Alicia Quan introduces our new podcast co-host, Sarah Mondestin ! Ever wondered how to collaborate with UX of EdTech ? This episode should point you in the right direction. The hosts discuss Sarah's diverse career journey from educator to UX content designer and her involvement in various UX of EdTech initiatives. The conversation covers the structure and goals of the UX of EdTech Community and Studio, highlighting their focus on networking, showcasing work, and supporting EdTech companies w...
Mar 03, 2025•26 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast How can UX practitioners upskill in game design for a learning context? And why is this important in EdTech? Alicia Quan chats The Sims, cheat codes, and moving past the “Big 5” of gamification (points, badges, leader boards, levels, progress bars) towards something more with: Chris Bennett , Game designer, Stanford invited lecturer, and EdTech advisor Worth Noting: Chris’ Stanford Game Design Thinking Blog Nine Dimensions of Deep Flow Browning’s MDAO framework Core Engagement Loop Follow ...
Jun 05, 2024•18 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast What is the current state of inclusive EdTech products and what are some resources to grow in this area? Alicia Quan chats with: Louisa Rosenheck , Director Learning Design at Kahoot! Sean Oakes , Creative Director at Backpack Interactive Worth Noting: The Kahoot! For All project , funded by the LEGO Foundation Follow for more goodies The Latest at UX of EdTech UX Job Openings in EdTech...
May 23, 2024•27 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with two members from the Khanmigo team at Khan Academy: Karen Shapiro , Sr. UX Researcher, former teacher of 16 years Jonah Goldsaito , Principal Product Designer They discuss: The story of how Khanmigo was developed and their early partnership with OpenAI on its GPT4 LLM launch The most challenging parts of the journey so far Balancing excitement and optimism with caution and foresight when it comes to AI developments What’s next for Khanmigo —— 🔸 Resources: UX of EdTech New...
Jul 20, 2023•36 min•Ep 17•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with several members from the team at ETS AI Labs: Lisa Ferrara , Sr. Director, Product Development Narmeen Makhani , Executive Director of Technology Erin Scully , Sr. Director of Learning Science and Design They discuss: 1. Cross-functional approaches to product development 2. The role of LX Design 3. Educational contexts and use cases for AI 4. Designing with explainable AI in mind —— 🔸 Resources: UX of EdTech Newsletter UX Job Openings in EdTech —— 🔸 Show Mentions: ETS AI...
Jul 11, 2023•46 min•Ep 16•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Dr. Rachel Schechter, who founded Learning Experience Design (LXD) Research at Charles River Media Group, acting as Principal Investigator and Chief Research Advisor to companies large and small. Rachel helps guide the use of data and evaluation to support product improvements, build evidence of efficacy, and strengthen customer implementations. They discuss: Ensuring educator-leaders choose literacy programs that work LXD Research Research certifications of products and w...
Jun 22, 2023•23 min•Ep 15•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with two members from Duolingo about their work as an early launch partner with OpenAI’s GPT-4 model: Edwin Bodge, Principal Product Manager Megan Bednarczyk, Senior Product Designer They discuss how they launched Duolingo Max, including: The story of how Duolingo Max came to be Biggest challenges of that journey and process Balancing optimism with caution when it comes to recent developments in AI Advice for teams currently exploring and building with GPT4 and generative AI ——...
May 30, 2023•48 min•Ep 14•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Yuan Wang , the Head of Design at Maven, aka the university of the future. She is also a leadership coach (CPC) and an adjunct professor at California College of the Arts. She previously led design at Airbnb, Twitter, and Mozilla. They discuss: Maven’s mission How the Founding Product Designer role influenced the business Best timing for hiring design support at a startup What’s next for leading design at Maven Maven is currently hiring a product designer Advice for those ...
May 01, 2023•53 min•Ep 13•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with a few members of the team who worked on Quizlet’s Q-Chat, the world’s first AI tutor built with OpenAI’s ChatGPT. It is modeled on research demonstrating that the most effective form of learning is one-on-one tutoring. Eli Kariv , Sr. Product Manager, Pranavi Javangula , Product Designer, Ling Cheng , Director of Machine Learning They discuss: What problem is Q-Chat solving for? What user outcomes were you working towards? A common question being asked is whether ChatGPT i...
Mar 14, 2023•21 min•Ep 12•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with the team at Backpack Interactive . Backpack is a strategy, UX and design company focused on the EdTech space. On this episode, we hear from: - Principal and Creative Director, Sean Oakes - Director of Creative Operations, Milagros Montalvo They discuss the benefits of when companies design to outsource their UX design work and also the flip side when there would be factors that could make this route challenging. —— 🔸 Connect: Backpack Interactive Alicia ...
Feb 13, 2023•34 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Nicole Gallardo , Founder and UX/UI Director of the program, Founders Who UX . They discuss why UX work is important and valuable for EdTech and education companies. They talk about the biggest barriers startups face in hiring UX support, the options they have, and what their next steps should be. They also touch on what’s next for UX of EdTech this year. —— 🔸 Connect: Nicole Gallardo Alicia Quan —— 🔸 Resources: UX of EdTech Newsletter LinkedIn Page + UX Job Opportunitie...
Jan 18, 2023•35 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Jessica Millstone , a venture capitalist, angel investor, and co-founder and managing director of Copper Wire Ventures , an early-stage fund focused on investing in women-led technology companies, primarily in the education space. Prior to the investing world, Jessica’s career spans deep and wide in EdTech and UX. She now brings her growing UX mindset to her current work with startups in the future of learning and work. They cover several topics, including: Why UX work is ...
