A Study of the Features of the International Children's Digital Library's User Interface from the Viewpoint of Users and Presenting a Proposed Model

This research studies Iranian children's understanding of the meaning of conceptual signs and icons existing in the user interface of the International Children's Digital Library (ICDL) in order to evaluate the suitability of the user interface of this library for Iranian children. The research method is mainly qualitative; however, quantitative method is also used to answer some of the research questions. The research population consists of 20 children aged between 7 and 11 years. The research findings showed that all of the conceptual elements of the English user interface are inappropriate for the use of Iranian children. Furthermore, according to the findings, none of the icons were evaluated as suitable from the viewpoint of the studied children. The research findings also indicate that the Persian user interface has facilitated the children's understanding of the meaning of conceptual signs existing in the interface of the International Children's Digital Library. Using the findings of this study, suitable user interfaces may be designed for children considering the differences in their culture and language.