Christy Zo
czo@andrew.cmu.edu
Momentum
Widget-based progress tracking tool for high school students
In the course Learning Media Design, I had the opportunity to co-design Momentum, a learning management and progress tracking tool with City of Bridges High School.
Timeline
Sep–Dec 2023
Team
Ankitha Vasudev
Andrea Chisholm
Heysu Oh
Roles
Product Designer
UX Researcher
Tools
Figma
Figjam
Client
City of Bridges High School
💡
City of Bridges High School (CoB) is a high school in Pittsburgh, PA that facilitates a progressive learning curriculum. In this project, we focused on the Personalized Learning Plan (PLP), which is a unique aspect of their curriculum that enables students to freely explore their interests and evaluate their learnings.
Simplifying learning management
for high school students
Momentum fosters self-accountability and cultivates self-regulation, a pivotal yet challenging skill in student development, among students by empowering them to easily track their progress and communicate with teachers.
Quick check-in through widgets
CoBHS students are enjoy using widgets on their phones because they are fun and simple.
Streamlining progress-tracking
With more Ford EV supply entering the Uber market, I determined that
demand for EV ride share should increase for the ecosystem to thrive.
Enhancing student–teacher interaction
With more Ford EV supply entering the Uber market, I determined that
demand for EV ride share should increase for the ecosystem to thrive.
How might we help students to develop personalized systems of productive time management and progress tracking which they can use in high school and beyond?
The core goal for this project is to make drivers want to own electric vehicles,
and make passengers want to ride in electric vehicles. The addition of a Carbon Footprint Settings that enables riders to customize and get rewarded for riding electric motivate Uber users to choose electric vehicles when booking rides.
Pain points
Tools that require too much input are overwhelming to CoBHS students.
CoBHS previously used ‘Headrush’ - a documentation tool for tracking goals and progress, but it didn’t work well for students due to its cumbersome nature.
Key Insights
Students need a simple tool to manage their PLPs.
Learning Management
There is no prescribed method for students to plan or document their learning and PLP progress. Students choose their own system, ranging from physical notebooks to Google Calendar.
“The freedom is nice, but it makes it easy to fall behind”
Workload
Students are generally not stressed by the workload because they view the CoBHS deadlines as manageable and flexible. To more easily meet deadlines, students may use their PLP time for schoolwork.
“I like the ‘free time’ to work on classwork. I don’t like bringing work home”
Resources
There are not always readily available resources for students that pursue unique or complex PLPs. Without easy access to the right resources, they are hesitant to continue their PLP.
“Our PLP started out really cool and but then we didn’t know how to code”
UXR
What Momentum offers?
Flexibility
Respect students’ autonomy and need
for flexibility by seamlessly integrating progress updates into the student’s existing workflow.
Documentation
Help students accurately document their PLP progress for their own self-reflection purposes and for updating teachers, and support students seeking help.
Access for teachers
Equip teachers with a platform that identifies the status of each student’s progress to help them prioritize which students to check-in with during PLP.
Design Iterations
Key Insights
Success Evaluation Metrics
Teachers feel more confident and knowledgeable about their students progress & learning.
Students feel like they receive adequate support from teachers
Students are able to complete a PLP and/or show improvement in their learning management skills throughout multiple PLPs
More than 75% of students use the platform every week