Evaluating and expanding usability and user satisfaction of an online research portal

Abstract

Whilst online learning has gained rapid momentum, the development of online technology and practices that support the delivery of online courses with a large research component has been slow. In 2017, the School of Psychological Sciences at Monash University, Australia, developed a potentially scalable and transferable online research portal. This is an all-in-one platform that is designed to facilitate and support online research and research supervision, for supervisors and students. The research portal has evolved to currently provide research and research supervision support to over 700 online psychology students at the university. This paper describes the development, implementation and impact of the research portal and presents data from a preliminary evaluation of its usability and user satisfaction. Both research students and supervisors from the fully online fourth-year Graduate Diploma of Psychology Advanced program at Monash University participated in a series of focus groups, individual usability testing sessions, and surveys, and reported favourably on the research portal’s research supervisor and supervisee user satisfaction and usability. Qualitative and quantitative feedback provided useful information supporting research portal improvement and expansion possibilities, allowing an increasingly valuable contribution to online research supervision, research and research teaching.

Implications for practice or policy

• All research students will be able to complete their research-related professional training online.
• Research supervisors and students will be able to access a standardised best practice online research supervision and research tool across courses and topics.
• Course leaders will be able to expand online education with an online research supervision and research tool that supports all research programs.
• Universities will be able to provide a research learning pathway for all students.