Solving for Content Search and Increased Engagement
I led the design effort to answer the need of educators who want to assign lessons and measure progress.
Sector
Educator Platform with Classroom Resources, Assignments and Reporting
Results
Better usability and new features drove a 44% increase in returning users vs. PY
My Role
• UX Director (30%) / Lead Designer (70%) • Research Support • Design System Contributor
What if teachers could effortlessly deliver personalized, standards-aligned lessons that drive real progress? Welcome to Amira Learning's (formerly Istation) new Classroom Resources.
What is the product?
Amira Learning's new classroom resources are now fully aligned with state standards and can be easily assigned to students, giving teachers the power to deliver more relevant, personalized lessons. This updated content streamlines lesson planning, ensuring students receive engaging, standards-based material that accelerates learning and drives measurable progress.
What was the situation?
Our customers had expressed a clear need for the ability to assign lessons to their students, and while our current system offered limited assigning ability, the overall experience was inefficient and lacking in appeal. Additionally, current content offerings were outdated and no longer aligned with current state standards, creating a gap in the quality and relevance of classroom resources. In addition to these issues, we also needed to overhaul the search experience, making it easier and more engaging for educators to discover, explore, and utilize the new content available to them.
What tasks were involved?
Partnered with Product and Engineering teams to explore how to make our new content assignable, measurable, and provide actionable recommendations.
Connected with internal stakeholders to align on project goals and ensure cross-functional support.
Interviewed educators to needs across assignments, lesson plans, and reporting.
Ran several Design Sprints and workshops to brainstorm and collaborate with partners on the best approach to meet user needs.
What I learned in Discovery…
Through direct feedback from our educator customers, I learned that flexibility is a top priority when it comes to lesson planning. Teachers want the ability to assign lessons with ease, create customized groups of students, and access detailed reports to track and measure progress. Additionally, educators expressed a need for assignment templates that could seamlessly carry over to the next school year, saving valuable time and ensuring continuity in their teaching. By understanding these needs, we can enhance our platform to better support educators in delivering personalized, efficient learning experiences that drive student success.
What actions were taken?
As Lead Designer tasked with creating a solution for assigning lessons to students, I took the following steps to ensure the design met educators' needs:
Conducted workshops with educators to understand their specific challenges and desires for flexibility in lesson assignment.
Analyzed user feedback from teachers and administrators to identify pain points and prioritize the most critical features for lesson assignment, student grouping, and progress tracking.
Collaborated with internal stakeholders to ensure alignment on project goals and secure buy-in across cross-functional teams, including product, engineering, and content.
Studied competitor platforms and best practices in educational technology to identify opportunities for differentiation and improve usability.
Interviewed teachers to understand how they currently manage lesson assignments, track student progress, and organize student groups, ensuring the design addresses real-world needs.
Created and tested prototypes to visualize and refine the lesson assignment process, incorporating feedback from both educators and product teams.
Worked closely with the development team to ensure the design was technically feasible and aligned with our broader platform goals, including scalability for future school years.
The results of my design were a resounding success as educators' return visits increased 44%!
The launch of our new state-aligned, assignable classroom resources has been a tremendous success, transforming the way educators engage with students and manage lesson plans. By providing high-quality, standards-based content that can be easily assigned to individual students, we’ve empowered teachers to deliver more personalized, impactful lessons. The results speak for themselves:
Educator return visits increased by 44%, demonstrating the value and effectiveness of the new resources.
Assignment flexibility allows educators to customize lessons, create student groups, and track progress with ease.
Seamless transition of assignment templates from one school year to the next saves educators time and ensures continuity in teaching.
Enhanced student engagement with relevant, standards-aligned content, helping teachers focus on student growth and achievement.
This success has not only met our customers’ needs but has also set the stage for ongoing improvements, further solidifying our platform as an essential tool for educators.
