Background

Erudition is a learning management product that helps teachers assimilate new English learners, bringing them up to speed in STEM subjects particularly. The app aims to help newcomer English Learners transition into general education classes, enabling both English learners and students with learning differences to continue learning STEM content effectively.

The Problem

Teachers need help to check how well English learners and students with learning differences are doing in STEM classes. There is a need for assessment methods that are independent of varying state standards and can accurately measure student proficiency while identifying areas for targeted support.

How I Identify Success/Business Impact

1. Teacher Adoption: More teachers using Erudition to support their English learners and students with learning differences.

2. Classroom Integration: Erudition becomes a regular tool in more schools' STEM programs.

3. User Feedback: Positive reviews from teachers about how Erudition helps them assess and support students.

Why I Did This Study

I want to learn from teachers who work with English Language Learners (ELLs) and students with learning differences. We aim to understand the challenges they face in evaluating and supporting these students,.

What I Wanted to Learn

1. How teachers check English learners' understanding without using different rules for each state.

2. What common pain points teachers encounter in assimilating new English learners. 

3. Explore the balance between assessing language acquisition and content knowledge in STEM subjects

How I Did It

I conducted in-depth interviews with our target personas: teachers experienced in working with ELL students and those with learning differences, focusing on STEM subjects. This method allowed us to gain rich, qualitative insights into their workflows, challenges, and needs.

What I Learned

My research revealed some key insights:

1. Language vs. Content Balance: The primary challenge is balancing English acquisition with STEM content knowledge. Teachers struggle to determine whether a student's difficulty stems from language barriers or gaps in subject understanding. 

2. Quick Assessment Challenges: Teachers had frustrations with getting an accurate and quick assessment of students with varied educational backgrounds. Teachers need quick, standards-aligned tools that can account for educational gaps. They also needed something simple with a lower learning curve. 

Research Impact

Strategic Impact:

• Our research findings have led to a strategic pivot in product development by focusing on creating a user-friendly, multilingual assessment feature for STEM subjects to achieve the balance of language and content.

• This track of work has left a strong legacy, providing a comprehensive playbook for the organization to leverage in future ELL-focused initiatives.

Stakeholder Collaboration Impact:

• The research process fostered stronger collaboration between the UX team and education specialists which led to more informed decision-making.

Product Impact:

• Based on the insights, the product team is prioritizing the development of multilingual math assessments as a starting point, with plans to expand to other STEM subjects.

• The design now emphasizes automated, skill-based reporting to provide teachers with meaningful insights without requiring extensive training and reducing cognitive load.

My Learnings

• Collaboration between UX researchers, educators, and product developers is crucial for creating truly useful educational technology.

• When dealing with sensitive topics like student assessment for diverse teacher/student communities, it's important to approach research with empathy and cultural awareness.