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e71e64 lisa 2026-05-25 22:51:38
SD C04: add Hot Cross Bun Matrix activity page; link from design guide and C04-home Hands-on Use-Modify-Create activity: design + run + defend an evaluation matrix on 2-3 bun brands, with blind tasting, independent scoring, persona stress-test, a blank scoring template, and transfer to C4-2/U4 O1. Original example (not reproducing CHOICE's data); links the CHOICE bun video. Co-Authored-By: Claude Opus 4.7 (1M context) <noreply@anthropic.com>
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> **DRAFT** — under teacher review.
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# Activity — Design a Hot Cross Bun Matrix
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The Hamilton and Alexandra College · Year 12 · 2026
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The fastest way to learn how to *design* an evaluation matrix is to build one for something real — and edible. CHOICE rates hot cross buns with the same discipline it rates headphones; in this activity, so will you. By the end you'll have designed, run and defended an evaluation matrix — the exact skill you need for **C4-2** and **Unit 4 Outcome 1**, where the thing you're judging is your own software.
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{{Video|src=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k7m04xW0fzk}}
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**🎯 Watch first:** notice the panel scores against *agreed criteria*. Your job today is to decide those criteria — and defend them.
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---
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## The challenge
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We have **two or three brands** of hot cross buns. Working as a review panel, you will **design an evaluation matrix, use it to crown a winner, and justify every design decision** — exactly as you would for a [software evaluation](/sd/C04/Designing%20an%20Evaluation%20Matrix).
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---
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## Step 1 — Make the design decisions *before you taste*
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This is the whole point: criteria come **first**, never invented afterwards to crown the bun you happened to like. Working from the [seven design decisions](/sd/C04/Designing%20an%20Evaluation%20Matrix), agree on:
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- **Who you're recommending for** — the persona drives everything. "Best bun" is meaningless; "best bun *for a family's Easter breakfast*" tells you what to measure.
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- **Your criteria** — the handful that decide it for that person.
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- **How each is measured** — a blind panel rating, or something objective like price-per-bun or counting fruit pieces.
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- **Weights, justified** — where your point of view lives.
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- **A scale** (use 0–5), and **what you deliberately exclude** (and why).
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A worked design for the persona *"a family buying for Easter breakfast"*:
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| Criterion | Weight | How you'll measure it |
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|---|---|---|
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| Taste | 35% | Blind panel rating, 0–5 |
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| Texture & freshness | 20% | Blind panel rating |
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| Fruit & spice | 20% | Blind panel rating |
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| Value | 15% | Price per bun → converted to a 0–5 score |
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| Appearance | 10% | Rating |
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*Deliberately excluded:* packaging — it doesn't change how the bun eats.
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---
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## Step 2 — Taste blind, score independently
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Two habits here are real evaluation skills, not just fairness:
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- **Blind it.** Label the brands A, B, C with the names hidden. If you can see the brand, the brand scores it for you — that's bias, and controlling for it is part of doing evaluation properly.
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- **Score on your own first, then compare.** If everyone just agrees with whoever speaks loudest, you've measured confidence, not buns.
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Apply your weights to each brand's scores to get a **weighted total**.
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---
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## Step 3 — Write the verdict
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- **Explain** which bun proceeds, citing at least two criteria and their scores.
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- **Justify** it by **naming the rival**: what does your winner give up compared with the runner-up, and why is that trade-off worth it for your persona?
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---
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## Step 4 — Stress-test your matrix
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- **Swap the persona.** Re-weight for *a uni student on a tight budget* (value jumps) or *someone who can't stand sultanas* (fruit might even score *against* a bun). Does the winner change? It should — that's the lesson.
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- **Try to game it.** Could one inflated weight force a favourite to win?
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- **Hunt the missing criterion.** Aroma? Dietary needs? Size?
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---
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## Your scoring sheet
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Copy this and fill it in:
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| Criterion (weight) | Method | Brand A | Brand B | Brand C |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
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| | | | | |
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| | | | | |
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| | | | | |
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| **Weighted total / 5** | | | | |
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---
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## Why this matters
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The buns are a stand-in. The design decisions are **identical** when you evaluate your own software design ideas in [C4-2](/sd/C04/C4-2%20Checkpoint%20-%20Evaluation%20Matrix) and your finished solution in Unit 4 Outcome 1 — except there you can't taste the answer, so designing and defending the criteria *first* matters even more.
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---
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## See also
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- [Designing an Evaluation Matrix](/sd/C04/Designing%20an%20Evaluation%20Matrix) — the seven design decisions in full
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- [C4-2 Checkpoint — Your Evaluation Matrix](/sd/C04/C4-2%20Checkpoint%20-%20Evaluation%20Matrix) · [Efficiency vs Effectiveness](/sd/C04/Efficiency%20vs%20Effectiveness)
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---
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