UX Research:
Reducing Cognitive Load in Material Creation
About the Product
Wordwall helps educators create interactive activities, but new users struggle with question creation due to high cognitive load and reliance on external sources. This case study explores how AI-generated suggested questions improved efficiency and usability.
Wordwall
Company
Remote
Location
Education
Category
UX & UXR
My Role
Design for Teachers <3
Problems to Solve
Many new users struggle with creating educational activities due to high cognitive load and the overwhelming number of templates, leading to hesitation and inefficiencies. Additionally, frequent reliance on external sources like Google disrupts workflow, emphasizing the need for a streamlined system that minimizes cognitive burden and enhances usability.
Option Paralysis
Hypothesis
"High cognitive load in question creation increases time spent and reliance on external sources. AI Assistance would reduce cognitive effort, leading to faster question creation."
Strategy
To prepare for the research, I first defined the objectives, which included measuring cognitive load, identifying key pain points, and evaluating how AI assistance could improve the process. I developed a structured test script featuring two tasks: one requiring users to manually create questions and another utilizing AI-generated suggestions. To ensure diverse insights, I recruited participants for usability testing. Finally, I set up the necessary testing tools, including Google Meet for virtual observation, Userbrain for capturing usability data, and Figma for prototyping iterations.
Within-Subject Experiment Design
Due to the constrained deadline and the limited number of user testing sessions, I opted for a within-subject study design to minimize individual differences and enhance the reliability of the results.
Task: Creating an educational material about their job.
Scenario:
"Imagine they are preparing a learning material to help someone understand what they do in their profession. They create meaningful questions that would help someone unfamiliar with their job.
At the second phase, they will create another learning material with suggested questions provided to them. They are free to use the suggested questions, modify them, or create new ones. There are no right or wrong ways to approach this."
Phase 1
Users create a material by using existing design on Wordwall.net
Phase 2
Users create a material again, this time they can reach suggestions by AI
For more detail about research preparation please check the User Monitoring Script
Key Findings
The research uncovered critical pain points in the question creation process and revealed the effectiveness of AI-generated suggestions in improving user efficiency. Additionally, challenges in template selection and onboarding emerged as key obstacles, influencing user engagement and task completion times.
Boosted Efficiency
Users create a material by using existing design on Wordwall.net
Selection Confusion
Users create a material again, this time they can reach suggestions by AI
For more detail about research findings please check the User Interview Report
FASTEN YOUR SEAT BELTS!
First Iteration
Second Iteration
Now, it’s better..
AI-suggested questions reduced cognitive load, making question creation more efficient. It improves the learning curve for the first time users.
Easier Usability
Clearer onboarding experience significantly improved user adoption, ensuring that users understood how to effectively engage with AI.
Option Paralysis
Categorization helped solve option paralysis and made template selection more intuitive, reducing hesitation in the decision-making process.
