PRP - Artefact 5 evaluation

In the previous artefact the predicted results were correct however some of the participants made comments about the imagery used for the pairs games. The main intention for artefact 5 was to experiment the use of different imagery and to test whether using different images (colours, shapes and words) would make an impact on the participant’s timings and opinion to the games.

Following previous tests it was decided that new test subjects would partake in this artefact to make results fair as no child knew what to expect. The results received were interesting. The test subjects were split into literacy level groups to be tested however the results showed the children with lower literacy skill had quicker times than the higher literacy skilled group. The assumption was made that the children with more skills would work quicker.

The prediction was made that the ‘word’ matching game would take the longest although this was incorrect as it was the ‘colours’, which took the longest however the colour pairs game was played first so the participants were not aware of the game rules. Looking back the games should have been switched after each participant, making it fair.

Conducting this artefact has been very useful and has proved that imagery does not have a major effect on children with games, in spite of this gaming could potentially be a helpful learning source for children with lower skills. With artefact 5 showing that colours and shapes took the longest time in the pair’s game I have chosen to work around the theme of ‘colours and shapes’. The test will potentially consist of imagery and colour, possibly a colouring in picture. The aim will be to see whether computer technology can assist teaching methods in the subject of art and design.

Client Project - Validating/cross browser check

After having a few CSS issues with the drop down menu, the website now validates which is another tick off the box.

When it came to user testing I was happy to find that the website works across all browsers, this includes Opera, Safari, Firefox and Internet Explorer. However the only browser where I found an issue was in Internet Explorer 6. The drop down menu that I designed did not work in IE 6. Having tested it across all browsers it worked fine in spite of this IE6 would not allow the sub menus to show.

I edited the code in some places to try and get it to work however getting near to the deadline it was advised that I left this implication and made sure that it was noted down. Talking to tutors they advised me that this was the best solution, the majority of the users are now on updated versions of Internet Explorer however its more frustrating that it does not work in one browser.

PRP - The school visit!!

Ok I have just got back from the school and it has been the most useful day for testing that I have ever had. When I arrived the reception staff were very helpful. I arrived early to meet the other teachers as I had planned a range of activities which would be used across two different years.

Meeting Sarah (the year 1 teacher) she suggested taking groups of six to the ICT room in there levels of literacy. This turned out to be very ideal as I now could test the artefact on different levels of skill and see how that changed the result.

The children arrived at 9:15 and strangely starting doing a wake up exercise. I haven't been to school in years but this certainly was a good way to wake the children up. Having previously met the class for artefact two (interview) the chidlren recognised who I was immediately because I was named 'the game lady'.

When conducting the first group it took a little longer than expected because I wasn't too sure what would be the best way to work with the children. I was testing a number of different artefacts because I only had the one day to test so it was decided to allow the children to colour in whilst one child was taken aside to test the matching game.

I did not realise how much you have to take into consideration when working with children but everything had to be timed. I managed to get four groups done and recieved alot of data but I will have to review this later on.

Whilst at the school I also managed to hand out diaries to children in year 5. I found a site called 'Moshi Monster' that claims to be a helpful learning resource and also very amusing. Speaking to Sarah she thought that this would be ideal for the age group. A letter explaining the aim of the project has been written to the parent and a diary has been included so hopefully fingers crossed I should have some results.

PRP - Fifth artefact, design update

Going into the school today so very excited but before I leave just wanted to post images of what I will be testing. My idea will be to test the participants by observing how they play the game and timing each game, noting each time they complete a level.

I am not sure how I will be working with the children but I will make sure that I report back after. Wish me luck!

Client project - Search Engine Optimisation

Now that the site is nearing the finalisation stages I thought that it would be best to have the site up and running on google. Ashley provided me the link to instructions on how to upload a site onto google.

I have also included meta tags within the coding that will help better the websites chances at being the top of the google search list.

Having uploaded the street beatz site to google it is now third in the list which I am happy about because research has shown that the majority of people searching via google only look up to the third page before stopping. It came to my attention whilst doing this search test the name 'street beatz' is quite popular globally and though its on the first page of google, when you only type in the words 'street beatz' it nearer the bottom of the first page. Even though this is ok I want to try and push it closer to the top.

I am going to do some more research into how I can improve the SEO for the site and beat all of its competitors. I have spoken to Jess and it is agreed that I will also upload to bing and registar her with yell.com to put her in the business listings. I am hoping that this will increase the chances of the site becomming more popular as it will have more links to the site.

Having already got a google account I have created a google analytics account for the site so I can keep up to date on how many times the site has be viewed and which are the most popular pages. This will akso help me in my research as I can review back on which pages are the most popular, see what the average time spent on the site is and where the most popular link is to the actual site.

PRP - Fifth artefact, Boowa and Kwala website

On my searches for game examples I came across this website Boowa and Kwala Home - songs, games, stories...

"Educational games and activities for preschool, kindergarten and primary school kids, or Boowa & Kwala fans of any age !"

The Boowa and Kwala website is a perfect example as to what is needed in schools the site offers games to childrens at all levels of study. The site provides a variety of options to choose from starting from a specific category i.e. pairs, paint, puzzles etc following the desicion the user is directed to another page asking which game to play.


What I liked about this page is it provides information for the parent/teacher by showing what skills the activity will help. The are not all the same as they have been designed to help develop skills in an education world.

I did get slighty confused as to where I was being directed when selecting a pairs game so that could be a potentail issue although this site has been designed to play games and if a child finds a game then I assume they will be more than happy to play any of the games provided.

It is clear that the designers have thought about the target audience when it comes down to the design. Bright colours have been incorporated within the overall design. I also noticed that sounds have been used when clicking on buttons or playing games. Like in my previous artefact positive and negative sounds have been used to clearly specify whats right and wrong.



These elements are are very simple yet prove to work with the younger target audience. I am pleased that I have found this site it has provided evidence to back up my previous research artefacts.

PRP - Fifth artefact, imagery used in matching pairs games

When looking for ideas to inspire images for artefact five I decided to have a look at the matching pairs games that are actually out there. I looked at pairs games that are suitable for all levels and found four different examples.


The first game was a very basic game with simple icons. I got the impression that it would look like a simple desktop game (minesweeper, hearts etc) the pairing up was fairly slow however, having coded a pairs game I know that it is very difficult to code such things so I do not find this an issue.

I also noted that a timer had been added to the game giving the user the incentive to beat their personal skills.



The second game had a bit more detail and the shapes made it a bit more difficult to match the pairs up. What I liked about this game was that a points system was provided showing the user how many moves had been done and the score.

Seeing this gave myself the incentive of wanting to beat the personal score, time and reduce the amount of moves made. This proves that we need an incentive to complete games.


This game is particularly popular to me because I am very addicted to this game. The aim of Mahjong is to match the tiles however you can only select the free tiles. What draws me to this game is that you don't always win. Personally I find this addictive and aim to get one game complete but this can take many attempts.

This does not really provide a testing memory game but is a strong example of a matching pairs game.

These all provide good examples of what makes good ideas matching pairs games.