INTE 6710 ~ Creative Designs for Instructional Materials Project 2: Comic-Inspired Handout Design Document

Melissa Garrett
March 17, 2013

1. Overview I created a handout that will serve as a job aid for teachers at the elementary school where I teach. Our district is in the process of installing interactive whiteboards in all classrooms, many of which are Promethean Boards. My handout walks staff members through the process of importing a document into the Promethean software (ActivInspire). This is a multistep process, with adjustments depending on the file type of the original document. If teachers miss a step, or use a different process, then they experience a myriad of difficulties when they attempt to teach their lesson. The handout will help them streamline the process of importing documents. Hopefully this will allow teachers to focus on teaching rather than on technology, and reduce the stress that can come with learning to use a new tool. I have two main objectives for my handout, which are described below. After teachers have accessed the handout, I have several options for evaluating its effectiveness. One choice is to have teachers complete a survey or orally rate their confidence in following the handout steps. I could also follow up with a sampling of teachers, and watch them complete the process of importing documents. Staff members will correctly import documents in ActivInspire, without having to repeatedly ask for help. This means that I want my coworkers to follow these steps efficiently and accurately, thereby limiting mistakes that cause stress to teachers and learners. I hope that over time teachers will begin to feel increasingly confident with the process, until they no longer need the handout. They can always look back at it if they forget. Staff members will correctly refer to and use multiple file types including PDFs, Word documents, ActivInspire flipcharts, and Microsoft Outlook messages/attachments. All of these types of files are part of the importing process, and many teachers get them mixed up. This is part of what leads to frustrating mistakes. I hope that my document will help clear up some of the confusion, thus helping teachers maximize their use of ActivInspire. The main audience for this handout will be the staff of my elementary school. This includes teachers, aides, and other staff members who use the ActivInspire software with their Promethean boards. The staff members comfort level with technology varies widely, as does the amount of experience with the software. These people are also very busy, and often desire easy reference materials to use when needed. I tried to make my handout simple and easy to follow, especially the section delineating how to import the documents. A second audience for

