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Towards inclusive design of online learning experiences for students with autism

This project was submitted as my Masters dissertation while studying MSc Design Informatics.

Role: UX Researcher, UX Designer

Methodology: Literature Review, Surveys, User Interviews, Co-design Workshops

Tools used: Figma, GIMP, R

Time: Approx. 3-4 months

The Problem

With the COVID-19 pandemic came a rapid transition for university students - stay-at-home orders were enforced, with restricted access to on-campus resources, restricted social support, and having to adapt to learning online. This novel and challenging experience was yet to be explored for students on the autism spectrum. Studies show those on the spectrum often struggle with the transition from secondary school to university, having to navigate through new social environments, amongst other challenges. Is it possible that the novel, virtual learning environments students have had to adapt to pose similar challenges?

Primary objective:

Explore how autistic students have experienced the transition to online learning during the pandemic

Secondary objective:

Define the role that technology has played in the online learning experience; what features of technology do the participants value?

Tertiary objective:

Based on findings from first two objectives, design solutions which will aid the individuals in their day-to-day studies

Process

Survey

The survey was designed to measure participants' perceived advantages and disadvantages of online learning compared to face-to-face learning prior to the pandemic. it was based off an existing survey (Baczek et al., 2021) but with a few changes made.

How the survey was adapted:

Items were added to better reflect characteristics of autism which have previously been theorised to impact learning transitions e.g. "to what extent do you feel unpredictable routine is a disadvantage?"
Original study asked participant to tick all advantages / disadvantages which applied to them. This does not provide data on to what extent they agree with each item. Thus, items were paired with Likert scales (1-5)
Open questions were added (e.g., "are there any other advantages to online learning that you feel are significant?") allowing participants to bring up points which weren't mentioned in the survey

Interviews

I spoke with students on the spectrum, both in-person and online, to find - in richer detail - what their general experience of university was, whether certain autism-specific characteristics affected their studies, and what technology they use in their day-to-day studies.

Co-design workshops

It was important to directly involve the participants in the design and research process, to make sure that the final design solutions created actually work for them.

Two 1:1 workshops were held, designed to gather further input as well as involving the participants in imagining and creating solutions to some key problems we discussed.

Workshop setup, designed to be quieter and with softer lighting to suit the needs of the participants.

Sketches created with workshop participant.

Overall findings and design principles

The analyses revealed 9 themes subsuming all key findings. Some of these findings were used to form guiding principles, which ensure that digital assistive technologies designed specifically for autistic users (e.g., noise reduction devices), as well as general technology (e.g., calendars and planners) are more inclusive and meet the needs of its users.

Final thematic map, encompassing the two research questions addressed in the interviews.

Workshop setup, designed to be quieter and with softer lighting to suit the needs of the participants.

Key findings:

Although common themes were identified, participants had differing experiences of online learning, reflecting the high variation of needs and abilities across the spectrum.
An unexpected finding was that some interviewees indicated a general preference for online learning over face-to-face.
Some findings overlapped with studies on neurotypical students. However, an example of one of the many important factors which were not mentioned in those studies was sensory processing (many of those on the spectrum experience discomfort from too much sensory input, such as sound).
- While online learning at home gave participants more control over their sensory environment, it also had the downside of opportunities for new stimuli (e.g., hearing breathing down a microphone during online lectures).

Examples of design principles:

Aesthetics
Customisation
Clear navigation and organisation

Co-design cases

The following are design cases which were co-designed individually with two workshop participants. The mock-ups were created independently of the participants, but the main features and driving principles were carefully co-designed with the participants.

At a Glance

Hi-fidelity wireframes created using Figma. Based on analysis of one of the workshop outcomes.

At a Glance is an application designed to help the user quickly and easily visualise, plan, and manage their day-to-day life. It is named after the co-designer’s quote that she wanted a planner that would allow you to see how busy each week is, and what events are upcoming “at a glance” – something she felt the current market for calendar apps lacks.

Aesthetics

In terms of colour design, At a Glance uses a dark colour palette as it’s default mode, to better suit users who are sensitive to light. The app allows the user to use custom colours for organisation and colour-coding events and tasks.

Navigation and organisation

Unlike other calendars and planners, At a Glance does not require the user to input a specific time in which to complete a task. As suggested by the interview findings of this study, having one event deviate from its schedule means that all subsequent events become affected, and this becomes stressful and anxiety-inducing. By allowing the user to organise their day’s tasks in chronological order rather than specific times of the day, this feature aims to help those who are reliant on routine to organise their tasks better.

Limitations and improvements

With the current design, it may be unclear to the user what the differences between Simple, Weekly, and Tabular View are. This could be resolved by providing the user with a starter guide when they first use the app. However, this does not solve the root problem of the navigation not being as intuitive as it could be. An improved design solution could be to move the Weekly View button to another part of the interface, as Simple and Tabular View are complementary ways to view their calendar, but Weekly View is related more to setting up tasks.

I sketched a rough design of the calendar interface before digitising the designs.

QuietBuds

Mockups of potential variations of the QuietBuds made using GIMP.

The QuietBuds have been designed to control auditory sounds for people who are sensitive to noise, including those with sensory processing issues. A selling point of the QuietBuds is that they are dedicated to noise reduction and selective sound, appealing to consumers who may not want to pay more for earphones with additional functions.

Selective sound

The QuietBuds not only reduce noise using in-ear noise cancelling, but can also play specific sounds, since the user may prefer hearing ambient sounds or white noise. The QuietBuds house a physical switch, allowing the user to select a custom audio setting. For example, a student with sensory processing issues may create an “in-person lecture” mode, an “online lecture” mode, and a “focus” mode, with each mode playing varying types and volumes of sound.

Modularity

Users may be concerned with how discreet or visible their device is. This is expected to change from user to user, and from day to day. To maximise customisation, users will be able to remove and change the part of the QuietBuds that is visible to others when worn. As the co-designer for the QuietBuds visualised versions of the product which incorporated jewellery-like elements, the design mock-ups reflect this, but the modular part could be as simple and disguised as the user would like. For students, this may be useful if they are in a classroom setting and they would prefer to use a sensory aid in a discreet manner.

Limitations

The QuietBuds are designed to be worn in the ear, but some users may find this to be intrusive or inconvenient. For example, one participant mentioned that noise reduction earplugs increased apprehension of not being able to hear certain sounds, such as people speaking to her, or sounds of traffic. Additionally, some users may find the feeling of ear buds to be uncomfortable, as many people with autism are sensitive to textures and certain materials. The QuietBuds attempt to address the aspect of being unable to hear people, by incorporating selective sound technology, but the nature of the earbuds needing to be worn in the ear may still not suit some users.

A Lesson Learned

This project taught me the value of unexpected findings. Reliable and accurate research is not defined by the ability to produce results which 'confirm' a hypothesis. Instead, unexpected findings give researchers the opportunity to revisit their data set, theoretical framework, or methodology. Finding out why a particular result was not produced is a valuable contribution in itself.

In my case, I expected participants to find online learning more challenging, or less enjoyable, than face-to-face, given the previous literature suggesting the challenges that come with university and new environments. Instead, there were many varying opinions. This turned out to be a much more interesting outcome, as it revealed a much more complex web of interactions between many different factors which determined how online learning was experienced, and why it appeared significantly different for autistic students than for non-autistic students.

If you'd like to hear about my projects in more detail, including other findings and learnings, please reach out to me at chloelok4@gmail.com.

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