Feedback in Computer Interface Systems has become a prominent concern for designers. Knowing this, it is necessary to provide a cognitive model of which to base such systems. Opportunistic Planning is a cognitive model used in HCI that is mainly based on feedback. Direct Manipulation is a philosophy that depends upon Opportunistic Planning in the design of graphical user interfaces. Such systems provide the users with the freedom to move within complex problem domains, which is also the key advantage of Opportunistic Planning. When considering feedback and Opportunistic Planning, it is important to note that Dispaly-based Action plays a major role in the design and implementation of user-friendly systems. Display-based action is the concept that supports the way users of system actually learn the system. That is, the users depend on feedback from the system in order to continue planned actions.
In order to present the above mentioned topic which focuses on feedback, we presented a four day extensive look into Opportunistic Planning, Direct Manipulation, and Display Based Action. The objective of the project was to allow students to present HCI topics in a manner that would be interesting to their peers. It incorporated all aspects of teaching via: (1) lecture, (2) class participation, (3) demonstration, (3) hands-on experience, and (4) question and answer sessions. We believe most of the learning was achieved in preparing for the presentation of topics. The second most educational aspect was the demonstration and exercises. The questions and answer sessions provided support for clarifying any unclear concepts. The lectures are probably the most monotonous portion of the project, but are necessary to give the underlying knowledge of the topic. The presentations were given in the order of lecture, small class exercise, large exercise, and finally question and answer. Overall, this organization of presenting the material was sufficient for getting the point across to the students.
The initial collection of material for our presentation covered three very separate concepts that would have been difficult to present in a 4 day lecture. Therefore, through feedback from the professors, the main topic and one of the references changed. We believe it would have reduced some of the initial confusion if the students were given a topic to research and only a "suggested" list of references instead of a "required" set. This would have made the presenters focus on the topic and not the content of the references. However, after receiving the feedback, we were able to present a comprehensive overview of Opportunistic Planning, Direct Manipulation, and Display Based Action. The objective was to describe each topic, interrelate them, point out the advantages and disadvantages of each of them, and how to overcome the disadvantages of previously presented HCI topics. Finally, we provided reinforcement of the topic through exercises, demonstrations, and discussion sessions.
The learning achieved from this format of teaching has its advantages and disadvantages. All lectures and discussions were based on whether the students previously read the material being presented. However, in some cases the students did not have the articles due to changes in what was presented. Also, in order to help the students who are required to read and present this material, it would have been useful to have a list of questions to aid in knowing what to focus on in each presentation. For example, we were presented with a list of question by the professor after all presentations were done. These questions could have provoked some thoughts while reading the articles, and also could have stimulated further questions during class discussions.