McGraw Hill- K-5 Literacy Platform
Igniting rapid literacy skills aquisition through immersive and engaging learning sequence design for K-5 students
OVERVIEW
McGraw Hill is a global education company with over 130 years of experience shipping exceptional products across grades K-12. In recent years, they have expanded product lines to include digital learning platforms in response to the growing demand for more accessible educational modalities within today's classrooms.
PROBLEM
Ever since the advent of Covid 19, the need for innovative learning technology has been on the rise. Educators are struggling to meet the complex needs of today's learners; from massive skills gaps to rapidly changing pedagogy, teachers are seeking tailored digital solutions to manage immense classroom challenges.
SOLUTION
Introducing, Emerge! a K-5 new literacy platform built for the modern classroom. Rooted in the Science of Reading, Emerge! enables educators to deliver "just in time instruction" through data driven lessons, cross subject integration, and differentiated instruction on multiple platforms. Emerge! ignites deep inquiry and rapid literacy mastery through engaging digital learning delivery.
MY ROLE
I served as a delivery team Product Designer across the K-5 New Literacy Platform to successfully blend inquiry based learning with dynamic digital design. I delivered key visual design solutions within the Group Learning Practice sequence as well as within the Main Reads Literature publication sequence.
IMPACT
I successfully synthesized learning psychology with engaging interaction design tailored to the constraints of in-house authoring platforms. I promoted literacy immersion and streamlined lesson delivery through strategic digital interface design. I implemented human centered solutions both within core product screens and team collaboration spaces resulting in improved accessibility, clarity, and learnability across all product launch phases.
TOOLS
Figma, Adobe Suite, Microsoft Suite, Ceres Authoring Platform, Lucid, Jira, Confluence, Paper, Pencil
TIMELINE
6 Months
Gaining Product Clarity
USER RESEARCH
I performed an internal literature review to inform my designs for the 4th grade Multi-media flow. I discovered the following insights:
Educators and Students prefer:
Literacy curriculum that is backed by the Science of Reading
Blended print and digital platform modalities
Varied instruction delivery such as whole group, small group, and independent learning practice
Student data insights to deliver "Just in time" instruction
Cross-functional subject integration
How might we craft intuitive digital learning platforms that equip today's educators and students with the tools for success?
Synthesizing Learning Experiences
INTEGRATING INQUIRY BASED LEARNING PRINCIPLES
I partnered with Academic Designers to explore how we might blend our instructional model for Digital Literacy Design with engaging visual and functional design. My focus was to use strong design elements to center the principles of "just in time instruction" and hands on learning engagement into digital template design.
K-5 Literacy Instructional Model
JOURNEY MAP DEVELOPMENT
I constructed a micro student journey map that starts with a 4th grader entering the classroom and then engaging in both whole group and independent instruction. This enabled me to problem solve for user pain points and moments of friction.
Critical issues might be distracted students or time constraints for lesson implementation. Potential solutions could include dynamic transition screens, learning "hooks" to ignite engagement, clear lesson sequencing, and dynamic visual layouts.
Designing Frictionless Pathways
USER TASK FLOW / INFORMATION ARCHITECTURE
I brought user insights from journey mapping into more concrete screen design through information architecture and task flow visualization. This served for organizing important components such as screen transitions, directions, and interactive moments.
Grade 4 Student Flow
Exploring Visual Patterns
WIRE-FRAMES / EDUCATIONAL TEMPLATE DESIGN
I synthesized user insights into mid-fidelity prototypes for the 4th Grade Core Knowledge flow. I balanced design exploration with the constraints of our authoring platform, Ceres, to allow components to be easily built through digital widgets. I also built template design with a focus on classroom accessibility. Students need to access content at multiple view ports from large smart board screens to smaller computer interfaces.
Exploring visual patterns through wireframes
RAPID USABILITY TESTING
I recruited educators and students for brief usability testing sessions. Key performance indicators included student engagement rates, content clarity, ease of use, and subjective user satisfaction.
Insights from Usability Testing:
Clarify the next and back navigation buttons to reflect the parameters of the lesson
Incorporate clear imagery in correspondence with the Read Aloud text
Overall approval for gamification elements such as personal leader boards and progress indication
FULL FIDELITY PROTOTYPES
I incorporated user feedback and instructional frameworks into full fidelity template prototypes. Core solutions include:
Dynamic use of typography to enable clarity at multiple vantage points
I created strong hierarchy by emphasizing main content such as focus questions and directions. I incorporated iconography and visual emphasis to enable engagement and visual clarity for both students and educators.
Transition Screens - Focus Question & Directions
Accessible Reading and Writing Screens
I utilized strategic UI card design to frame and emphasize text. This is paired with bolded concept words and related imagery to enhance readabilty and reading comprehension.
Reading and Writing Engagement Screens
Independent Exploration Screen Design
I paired bold headings, clear directions, and colorful interactive elements to ignite student exploration. Students can discover learning content at their own pace through an accessible map and thumbnail card set that reveals a modal window inviting deeper learning through independent practice.
Interactive Learning Screens
Full Learning Sequence
I mapped out key screen explorations for the 4th grade Core Knowledge sequence with a focus on smooth transitions, student centered design, and overall learning engagement.
*The following screens represent my individual design explorations and may vary from the final approved product.
*The individual kid illustrations are from an in-house illustrator.
4th Grade - Whole Group Learning Sequence
4th Grade - Independent Learning Sequence
More to Come
It has been a gratifying experience to partner with Product and Academic Designers to launch a robust platform that empowers every child to learn how to read and write. I have gained success within my role as a Product Designer by fostering strong working relationships with colleagues and by always being willing to learn and push my skills as a designer.