Evaluating the Usability of an Interactive Map Activity for Climate Change Education

We report the results of usability testing on a professional modeling tool designed to support students' learning about climate change impacts. Using a questionnaire and test responses as data sources, we evaluated the efficacy of an interactive map activity that was completed by 84 middle school students. An analysis of the data showed that students had difficulties manipulating simple data overlays when answering questions about tree distributions with the model. The findings from this study have implications for researchers who wish to design interactive map-based activities for science education, and for technology developers seeking to improve the usability of complex learning environments for middle school students.