A critique of Blended Learning softwares, OneNote and Hopscotch for Educational technology

1. Software Critique:
OneNote and Hopscotch
Ken Styner

2. Introduction to
OneNote
VIRTUAL
Notebooks
Homework
Collaboration

3. What is OneNote for Students?
OneNote for students is a digital platform that allows students to take notes and take
those notes wherever they go. By saving notes “in the cloud”, students may access
these notes plus all of OneNote’s features on any device from anywhere.
Above all, OneNote is an excellent tool for keeping today’s busy students organized
without the cumbersome binders and backpacks!
A. Create notebooks with sections and pages.
B. Enter information via keyboard or handwritten tools.
C. Collaborate with classmates on live, shared documents.
D. Receive, store, and submit homework assignments from and
to your teachers.

4. Critique: Introduction Page
Pro’s
1. Good use of contrast color - grays and
whites pop against dark purple.
2. Proximity - sensible spacing and
grouping of concepts within various
rectangles.
3. Includes author, copyright, etc. as
links at the bottom.
4. Succinct program description with
video overview.
Con’s
1. Introduction hosts menus, which
A&T discourages (pg 49).
2. Includes a multitude of video links -
the only way to get to any
information is to watch videos.
3. Intro page seems a hybrid with
directions page.

5. Critique: Learner Control
Pro’s
1. Mode of control = mouse or keyboard
options.
2. Very interactive as users actually conduct
the actions described in tutorial. This is
one of the best features of OneNote as
students get a real time experience at the
software as they learn.
a. Click mock screen
b. Create actual files
3. Learner has control over speed and exit
with bottom controls to rewind, fast
foward, etc.
Con’s
1. A little confusing at first - no clear
directions as to order of use or where
to start.
2. No much learner “control” as the
tutorials are linear, leaving no other
option but forward movement to
progress.

6. Critique: Presentation of information
● Used interactive videos
● Videos were very linear, had interactive stopping points, but it wasn’t immediately clear
what you were supposed to do
● Video was long and unidirectional
● Background was too busy. When an interactive part came, very hard to find
● Color was a bit overwhelming.
● Should focus on one part of screen
● Should use some sort of breadcrumbs to indicate where interaction was

7. Providing Help
● Help button did not exist
● If you clicked the upper left icon, thinking it was help, the video cut off, and you would have to
rerun
● Help unavailable without closing and starting over

8. Ending The Program
● You could pause videos, but not temporary terminate and restart where you left off
● If you clicked the wrong part of the screen, video would abruptly terminate
● Had credits at end, but links in credits were hard to find.
● Videos ended with no real indication how to return to home screen

9. Conclusion
OneNote Critique
In conclusion, OneNote hosts both
quality and inadequate features for
students. Their interactive tutorials
give students a hands on practice at
the software, but some of its
elements (color, help access, learner
control, etc.) are lacking in proper
appeal or existence. Once students
learn to navigate the software, it is a
sufficient tutorial software.

10. Software Critique: Hopscotch

11. ● Made directly by Hopscotch Technologies, the application
was created to allow people of all ages to create Art and
games in a programming platform.
● By allowing for the user to “drag and drop” pre written
codes and graphic interfaces, the user is able to create
easily and almost instinctively.
● The application is an asset for teachers trying to teach
students how programming languages work, with step by
step instructions for learners.
About Hopscotch

12. More About Hopscotch
● Hopscotch is based on a mobile device and not
a traditional computer.
● Items that need to be dragged and dropped are
small but not so tiny for the learner.
● The creation of the Art or game needs to be
conducted on the mobile device; It becomes
available on the internet and can be accessed
through the traditional computer.

13. ● The use of a framed menu at the bottom of
the screen allows the user to have constant
access to the icons for five different options.
● The home button, which is composed of the
icon of a house is intuitive.
The main menu is simple and
easy to understand.

14. However, there are a couple of
confusing icons.
The first is the lighting bolt icon at the bottom. This is an odd choice for an icon
that is supposed to represent new activity by users on the web. As new users
publish their creations on the website, this page will populate, allowing for other
people to play their creation. Finally there is an icon of an image that you choose
when signing up for the application. Since I am using my son’s account (a 4th
grader), the icon that he chose is a cartoonish image of a hot dog. This menu
option has all of the creations that you have made, published or not. Overall the
menu is easy to understand and easy to operate for children of all ages.

15. The presentation of the application is accessible and
easy to use.
● The main creation screen starts out as a blank screen with the
option to add colorful and fun images.
● The images that you add to the main interface make the app
more fun for young children.
● They are basic in their representation of the object they are
depicting and full of bright colors.

16. The presentation of the application is accessible and
easy to use.
● When being used by young children, this feature can heavily
influence the joy that leads to the students coming back to use the
app more often.
● The buttons that are used to “program” the images are bright and
color-coded based on what they do to influence the image.
● By having the buttons color-coded, the teacher can more easily help
students by referring to one group of buttons instead of a long list.
● This also helps the students understand that there are buttons that
producing similar actions on the image, allowing for grouping.

17. The presentation of information viewed through an iPad or iPhone is fairly similar. The format for both devices make
the learners comfortable if switching up devices if needed. There is a bar on the bottom of the screen. The navigation bar
uses symbols to symbolize tabs.
The use of the icons on the navigation bar lacks connection to the purpose of the tab. However, the bar on the
bottom of the screen allows the learner to create your own project, search for published projects, and see projects you love.

18. ● The learner is on their own when inputting and coding
their project.
● The learner can add images, text, shapes to input to code
in their project.
● Learners can determine what they want to do with coding
by the multiple choices they’re given to do with their
image, text, or shapes.
● The format can get a little complicated and confusing to a
new user.
● The relationship between the text and graphic on the app
is appropriate and presented conveniently.
● Text is consistent and clean for all type of learners.

19. Hopscotch provides help through a tutorial that is playing
on the side of the screen. It guides the learner to follow
along and create their project with the tutorial. The use of
a tutorial alongside your own project makes it easy to
follow. They can either be used by the teacher in
advance of class time to support their own learning. They
can be viewed by the class as a group where they can be
paused and students can be asked what the next step of
the video narrator should be.
Application Help and Support for the User

20. Procedural and Informational help is easily
accessed
- Videos and step
by step tutorials
are always
available on the
home screen

21. There is no need for a safety net for this app because the app
is constantly saving the last occurring change. There is no
final message for the app, but the user is able to access their
past and current projects with a tap on the navigation bar.
Other than that, ending the program is easy to use and allows
the user to come back to their draft or published project for all
to view.
Ending the Application