Following the Signs: Children's Use of Visual Cues to Facilitate Website Evaluation

摘要

The paper discusses how research investigating reading strategies can inform web usability design for children by identifying visual cues or 'signposts' that facilitate reading and subsequent evaluation of websites. Using data obtained from a broader study of information-seeking behavior of third-grade students conducted in Montreal, Quebec, Canada the paper reports on the students' use of visual cues when reading and evaluating websites in their search for relevant information. It was discovered that such cues as bolded text, the chunking of textual passages, color, and the thoughtful placement of images all were factors that facilitated quick and efficient evaluation of websites.