1. MEMORANDUM
ENGLISH 421: ADVANCED TECHNICAL WRITING
Date: March 10, 2015
To: Dr. Stanton
From: Samantha Birkenfeld
Subject: Usability Test Report
PROJECT RECAP
For my client-based project, I chose my aunt, Anita, to be my client. Anita is a
fourth grade teacher who had various documents to which she needed redesign
work done. These documents included a template for her Weekly Newsletter,
editorial work to her Student Handbook, and a Math Acuity Data Sheet with a
correlating graph outline.
PARTICIPANTS
Because my audience contains two parts - parents and students - I created two
tests, one to accommodate each audience.
Parents
For the parent portion of my audience, I gathered test results from two
fathers (ages 44 and 29; both are separated with partial custody of
children), and one mother (age 39; divorced with full custody of children).
Students
For the student audience, I tested three fourth graders from Anita’s fourth-
grade class. These students fit the profile, perfectly, as they are part of my
primary audience, already have experience with the old Newsletter, and
were able to give me feedback based on a comparison. The three students
were two girls and one boy (this small amount of versatility was to provide
the most accurate feedback, possible).
WHAT WAS TESTED
At the beginning of my project, I had the idea of making the Student Handbook
fourth-grader-friendly, so that students would easily be able to read and
understand the document, without the help of their parents. The modifications

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March 10, 2015
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that I made, however, made the text easier to understand, but kept the tone aimed
toward parents. I decided to do it this way because, while students experience the
classwork every day, parents never get to understand the coursework to the same
extent of their children. With this new understanding, I kept the Student
Handbook’s content the same, with the exception of design changes and editorial
work to aid in understanding. I needed to include this brief explanation to
explain the documents that I tested on each of my audiences.
Parents
For my parent audience, I created test questions for the Newsletter, as well
as the Student Handbook. I chose the Newsletter because I wanted to
make sure it would be eye catching, as well as contain all the information
parents want to see about their child’s class, each week. I also chose the
Student Handbook because I feel that this audience will benefit the most
from this document. While parents may (and absolutely could) have their
child read the contents in this document, most of the information is geared
toward them. I didn’t test the Acuity Graph on the parents because that
document is to be posted on the classroom bulletin board for students to
see how they are doing in Math, and is not to be viewed by parents, often
(if at all).
Students
For my student audience, I created test questions for the Newsletter, as
well as the Acuity Graph. I chose the Newsletter because I redesigned it
with the students at the front of my mind. This document aids students
and parents equally, and their feedback on my draft was much-needed. I
tested the Acuity Graph because I wanted to create a visually stimulating,
while equally informative document. Because this paper will be posted on
the class bulletin board, I want the students to enjoy the appearance, and
be able to understand the data.
RESULTS
The following results are broken down between parents and students.
Parent Test Results
The parents that I tested were asked a series of questions, both before and
after examining the documents. When asked what information they
would hope to find in the Student Handbook, my most common answers
were: Class Rules, Student Expectations, Events Calendar for the Year, and
Contact Information. Of those, the only items that were not already

3. Proposal For Document Redesign
January 20, 2015
3
included were Class Rules and Events Calendar. When asked to locate
various items within the document, they were all able to do so in less than
a minute (I consider this time frame successful). Overall, my participants
were happy with the design and pleased by the organization of the
document.
When asked what information they would hope to find in the Weekly
Newsletter, the most common responses were: Curriculum, Upcoming
Events, Lunch Menu for the week, and a Calendar for Weekday Non-Core
classes (i.e. what day they attend P.E., Art, Music, etc.). Of those, the only
items that are not already in the Newsletter are Lunch Menu and Non-
Core Calendar. Some parents urged me to use bigger/clearer font
throughout the document. I was asked to use more separation between
categories (perhaps with the use of borders), and to create more of a flow
between topics so that all the information could be read more easily and
nothing would be missed.
Student Test Results
The students that I tested were asked a series of questions, both before and
after examining the documents. When asked what information they
wished was included in the Newsletter, the most common answers were:
Class Average (grade), Birthdays for the Week, and School News. Because
the students already knew the categories of the existing Newsletter, those
were all new suggestions. The students were very fond of the colorful
aspects, and wished for even more colors to be added. This is the only
suggestion that any of them offered for re-design.
For the Acuity Math Data Graph, they were asked to tell me what the
graph was about, which they were all able to do, quickly. They enjoyed the
use of color, the key, and the title. They asked me to remove the graph’s
border and start the Y-axis at 10%, rather than 0%. Overall, they were
pleased with the document and were excited to have it on their wall.
POST-TEST EDITORIAL PLAN
I have several changes in mind, thanks to the results of both of my tests. My
participants were specific in what they wanted, and had enough in common with
one another to bring me to believe that my overall audience would be pleased

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March 10, 2015
4
with the information I plan to incorporate/touch up for my final projects. Class
Average (grade), Birthdays for the Week, and School News.
Newsletter
Based on my test results, I really want to implement a few new topics
within the Newsletter. With the time allotted, I hope to be able to include
a weekly Lunch Menu, a Non-Core Calendar, a weekly Class Average
Grade, and Birthdays that week. I will also use a clearer font, more colors,
and borders to separate topics.
Student Handbook
For this document, I would like to incorporate a calendar that specifies no-
school days throughout the year (this calendar obviously will not be able
to include snow days, or any other impromptu cancellations, but it will be
able to give notice to parents when teachers plan on having work days, or
what days students will be out for holidays). I am very happy with the
design of this document, as it is, and didn’t receive any feedback that
suggested I change any part of the layout.
Acuity Math Data Graph
The feedback I received as far as how to continue my re-design of this
document was minimal. I may use more colors just to make it stand out
more easily, and after viewing the graph in print, I would also like to
change the font to be more kid-friendly (less formal).
CONCLUSION
These tests, both the student and parent portions, proved to be extremely
effective and very useful in my plans for re-design. Some of the answers that I
received were expected, but most were not. Using outside eyes to examine the
work that I’ve done, so far, in a controlled environment was extremely necessary
in order for me to realize my next step in the final preparations of this project.