Enseñando cómo evaluar la usabilidad de forma activa

Resumo

In most of the Computer Engineering Degrees there is at least one subject about Human-Computer Interac- tion. The concept of usability is the central axis to de- sign interfaces that satisfy users’ needs. Although con- cepts like User Experience are raising in the industry, it is hard to see usability as a relevant topic. As in in- dustry, students do not appreciate the importance of us- able interface designs. The contribution of this article is the description of a methodology based on a project learning process conducted in the Universitat de Va- lència within the User Environments course to moti- vate the learning of how to evaluate usability. In groups of 5 to 8 people, the students work to apply one of the usability evaluation techniques on a real web site. At the end of the activity, each group explains to the rest the details of the technique, the results, and its advantages and disadvantages. The data obtained through student surveys and the analysis of the quali- fications show that motivation is higher than in other activities, and that the objectives and competencies have been achieved.