"AM I ON THE RIGHT TRACK?" Assessment interactions ask questions to assess whether the learner understands the objectives of a lesson. "Can I try it?" Simulation interactions enable learners to try software or machinery in the safe, guided environment of a lesson.

Avoid reusing existing text-based content without adapting it to new technologies.

The Web and other new delivery media offer designers new ways to think about learning. Designing learning in the same old ways and simply delivering it over the Web can result in what Alistair Fraser calls "shovelware." Shovelware is "classroom training that is merely being moved to the Web without consideration of how it must change for the new technology." Rosenberg, 2001)

Technology enables designers to present information in new, hopefully more effective, ways. Enabling a learner to interact with a learning activity can involve and motivate learners (Williams, 1996). Reinforcing knowledge with assessment interactions and allowing learners to try activities with simulation interactions are one way to take advantage of technology to improve learning.

Assessment interactions are regularly used in training applications. Common assessment interaction types are (select the link to open a new browser window with an example):

Multiple choice
Text Entry
Drag and Drop
Assessment interactions motivate learners, reinforcing that the learner understands the points of a lesson.

Assessment interactions consist of the following parts:

A question, sometimes called a question "stem".
A set of possible answers or answer combinations, sometimes called "distracters".
Feedback based on the user’s choice.
Assessment interactions can be shown to a learner individually as a "knowledge check" or grouped together as a quiz. A quiz enables giving the learner feedback on individual interactions as well as feedback on their performance in the entire quiz.

The feedback that a learner receives during an interaction can offer remediation, elaborating on lesson points or linking the learner to appropriate review information. Assessment interactions can also help an instructional designer uncover flaws in the lesson design: when multiple learners fail to answer an assessment interaction correctly, the designer can infer that the training is not effectively communicating that learning point.

Simulation interactions are used to simulate activities like creating a new document in a software program or running a printing press. Including simulation interactions in training applications enables the learner to practice skills in a controlled learning environment. Common simulation interactions types are (select the link to open a new browser window with an example):

buttons
hot spots
movable objects
Simulation interactions enable instructional designers to guide learners through exercises that approximate the actual task. Simulating an activity in a learning application has the following advantages:

A safe environment for the learner. He or she doesn't have to worry about making dangerous or irreparable mistakes.
Allows the learner to practice completing a task correctly or using best practices.
Averts learner frustration by enabling the learner to always be able to more forward in a task.

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Betsy Bruce
Graduate Student
Educational Technology