This week’s work has mostly focused on finalizing the question set for my Japanese grammar and vocabulary assessment module aligned with the JLPT N3. I spent far more time than anticipated narrowing down and formatting the actual quiz content. Grammar questions, particularly those that require learners to evaluate multiple sentence fragments (like choosing the correct phrase to complete a sentence based on context), introduced unique formatting challenges. For example, many JLPT-style questions require an asterisk or underline to denote a blank within a sentence, yet CSV-based imports into Captivate don’t support rich formatting such as underlined text.
While this isn’t a showstopper, it’s another reminder that the tools we use impose subtle constraints that affect design. After importing, I’ll need to manually adjust these visual elements—an added task, but one that’s necessary to preserve the integrity of the question format.
I also set up my GitHub Pages environment this week to prepare for final project hosting. Thankfully, I have prior GitHub experience, so getting it online wasn't too difficult once I made the time. My published site is now available here: https://hnm73.github.io, and I’ll begin testing my Captivate project in that space this week.
While I’m making solid progress, I have to admit that I’m finding it difficult to keep up with the reading assignments alongside the intensive development work required for this project. The technical troubleshooting, design decisions, content creation, and testing demand significant time and attention—and sometimes, that means reading gets pushed to the margins. That said, I’ve done my best to reflect on this week’s assigned chapters, and I found several points especially meaningful and applicable.
Chapter 17 on teaching thinking skills prompted me to revisit how I’ve structured my grammar questions. While my project doesn’t explicitly train higher-order thinking, I can see how choosing the correct phrase from context exercises domain-specific problem-solving. I’m now more aware that even well-crafted assessments can support cognitive development—especially when paired with explanations or feedback, which I’m planning to include for some of the more complex questions.
Chapter 18’s focus on instructional video also gave me a new appreciation for how Captivate handles timeline-based content. Though I’m not using full instructional videos in this project, the chapter highlighted the value of short, targeted demonstrations—something I might add post-course as a video-based walkthrough on how to approach tricky question types, potentially embedded on my GitHub site.
Chapter 19's treatment of games in learning reminded me why I opted for a straightforward assessment format rather than gamification. While games can promote motivation and engagement, they can also introduce distractions if not tightly aligned with learning goals. Given the linguistic precision required for the JLPT, I believe a more direct, focused quiz experience best suits my project’s intent—but I appreciated the insight into when games are most effective and might revisit this in future iterations.
Chapter 20’s discussion of immersive virtual reality (IVR) stood out as both inspiring and aspirational. There’s clear value in simulations and immersive environments, particularly for procedural learning or training in high-risk domains. It’s beyond the scope of this project, but I can’t help but imagine what a virtual JLPT-style conversation simulator could look like—especially at higher fluency levels.
Finally, Chapter 21 provided a helpful checklist and wrap-up of multimedia principles, which I’ll use this coming week as I move into the refinement and testing phase. It’s a timely reminder to step back and evaluate the design through the lens of evidence-based best practices—not just “what works” technically, but what supports cognitive processing and promotes learning.
With one week to go, I’m optimistic about finishing strong, though I expect there’s still plenty of polishing ahead. Even though I’ve had to scale down some of my original ambitions, I’ve gained a much deeper understanding of instructional design constraints, tools, and how theory applies in real development situations.
Reference:
Clark, R. C., & Mayer, R. E. (2024). e-Learning and the science of instruction (5th ed.). John Wiley & Sons.