This presentation gives a brief overview of how personas can be used for effective learner analysis

1. Presented by: Julaine Fowlin

2. Presented by: Julaine Fowlin
I am a PC
Best Buy
Joe the Plumber

3. Presented by: Julaine Fowlin
Profile of representative users
“Personas are fictional – but realistic –
character sketches based on a break-down
of the target audience into groups of users
that exhibit common characteristics.
They are created using knowledge drawn
from previous research, for example user
groups and surveys that have been carried
out with actual users”
Source: http://www.foviance.com/what-
we-do/research-services/personas/

4. Presented by: Julaine Fowlin
Fictitious but realistic characters
More than just demographics
 Behavioral patterns Not job
descriptions
Skills and attitudes
Context/environment
Goals in relation to
product/instruction
Specific, Memorable, actionable
information
What users do Not what they say!

5. Presented by: Julaine Fowlin
Source: http://visiblearea.com/blog/Personas_are_effective

6. User/ Learner centered
Eliminate the dangers of “One design for all”
Reveals constraints and opportunities
Act as a tangible reference in the decision
making process
Allows for shared communication across
stakeholders
Presented by: Julaine Fowlin

7. Collect Data
Use behavioral
patterns to
create primary
and secondary
persona
Analyze Data
Give each
pattern a
brief
description
Find Behavioral
patterns &
variables
Map participants
against variables
Focus on context
and goals related to
project/product
Presented by: Julaine Fowlin
Recommended #s
Primary Personas: 3 max
Secondary: up to 4 for highly stratified audience

8. Presented by: Julaine Fowlin
Persona 1: S. UMA
(Source: http://elearning.kern-comm.com/2007/06/personas-in-elearning/)
Age 25
Gender Female
Marital Status Married
Income Earns in the range Rs 8,000 (plus upto Rs 30,000 as bonus
every 3 months)
Occupation and
Role
Customer Relations Executive.
Follow up pending orders, call customers about offers,
taking customer calls, interacting with customers,
advertising methods (looking for hoardings)
Is this a well developed persona?

9. Websites
 http://www.elearningpost.com/articles/archives/framing_learner_personas
 http://www.cooper.com/journal/2001/08/perfecting_your_personas.html
 http://www.cooper.com/journal/2002/11/getting_from_research_to_perso.html
 http://www.steptwo.com.au/papers/kmc_personas/index.html
 http://www.foviance.com/what-we-do/research-services/personas/
Books
 Lidwell,William, Holden, Kritina & Butler, Jill. (2003).
Universal Principles of Design. Gloucester, MA:
Rockport Publishers.
 Garrett, Jesse. (2003).
The Elements of User Experience: User-Centered Design for theWeb, NY:
American Institute of Graphic Arts.
Presented by: Julaine Fowlin