Semantic Fantepedia System: Development and Usability Evaluation

Abstract

Even though the Fante language is widely spoken in Ghana, especially in Central and Western Regions, there is still a lack of comprehensive and user-friendly resources for accessing and disseminating Fante knowledge. Existing Fante encyclopaedias have limited coverage, outdated information, and poor usability. Therefore, there is a pressing need for a comprehensive system that overcomes these limitations and provides a user-friendly platform for accessing and contributing to Fante knowledge. The objective of this research is to develop and evaluate the Semantic Fantepedia System that will aid in organizing and preserving the knowledge and culture of the Fante people of Ghana. The Design Science Research Methodology (DSRM) model was used in the development process to ensure a structured, efficient, and quality-driven approach to Semantic Fantepedia system development, enhancing project management and user satisfaction. Also, the usability evaluation of the Semantic Fantepedia System (SFS) was carried out using the System Usability Scale (SUS) which also produced positive results. The mean SUS score of 83.2 indicates that the participants generally rated the system's usability as scoring grade A, excellent and acceptable. This high score demonstrates positive user experiences, showing that the system is considered easy to use and successful in achieving its intended objectives. Only 10% of participants considered the system's usability as marginal, indicating potential areas for improvement. Importantly, none of the participants rated the system as poor, confirming that even the lowest scores suggest at least moderate usability. Based on these findings, our recommendations include expanding the knowledge base to cover more topics, implementing advanced natural language processing for improved search accuracy, adding multilingual support, and ensuring regular content updates. Future work will focus on these recommendations, exploring machine learning for automated content enrichment and data validation, as well as developing a mobile application to enhance accessibility and multilingual support.