Boote, D. N. (2004). Does the medium matter?: A comparison of a web-based tutorial with face-to-face library instruction on education students' self-efficacy levels and learning outcomes. Research Strategies, 20(1–2), Bowles-Terry, M., Hensley, M. K., & Hinchliffe, L. J. (2010). Best practices for online video tutorials in academic libraries. Communications in Information Literacy, 4(1), Riley-Huff, D.A. (2009). Design insights and inspiration from the Tate: What museum web sites can offer us. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 9(1), Detlor, B., & Lewis, V. (2006). Academic library web sites: Current practice and future directions. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 32(3), Dewald, N. H. (1999). Transporting good library instruction practices into the web environment: An analysis of online tutorials. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 25(1), 26. Dewald, N., Scholz-Crane, A., Booth, A., & Levine, C. (2000). Information literacy at a distance: Instructional design issues. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 26(1), Gold, H. E. (2005). Engaging the adult learner: Creating effective library instruction. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 5(4), Oud, J. (2009). Guidelines for effective online instruction using multimedia screencasts. Reference Services Review, 37(2), 164. Lindsay, E., Cummings, L., Johnson, C., & Scales, B. (2006). If you build it, will they learn? Assessing online information literacy tutorials. College & Research Libraries, 67(5), Macklin, A. (2003). Theory into practice: Applying David Jonassen's work in instructional design to instruction programs in academic libraries. College & Research Libraries, 64(6), Mestre, L. S. (2012). Student preference for tutorial design: A usability study. Reference Services Review, 40(2), Reece, G. J. (2005). Critical thinking and cognitive transfer: Implications for the development of online information literacy tutorials. Research Strategies, 20(4), Silver, S. L., & Nickel, L. T. (2005). Are online tutorials effective? A comparison of online and classroom library instruction methods. Research Strategies, 20(4), Su, S., & Kuo, J. (2010). Design and development of web-based information literacy tutorials. The Journal of Academic Librarianship, 36(4), Zhang, L. (2006). Effectively incorporating instructional media into web-based information literacy. The Electronic Library, 24(3),