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this handout is my fellow students in INTE 6710. They will be looking for creative and accurate implementation of design concepts that we study in class. The success of this handout depends on its simplicity and ease of use. Therefore, I used concrete images and descriptions that teachers can quickly understand. I wanted to tell the story of a teacher actually using the software, for which I used hand-drawn characters and other elements. I also want to show teachers exactly how to import documents, for which I used annotated screenshots. I wanted to mix these two styles in a way that is both attractive and informative. I used Jing for the screenshots, and then took digital photos of my drawings. In order to add some comic-inspired elements to the photos and arrange them into panels, I used a program called Comic Life. The last step was to export my comic strip as an easily accessible PDF. 2. Design Decisions Design Decision #1: Tell an Engaging Story One of the most important things that I wanted to accomplish with this handout was to tell a story that teachers would identify with. I devoted the whole first half of the handout simply to the story, waiting until later to begin the instructional sequence. This narrative makes my handout more lifelike, more true to our day-to-day existence (Heath & Heath, 2008, p. 214.) So, I used the comic to tell a short story about an experience that many teachers have had. I carefully planned the beginning (introduction of setting, characters, and problem on pages 1-3), middle (development of the problem on pages 4-18), and end (solution to the problem and transformation of the character on pages 19-20). I wanted my handout to adhere to these conventional story parts (Duarte, 2010). I also wanted the teachers to feel like their experiences were legitimate, and that I had a solution for them. Ultimately, the handout wont be successful if my audience doesnt buy in. As Nancy Duarte writes, navigating between fact, then story, then fact, then story creates interest and a pulse (2010, p. 27). She goes on to say that creating desire in the audience and then showing how your ideas fill that desire moves people to adopt your perspectives. This is the heart of telling a story (Duarte, 2010, p. 27). Duartes words explain why I chose to organize my handout around a clear story structure. Design Decision #2: Focus on Subjects This handout is designed to help teachers use required technology. I wanted to keep the focus of the story on the subjects: the teacher character, and Appleton (her coach, who delivers the instructional sequence. They are the ones delivering the information to the reader, and I wanted all attention on them. So, I decided to use mainly subject to subject transitions between panels (McCloud, 2006, p. 15). These transitions allow me to move through the story in a straightforward manner, keeping the readers attention focused on the character. It also prevented the artistic elements of the handout from becoming overwhelming. An example of this can be seen on page 5, which illustrates how my panels focus on each character as part of the conversation. The teacher character is the main point, since thats who the readers will identify with. The character and her problem are what hold the plot in place (Duarte, 2010, p. 30). I considered adding more stylistic transitions, but I wanted to make sure that the handout focused on my audiences needs. I consciously chose not to add superfluous transitions.
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Design Decision #3: Hand-Drawn Panels Early on for this project, I decided to draw my own comic. I chose to use stick figures, with some details drawn on to add visual interest. Two great reasons for this choice are given by Roam. First, he wrote that people like seeing other peoples pictures (2008, p. 25). I thought that my fellow teachers would enjoy the stick figures. Even though they are simple, they still allow me to tell my story. Second, he pointed out that hand-sketched images are quick to create and easy to change (Roam, 2008, p. 25). I knew that an artistic project like this could easily suck up hours of time on the computer, and I knew that I like to do quick sketches. Page 2 of my handout is a clear example. I was able to sketch these out quickly, and make simple adjustments later. This made it easy for me to decide to avoid computer graphics and heavy coloring, except for finishing touches on the end. Even these finishing touches are limited, since illustrations are best when kept simple (Golombisky & Hagen, 2010, p. 166). I purposely avoided adding anything that wasnt necessary for the story. Overall, this was a great opportunity for me to practice my own simple drawings. Design Decision #4: Use Screenshots Since this handout is meant as a reference for teachers to use with technology on their computers, I wanted the images to match exactly what they will see as they work. This is why I decided to use screenshots. I used Jing to capture my steps as I used my Promethean Board at school, and I put those shots directly into my handout. These are interspersed throughout the handout, beginning on page 12. I did this so that, in reading the handout, teachers could benefit from the mental simulation of actually doing it. I cant stand over each teacher as they try these steps, but I can help them simulate it through the handout. As Heath & Heath wrote, mental simulation is not as good as actually doing something, but its the next best thing (2008, p. 213). These screenshots are the best thing that I can do for my teachers. I also knew that text and narrative alone could not accomplish the necessary instruction. This is another reason why I decided to use photos in the form of screenshots. Powerful images plus thoughtful narration and maybe even a bit of text can help you tell your story (Reynolds, 2009, p. 98). In my handout, teachers can see exactly what their screen will look like for each step. I think that this is very powerful, especially when my characters narrate the pictures, and when I added notations. Design Decision #5: Showing Emotion We all know how emotions can well up when we experience technology difficulties. I wanted to design my handout to show the emotions of the teacher character, Mrs. B. Her emotions and thoughts mirror those of frustrated teachers. Mrs. B. experiences early frustration (page 3) and anger (page 7), and later happiness (page 17). By the end of the story, she is transformed. I found that drawing simple mouth shapes and eyebrow shapes could give readers a wealth of information aboutemotions and attitudes (McCloud, 2006, p. 29). I also changed perspectives, and zoomed in on the characters to show these emotions. Basically, my intent was to acknowledge the feelings of my fellow teachers, and offer a solution. Mrs. Bs story is their own story, and her experiences are their experiences. I wanted my characters story to by the emotional glue that connects an audience to [my] idea (Duarte, 2010, p. 156.) Hopefully, teachers will empathize with my handout and learn from it.
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3. Formative Evaluation Response Peer Review Question #1: Tell me what you think of the balance between story and instruction. I was trying to weave the instructional sequence through the narrative, while keeping it straightforward. I asked this question because I knew that I wanted my narrative to be strong. I spent a lot of time developing the structure of the story (per design decision #1). I was a little concerned that the steps of the instructional sequence, which informs teachers how to import their documents into ActivInspire, would be unbalanced. Here are the peer responses: Ben: I think you found a fine balance. The clever intro does grab the readers attention and shows the reader an obvious example of how reading this comic will benefit them. John: I thought the sequencing was good you set up the situation, stated the problem, the solution, the resolution, and had a cute ending too. You merged the story and the instruction very well. Simple and straightforward as well kudos. These responses validated my choice to develop a good story. I left all of the introductory panels intact, as well as their sequence. No peer suggestions were made, so I didnt make any major changes here. Peer Review Question #2: How did I do as far as CARP principles? Do you see any mistakes, or do you have any suggestions? On Project 1, I had a few minor CARP violations. I asked this question in order to avoid that happening again. Also, Ive never submitted a hand-drawn assignment using CARP before. I wanted my peers to help me make sure that I adhered to the principles. Some of our class members are very good at this, while I havent had too much experience. Here are the responses: Ben: I dont see any issues with CARP. You consistently repeated the computer screen and apple sequences perfectly. When you do the final version, make sure to find a way to add contrast as emphasis to important points the apple makes. John: You might be able to centralize or draw attention to some of the word captions a little more when theyre the primary source of information in a couple of the panels (slides 17 & 19 are examples of two where you might be able to frame your primary information/action a little more in these). The repetition was good. The contrast was kind of hard to evaluate because it was mostly black and white if you decide to add some color Id be happy to look at it again (but I didnt think it demanded more color). The alignment was virtually the same throughout with the teacher on the left and the applet on the right you might want to try and switch up their positioning within the panels occasionally to give different effects (there are a lot of examples in the McCloud Making Comics).

