Lesson video

Hello there.

My name's Mrs. Taylor, and thank you for joining me today.

Our lesson today is develop ideas using feedback, and this is part of the unit Developments in new materials: supporting new parents.

The outcome, I can gather and analyse user feedback to inform design developments.

There are three key words: user feedback, which is the information provided by users about their opinions and insights into design ideas.

Iterative, which is refining and improving.

And design development, which is the process of refining and evolving design ideas through feedback, testing, and iteration.

Develop ideas using feedback.

Our lesson today has two parts, gather user feedback and design developments.

Let's begin with gather user feedback.

Developing a design takes time and effort.

A final design outcome rarely happens immediately after an initial design idea.

Here we can see a diagram showing the design process scribble, and the stages of the design process, including empathise, define, ideate, prototype, and test, with the final design outcome.

After the ideation stage, there is the important stage of design development.

This includes the various forms of prototyping and testing.

Here we can see empathise, define, ideate, prototype, and test.

We now have a check for understanding.

What are the missing stages in the design process after the ideation stage? Pause the video and have a go.

Great.

Let's check.

Prototype and test.

Well done.

These various forms of prototyping, testing and making improvements to a design is called the iterative process.

The iterative process is how designers refine and improve ideas to develop a successful design solution.

It is not a linear process, but a cyclical one, meaning the process of prototyping, testing, and improving designs can continue as long as it needs to, and it does not have to happen in a strict order.

The iterative process includes ideate, prototype, test, and refine, and we can see this here in a circle to reflect that it is a cyclical process.

Testing design ideas and prototypes keeps designers improving their designs.

User feedback is an essential part of testing ideas and prototypes.

It provides real world insight into how users interact, see, understand, and would use a design.

Here we have a check for understanding.

Look at the diagram and identify the missing part of the iterative process.

Pause the video and have a go.

Fantastic.

Let's check.

That's right, the missing word was test.

Well done.

User feedback is when the user gives information about a design to help improve or refine it.

User feedback can be gathered in various ways.

These ways include a questionnaire or survey, a user interview, a focus group, a user observation, or recording users' thoughts.

We now have a check for understanding.

What is user feedback? Is it A, when the user gives information about a design to help improve or refine it? Or B, when the user approves the design without suggesting changes? Or C, when the designer explains the design to the user? Pause the video and have a go.

Wonderful.

Let's check.

That's right, it's A, when the user gives information about a design to help improve or refine it.

Well done.

Andeep has redesigned a medicine dispenser for new parents to use with their newborn baby.

His initial design ideas are below, and Andeep plans to show these to his chosen user Sarah with baby Leo to gather feedback to make further design developments.

Here is Andeep's page of design ideas.

Andeep prepares to gather user feedback from Sarah by reminding himself of the user's needs and wants he identified before starting to redesign.

The needs were safety, ability to make quick decisions, medical products to assist or track health, clarity, accurate information and reassurance.

And the wants were a calm and clean environment, rest and hydration, medical products that function well and are reliable, medical products that are easy to use, and peer support.

Andeep also refers to the design requirements identified before starting to redesign.

The design solution must: incorporate a smart material.

Be intended to be used by new parents with a newborn baby.

Be used to support a parent or parents in the experience of an unwell baby.

Be of the highest safety and quality standards.

And be an improvement or development on existing solutions, a redesign.

And now a check for understanding.

What does Andeep use to help him prepare questions for his user feedback? Is it A, user needs and wants, B, the iterative process, or C, design requirements? Pause the video and have a go.

Fantastic.

Let's check.

That's right, it's both A and C.

User needs and wants and design requirements.

Well done.

Andeep constructs some questions to ask his user, Sarah, in his user feedback interview.

Some of the questions are: can you identify any safety issues with the designs? Can you provide thoughts on the designs that will function well and ones that will not? And can you comment on the ease of use with the designs? Andeep has some options for recording the feedback.

His options include a voice recording, taking notes on paper, writing on sticky notes, or creating a mind map.

Andeep says, "I will record the interview using a voice recording app, and I will ask permission first.

I will also take some sticky notes and ask Sarah to record any thoughts on the design ideas using these." Andeep conducts the interview with his user Sarah.

"Hi Sarah, would you mind looking at my design ideas and giving me some feedback please? I have brought some sticky notes to record your thoughts onto." And Sarah replies, "Hi, Andeep, of course I'll give you some feedback on your ideas.

I'm happy to answer any questions you may have, and you can record my answers if you like." We now move to task A, prepare for and gather user feedback.

