USABILITY TESTING AND THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN COMPUTER LITERACY AND EFFECTIVE USE OF A CHEMICAL KNOWLEDGE BASE BY FIRST-SEMESTER ORGANIC CHEMISTRY STUDENTS

Usability testing is a technique that allows for the examination of a specific user’s effectiveness, efficiency and satisfaction in achieving goals (Law, Hvannberg, 2002). This user-focused design process has been found to be particularly important in early site development. In this study, multiple interfaces of the knowledge base will be examined comparatively, changing only the aesthetics. Using a think-aloud process, users will be walked through seven scenarios in the IUPUI Chemistry Knowledge Base, and asked to vocalize their thoughts as they attempt each situation. Completion of user questionnaires and a post-test System Usability Scale (SUS) will provide recommendations from which improvements may be made to the design, layout and management of the Knowledge Base (Brooke, 1996).