Ergonomics has traditionally considered work done, in a workplace. More recently, this scope has broadened, and the concept of 'work' may now be applied to the satisfactory completion of any task. Thus, learning, being the transformation and extension of the learner's knowledge or skills, can be viewed as work, with its workplace being the educational environment in which learning tasks take place. In accomplishing the learning, the learner interacts with the teachers, other students, equipment, materials, study plans and the educational organisation; the effectiveness of these learning interactions is influenced by many factors both inside and external to the organisation. To optimize such a multi-factorial process requires the application of an ergonomic approach. This paper proposes an adaptation of the concentric rings model of ergonomics, informed by Kao's earlier model, to produce a new model for educational ergonomics, known as the Hexagon-Spindle Model. In comparison to other published models of educational ergonomics, it is holistic, multi-dimensional, task-related and transferable across a range of educational settings. It extends to characterise a time base for serial and simultaneous tasks, and space shared by multiple learners, and highlights areas where learner/system conflicts may arise. The paper illustrates analysis tools for the application of the model in evaluation and design.
This study assesses three usability evaluation methods (Active Intervention, Peer Tutoring and Cross-Age Tutoring) with children aged 6-8 years old within a school setting, using an interactive, educational multimedia product. Cross-Age Tutoring elicited significantly fewer comments than the other two methods, and 'plan' comments were significantly rarer than 'action' and 'perception and cognition' comments. In terms of the suitability of these evaluation methods for child participants, and context of use in this particular setting, Peer Tutoring appears to have the most potential. Usability evaluation methods need to better reflect children's motivations and the variety of contexts in which they use multimedia products.The implications for HCI practitioners are explored.
Touch-screen tablets are becoming increasingly popular as office work tools. However, as current health and safety regulations applied to office equipment do not cover tablets, the importance of understanding their impact on the posture of office workers increases. As the research on ergonomic issues related to tablet use is scarce, especially in the context of office work, we explore, through an online questionnaire, semi-structured interviews and observations with postural analysis, how and where office workers use tablets and what potential posture-related issues could arise as a result. Our findings show that the lack of screen adjustability and the virtual keyboard encourage poor posture and tablet use could lead to discomfort in a number of body areas, especially the neck and wrists.
Advances in technology, in particular the widespread use of mobile devices, have changed work practices and transformed our everyday lives. However, as well as facilitating new ways for combining work and personal life, these new technologies can also blur the boundary between the two domains. In recent years tablets have become popular, first as leisure devices, and lately as business tools helping people to stay connected with work anywhere, anytime. Through an online questionnaire supported by a qualitative study, we investigated why, how, and where office workers use tablets and what impact those devices may have on work-life balance. The results show that, while useful for both home and work tasks, tablets have the potential to blur the boundary between work and personal life by encouraging and enabling people to complete work tasks during home time and vice versa. This could have negative impacts on work-life balance.
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