Tools:

Figma, Photoshop, Illustrator

Team:

1 UX Designer

My Role:

UX Researcher, UX/UI Designer

As part of their capstone project for Brainstation's UX bootcamp, students were provided with the opportunity to delve into the realm of real-world issues and find avenues for improvement through the utilization of mobile solutions. Throughout the project, they were encouraged to explore various problem areas, identify pain points, and propose innovative mobile-based solutions that could address these challenges effectively. This comprehensive approach allowed the students to apply their knowledge and skills in user experience design to tackle practical problems and create meaningful solutions for a mobile-centric world.

Problem:

Ineffective parent-teacher relationships in our educational system result in hindered student growth and well-being. These strained dynamics often lead to miscommunication, mistrust, and unmet expectations, negatively impacting both academic and emotional development. These challenges underscore the urgent need for a solution that promotes collaborative and empathetic connections between parents and teachers. The aim is to bridge the communication gap, foster mutual understanding, and ultimately improve student outcomes. My goal is to create a more harmonious educational environment where parents and teachers work together to support each student's success.

Solution:

Get ready to experience the thrill of an innovative platform set to revolutionize parent-teacher communication like never before! Say goodbye to hectic schedules obstructing the flow of vital student information. Introducing an all-in-one app that's here to be your trusted companion, empowering parents with real-time updates and invaluable insights into every step of their child's educational journey. With its comprehensive features and user-friendly interface, this app is about to take your parent-teacher connection to exhilarating new heights! Prepare to be amazed as we embark on this transformative educational adventure together!

I embraced the Double Diamond method – a problem-solving framework that ignited my creativity! The journey began with the research/define phase, where I fearlessly explored, researched, and discovered plenty of innovative ideas. Then, the design phase took over, where I honed and polished those ideas through relentless evaluation, prototyping, and user feedback, crafting the most ingenious solutions. Throughout the process, open-mindedness and collaboration sparked diverse viewpoints, while critical analysis and iteration created the best viable product.

Secondary Research

According to the Herman and Herman article, a mere 47% of parents reported receiving notifications from the school about their child's progress. However, nurturing parent involvement has been proven to be a game-changer, leading to reduced absenteeism, lower dropout rates, and remarkable improvements in academic achievements and test scores. Interestingly, when parents feel they are investing an adequate amount of time with their child, they are more inclined to have a positive perception of their parenting skills, which further enhances their sense of accomplishment and confidence.

Hypothesis Statement

If parents and teachers had a variety of ways to communicate than they would have a stronger relationship. If topics and discussions were easily available then both the parents and the teachers could be up-to-date with the potential needs of the child. I’ll know this is true when the child is showing signs of improvement with grades and involvement. 

Primary Research

In the thrilling ideation phase, I conducted user interviews with 3 middle school teachers, firing off 20 non-leading questions. Transcribing those interviews created an affinity map. The affinity map allowed me to understand the behaviors, painpoints and motivations for all the participants. When I organized all my information thematically I was able to uncover commonalities and begin to understand where there would be room for improvement.

After I finished all my research I was able to use my information that led me to my HMW statement!

How Might We optimize parent & teacher relations so that children have more engagement and support with course material?

Meet Shiloh, our dedicated Middle School teacher! She plays a crucial role in our app, focused on strengthening parent/teacher bonds.  Join her guided tour to learn how to enhance those relationships!  Let's dive in and explore more about our target demographic. 

Join us for an adrenaline-pumping journey through the highs and lows of real-world interactions! Are you ready to empathize with her daily triumphs and tribulations? Let's dive in and understand where we can improve Shiloh's experience to create a more seamless exchange between parents. 

User Stories

• As a teacher I would like to post grades for homework and tests so that the parent is aware of how their child is doing on individual assignments.
• As a teacher I want to be able to show a rubric/grading scale so that parents are aware of the criteria for all deliverables/tests of students.
• As a teacher I want the ability to track whether a student was present in school in order for parent’s to be aware of their child’s attendance throughout the school year.
• As a teacher I want to show a class average so that it allows parents to be aware of how their student is doing in comparison to others.
• As a teacher I want to host virtual parent/teacher conferences so that I can inform parents of their child’s quarterly progress in the school year.

• As a teacher I want to show a class average so that it allows parents to be aware of how their student is doing in comparison to others.
• As a teacher I want to be able to see all test scores that I posted so that I can give student an accurate quarterly average
• As a teacher I want to log student behavior incidents so that parents can keep track when their children are misbehaving.
• As a teacher I would like to attach messages when sending grade updates so that parents have context as to why their child got a specific grade.
• As a teacher I want to be able to send videos of student behavior to parents so that they have visual context of the situation.
• As a teacher I want to filter students by name when I post updates for grades so that I can easily find the student I’m looking for

After creating user stories I grouped everything thematically. The core epic that I believed to be the most beneficial to my persona was the ability to record and keep track of progress updates. When everything was synthesized I was able to start concenptualizing how Shiloh would navigate through the app.

With my deeper understanding of what can be improved with communication I was able to create a task flow based on my chosen epic.

I created three sketches per screen, drawing inspiration from education apps and addressing user problems. Sketching allowed for quick idea generation and iteration. The chosen version featured intuitive navigation and familiar functions. Efficiency and spatial awareness guided deliberate design decisions. Sketching set the foundation for subsequent iterations. These are the refined sketches that I created.

I crafted a captivating mid-fidelity prototype in Figma, featuring stock images, icons, and research-driven information. With responsive screens, intuitive carousels, and tested wireframes, the user experience is simply spellbinding, conveying priorities through a greyscale hierarchy! 

Version 1.0

During my usability testing I was able to make use of screen space, resize icons appropiately and add buttons relevant for all of Shiloh's tasks. Along with big changes that I made to the login screen I also utiltized more space on the test score screen.

Version 2.0

Key Insights

• Multi-platform capablities and clever marketing are great ways to spread awareness and increase usage.
  
• Injecting color into a high fidelity mockup is more than a palette swap from your mid-fidelity mock-up. Color, identity, spatial awareness and proper sizing/grids playes a much bigger role.
• I'm more aware of the proper number of letters in an app name and the proper size of icons. I am much more aware of accessibility. I have a better perception of how colors can work harmoniously.

Next Steps

• Finish my entire app and make it fully functional not only on the Iphone but on the Ipad as well
  
• Create an apple watch app for Eduloop that allows you to record entire lessons and transcribe live conversations.
• Do some A B testing. Make further improvements and suitable interactivity throughout the app based on user feedback

See us working together? Want to chat about all things UX? Please dont hesitate to reach out!!