Assessing the Impact of User Interface Abstraction on Online Telecommunications Course Laboratories

In this paper, we analyze the impact of user interface abstraction in remote telecommunications laboratories. We employ four interfaces, ranging from point-and-click to traditional in-lab interfaces, for students to interact with networking equipment. We then survey students following the completion of these laboratory exercises to assess the effect of the different user interfaces on the learning experience. Our analysis indicates a sweet spot in the amount of abstraction provided by the interface, with the Web-based rich interactive interface obtaining the most positive feedback from students.