Part one, use the resources necessary, for example, a list of design requirements or user needs and wants to support the preparation of gathering user feedback.

Generate a list of questions that could be asked to a user in order to gather feedback of your chosen designs.

And part two, gather user feedback.

This could mean conducting an interview, a questionnaire or recording handwritten notes on the user's thoughts and opinions.

Pause the video, give it a go.

Fantastic.

Let's have a look at some of the answers you may have come up with.

For part one, you may have said some of the questions I will ask when gathering user feedback are, can you identify any safety issues with the designs? Can you provide thoughts on the designs that will function well and ones that will not? Can you comment on the ease of use with the designs? And for part two, I decided to conduct a user interview using the questions I had prepared beforehand.

I asked permission to record the interview, and I also asked my user to record any thoughts or opinions on my design ideas using sticky notes.

Their knowledge of the experience where similar products are used is so valuable to the success of my final design outcome.

Well done.

We now move to part two of the lesson, design developments.

Andeep has gathered user feedback about his initial design ideas for the medicine dispenser.

The feedback was carried out as an interview and thoughts captured on sticky notes.

Andeep has produced a summary of key feedback points.

This will support him when he's making improvements to his designs.

Andeep's user feedback includes for the idea of adding a soft teat to the medicine dispenser, the feedback is a more familiar shape to the baby would help with dispensing the medicine into their mouth.

The teether idea, this idea would create a sticky mess, and how do I know if all the medicine has been taken? For this idea with lights, a distraction would be a great help.

It could make the whole experience easier.

The idea with a thermometer using thermochromic ink, the feedback was a multifunctional product would be over complicated.

And for the idea with an additional base and handles, the feedback was being able to dispense the medicine with one hand whilst holding the baby with the other one would be a huge help.

Let's have a check for understanding.

How has Andeep presented his user feedback key information? Is it A, in sketches, B, a voice note, or C, in a mind map? Pause the video and have a go.

Brilliant.

Let's check.

That's right, it's C, in a mind map.

Well done.

After user feedback is gathered and summarised, designers use it to inform, make, and justify design developments.

A design development is the process of refining and evolving design ideas with the intent to make them better.

Designers need to ensure that any design developments are justified based on the user's feedback.

Here we have a check for understanding.

Read the sentence and complete by adding the two missing words.

Pause the video.

Wonderful.

Let's check.

After user feedback is gathered and summarised, designers use it to inform, make, and justify design developments.

Well done.

Using the feedback from his user, Andeep starts to develop one of his ideas further through sketching and annotation.

The annotation explains the idea further.

He's added a flexible silicone tube, and a large disc handle to enable using with one hand, and use the thumb to allow one hand use.

Twist mechanism instead of push.

The silicone teat shape is more recognisable by the baby.

Twist to dispense medicine with thumb.

Changing colours to distract the baby.

Andeep revisits the design requirements to support further design developments.

The design solution must: incorporate a smart material, be intended to be used by new parents with a newborn baby, be used to support a parent or parents in the experience of an unwell baby, be of the highest safety and quality standards, and be an improvement or development on existing solutions, a redesign.

After revisiting the design requirements, Andeep decides to focus on the design that satisfies the requirements the most.

The hydro or thermochromic ink can be applied to silicone tube, which can provide a distraction.

Handles for ease of use is an improvement on an existing solution.

Controlled measure of medicine, incorporating high levels of safety.

And a twist mechanism enables one hand use by parent.

This supports the experience.

We now move to task B.

Part one, using the user feedback you have gathered, summarise the key information you can use to further develop your design ideas.

And part two, develop your designs using the key information you have identified for question one.

You should aim to have a full sheet of different and developed design ideas.

Pause the video and have a go.

Wonderful.

Let's have a look at some of the answers you may have come up with.

For part one, you may have said the key information from my user feedback.

You could display this in a mind map.

And for part two, your design development page may look something similar to this, with a combination of sketches and annotation to explain design developments.

Well done.

We now have a summary of our learning today.

Developing a design takes time and effort.

Various forms of prototyping, testing and making improvements to a design are involved.

This collectively is called the iterative process.

Part of the testing stage is user feedback.

This is when the user gives information about a design to help improve or refine it.

This can happen in various ways, such as an interview.

After user feedback is gathered and summarised, designers use it to inform, make, and justify design developments.

A design development is the process of refining and evolving design ideas with the intent to make them better.

I'm really pleased you could join me for the lesson today.

Thank you and well done.