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I agreed with the comments about contrast, especially when looking at the steps of my instructional sequence. So, I decided to bold these with a black marker on my final version (see page 10 of the handout). I also chose the color these speech bubbles with a blue-green color. This color is easy on the eyes, but provides a little contrast with the other white bubbles. My intention was to draw the eye toward the bubbles that represent instruction. This might make it easier for teachers to locate certain steps for reference, without having to comb through the entire story. The rest of Johns comments helped me decide not to add further color. On the other hand, I chose not to change the positions of my characters, or add effects to the transitions. I did this in order to maintain simplicity (see design decision #2). Peer Review Question #3: I'm trying to decide whether to color my drawings, or simply go over them with a black marker. I think the color would add a lot to them, but might detract from the emphasis on the computer screenshots. What do you think? I asked this question simply because most of our example projects were colored, on done on the computer. I didnt want my project to pale in comparison, simply because of the stick-figure approach. Here is my peer feedback: Ben: I would definitely color them. Maybe leave the background white if you are concerned about the screenshots washing out. John: I think the single line drawings are difficult to color personally (theyre so cute too!), and it does give more attention to the computer screen this way. Just a thought if you dont color the drawings you might use some color in your captions to underscore some of the important action links or buttons theyll need to use during this process. In file 28-31 you could use a different color for the words - File/Import/Settings/Save just to engrain these functions a little more in their memory, but it is pretty straightforward and understandable as is. I found it interesting that my two reviewers disagreed! One advised color, and one did not. For simplicitys sake, I followed Johns advice. As mentioned in peer review question #2, I decided to color-code the speech bubbles for the instructional sequence. I liked Johns point about underscoring the process. I also agreed with him that my readers attention should be on the computer screenshots. Finally, we were shown additional example videos in class that had simple, black-and-white stick figures. Peer Review Question #4: I had a hard time fitting this into the right number of panels. I have a few panels I'd like to add (for title, etc.). What gaps, if any, do you find in the story? (Right now, I have the curse of knowledge. I can't see the gaps because I already know the story.) I asked this question just to double check that my handout made sense, and that nothing was missing. I wanted to be clear with my narrative. Here are the responses:
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Ben: I was a little confused on 2 parts, you audience may already be further along than me though. In step 8, are the settings choices obvious? Will teachers know how to get from step 9 to it showing on the board? John: I have a couple of questions as far as the instructional sequence, and they could be things that dont need to be explained to other teachers. Slide 21- Do your teachers know how to scan documents to their email from the printer? Sometime when people arent comfortable with machines they need everything explained. Slide 24- This image might be bigger when print out the final document, but if not you might consider cropping closer to the computer because the screen was a little hard to read. You mentioned teachers having a problem with the annotations at the beginning. Is there anything additional you need to explain later regarding these? In response to these comments, I made some wording changes within the speech bubbles. I removed the word annotations from page 9, since that wasnt really the correct word in the first place. I used the phrase about save instead. I also changed the wording on page 16, to make the settings choices more obvious. Third, I re-took a few of the pictures in order to sharpen the images. (A note about Johns point concerning scanning: I did not include this in the handout, because teachers are already proficient at scanning documents.) Peer Review Question #5: Do you think that busy teachers will enjoy this comic, and find it useful? What improvements can you suggest for this? My last question was aimed at maintaining teacher interest. I wanted my work to be engaging as well as informative, rather than just another boring document for them to read. I also wanted to make it simple, so teachers didnt have to spend a lot of time poring over it. Here are my peer responses: Ben: I think they will definitely enjoy it. I did, anyway. I would recommend adding an image that shows an example of what is going wrong with the annotations not showing up correctly; maybe a shot of her looking at the screen and it looking different than the original. I am not sure everyone will connect with your annotations explanation. John: It made sense to me, and Ive never used the tools before. Again, I thought your drawings were fantastic (the teacher pounding the desk with steam coming out of her ears was one of my favorites), & I liked the humor at the end to. So, yes I think its useful and engaging. The only other question I can think of now is - if your teachers havent gotten a document/handout on the Promethean Board in this fashion before, is there anything else they need to know about being able to access or manipulate the document once its on the Promethean board relative to this process? I was glad to hear that my peers enjoyed my handout. As I described in peer review question #4, I removed the section about annotations. It seemed to be causing unnecessary confusion. However, I decided not to make further changes for this question. John asked if teachers knew
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how to further manipulate documents, once they are on the board. The answer is yes, they do. Teachers seem only to get stuck on the importing, which is why I focused my handout on it. All in all, I was grateful for all of my peer feedback. Bibliography Duarte, N. (2010). Resonate. Wiley.
Golombisky, K., & Hagen, R. (2010). White Space is Not Your Enemy. Focal Press. Heath, C., & Heath, D. (2008). Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Die and Others Survive. New York: Random House. McCloud, S. (2006). Making Comics: Storytelling Secrets of Comics, Magna and Graphic Novels. Harper. Reynolds, G. (2009). Presentation Zen Design: Simple Design Principles and Techniques to Enhance Your Presentations. Berkeley, CA: New Riders. Roam, D. (2008). The Back of the Napkin: Solving Problems and Selling Ideas with Pictures. Portfolio/Penguin Group.

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