The redesign shifted the product from passive presentation to active participation.

I defined a new interaction model built around stronger opening hooks, relevant media, shorter prompts, and meaningful student choices. I worked with visual designers, researchers, and engineers to translate that model into the finished product.

Problem

Second Step had an established, research-backed curriculum and significant reach. But feedback revealed friction for both of its primary user groups.

Educators were struggling to use the product effectively in classrooms. The implementation experience had too much reliance on scripts and separate supporting materials.  

Students were disengaged. The product was not holding their attention, and many found it difficult to take the lessons seriously. 

The challenge was not simply to modernize the look and feel of the digital program. We needed to preserve the underlying research and learning goals while reconsidering the product experience and how it worked in real classrooms.

Research → Design

The existing product delivered the curriculum, but its presentation and interaction patterns worked against participation.

I evaluated the experience across imagery, pacing, cognitive load, facilitation, and opportunities for student agency. I synthesized those findings with classroom observations and user feedback to identify the changes most likely to improve engagement.

What we heard from learners

Design response

Students needed an experience that reflected their reality and gave them an active role.

I translated the research into a product direction centered on photorealistic imagery and video, shorter prompts, stronger hooks, and more frequent interaction. Developmental appropriateness shaped every decision, including subject matter, tone, pacing, activity structure, and the amount of agency students were given.

I redesigned the lesson opening to create interest before introducing the core concept.

The new warm-up used a concise, relatable prompt rather than beginning with explanation. I defined the purpose, pacing, and content structure, then worked with visual designers and developers to produce the final experience.

Prototyping helped me distinguish meaningful interaction from activity added only for novelty.

I explored multiple content structures and interaction patterns, testing how each affected pacing, comprehension, and participation. These prototypes helped the team prioritize interactions that supported the learning goal and could be reused across lessons.

What we heard from instructors

Design response

Educator usability directly affected whether students could participate successfully.

I treated lesson directions, activity materials, facilitation support, and student-facing content as one connected experience. I worked with research, external stakeholders, and development partners to surface instructions at the point of need and reduce reliance on separate resources.

Connecting educator controls to the student-facing experience reduced preparation and facilitation friction.

I mapped what educators needed before, during, and after each activity, then used those requirements to shape the product flow. The resulting experience gave educators more timely support without overwhelming the student interface.

Product → System

The redesigned experience produced a 45% increase in user engagement, measured by student participation, focus group feedback, and observable data gathered in classrooms at field test sites.

I translated the strongest parts of the experience into a reusable lesson architecture, interaction patterns, and content standards that could support future digital products without making every lesson feel the same.

The resulting model moved through a repeatable rhythm:

• Create interest with a short hook.
• Build conceptual understanding.
• Connect the concept to a realistic situation.
• Give students a meaningful choice or application.
• Synthesize the learning through an activity or discussion.
• Reinforce the central idea.
• Close with a brief reflection or exit prompt.

The structure gave teams a consistent foundation for designing new lessons while leaving room to adapt the experience to different topics, age groups, and learning goals.

Results

• 45% increase in user engagement
• Reusable product frameworks
• Stronger design consistency

This work reinforced how important it is to understand the people using a product and the context in which they use it. Users quickly recognize when an experience does not respect their autonomy or reflect how they see the world.

It also showed me that usability and engagement cannot be designed in isolation. The strongest solutions came from treating content, interface, facilitation, accessibility and behavior change as one connected system.

If I continued the work, I would pair the qualitative testing with more detailed behavioral data: examining where participation changed, which activity patterns performed most consistently, and how educator preparation differed across versions. I would also prototype and test interactive product features – such as anonymized polls or text box inputs – to further increase engagement.