Jan 11, 2023•47 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with a former educator and principal, and now UX Writer at BrainPOP, Sarah Mondestin . Sarah has served as the Editorial lead at UX of EdTech and has helped build an amazing mound of written resources to support UX practitioners in our industry. Be sure to check out the publication that she has been leading. They talk about going from the classroom to an EdTech role and the transferrable skills and circumstances Sarah has leaned on. They also discuss the tricky question of diff...
Jan 04, 2023•27 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with a Senior Product Design Manager at Coursera, Justin Morken. They discuss how to approach moving the needle from design as a service to design as a thought partner. Justin explains in very practical ways how to shift people’s perception of what a designer does for the organization and the people it serves. This is Part 7 and the final episode of the Design Maturity Series (2022). How do leaders build design maturity in their teams and across their EdTech company? What are t...
Dec 20, 2022•18 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with the Chief of User Experience at EdPlus (Arizona State University), Amanda Gulley. EdPlus is a central enterprise unit within Arizona State University focused on the design and scalable delivery of digital teaching and learning models to increase student success and reduce barriers to achievement in higher education. Students are deeply embedded throughout their design processes and team. They truly invest in students and emerging talent. This conversation is PACKED with de...
Dec 13, 2022•47 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with the VP of User Experience at Renaissance Learning , Jonathan Mann . They discuss what design representation looks like there and take a look at the company’s journey towards design maturity in the midst of making acquisitions and merging into one team and organization. As a former design leader at PayPal and Target, Jonathan shares what he has learned about the unique considerations found in the education industry. This is Part 5 of the Design Maturity Series . How do lead...
Dec 06, 2022•24 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Jing Jin, Head of UX at Outschool. They discuss how this startup has grown since 2017 and how the role of UX grew all the way to the executive level. Jing explains why Outschool has a role titled Head of School instead of a CEO and why they chose to skip the typical Chief Executive type titling. They discuss the role of Head of UX and its impact across the organization. Jing explains some of the obstacles she has faced and gives advice for leaders looking to build design m...
Oct 25, 2022•20 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Jamie Reffell, Head of Design at Clever . In this episode, Jamie gives us a working definition of design maturity and then weaves that throughout Clever’s recent story of design team growth. We talk about what happens when design maturity models don’t neatly apply to smaller teams and what the team at Clever did when they were in that situation. Also, what are the particular challenges that EdTech and education companies face when striving towards higher levels of design m...
Oct 18, 2022•24 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Kara Hodecker , Head of Product Design at Panorama Education. In this inspiring episode, Kara masterfully unpacks how the team diagnosed their maturity level and the steps they are taking to grow rapidly while steadily increasing in design maturity. This is Part 2 of the Design Maturity Series. How do leaders build design maturity in their teams and across their EdTech company? What are the challenges and what benefits are in store? Stay tuned. —— 🔸 Connect: Kara Hodecker...
Oct 11, 2022•33 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast Design maturity at EdTech companies. Who’s the best? This episode kicks off Season 2 and a series on Design Maturity within education and EdTech companies. We have a wide variety of companies and guests lined up so stay tuned! In this episode, Alicia Quan chats with Adil Dhanani , Director of Product Design at Handshake . One of many things that stand out about Handshake is the presence of a Chief Design Officer role. We dive into this and the ripple effects that it has across Handshake. —— 🔸 C...
Oct 04, 2022•33 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan recounts the last year of the podcast (est. June 2020) and her journey in moving from a classroom teacher into UX and product design. She also discusses what is next for UX of EdTech. More announcements coming soon! @ux_edtech 🔺 Follow the UX of EdTech Network and Alicia Quan: - UX job opportunities in EdTech - Medium Publication of resources on EdTech product design and research --- - LinkedIn - Twitter - YouTube - Instagram - Alicia's Medium --- Music: Scott Buckley...
Jun 09, 2021•23 min•Ep 40•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with two instrumental team members on the Google Classroom product: Amanda J. Rosenburg - Lead Researcher, Team Lead Cora Foxx - a UX Design Lead We chat about: How to research and design for such a diverse pool of users globally Researchers considering self-care for the stories they carry (especially during the pandemic) How learning theory (academic research) and UX research of users behavior work together Design process What’s new and on the horizon for the Google Classroom ...
Jun 02, 2021•1 hr 5 min•Ep 39•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Brett Gunter , a product designer at Weld North Education working on Imagine Learning products. They chat about a variety of topics, including: Bootcamp vs. university vs. self-taught routes Portfolio and interview tips First year designer tips Design critiques Favorite resources Continuing to sharpen skills throughout your career 👉 Email Series: Exploring EdTech Product Design, UX, and Education HERE --- ⭐ Connect with Brett Gunter: - LinkedIn --- 🔺 Follow the UX of EdT...
May 25, 2021•30 min•Ep 38•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with several members from the team at BrainPOP about the collaborative work of cross-functional teams and the extra concerns that EdTech teams have in this space of education, students, teachers, and all the key players in that space. They touch on having varied experiences before working in product design, including the role of a science teacher. They also cover some portfolio and hiring tips and the guests mention some of their favorite resources for their disciplines. 👉 Ema...
May 11, 2021•41 min•Ep 37•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with Mauricio Malo and Joy Leelawat , UX Designers at Kahoot! They talk about the diverse work environment of this company, their advice for designers working in the education space, and an example of a design approach. 👉 Email Series: Exploring EdTech Product Design, UX, and Education HERE --- ⭐ Connect with Mauricio Malo: - LinkedIn - Twitter - Website ⭐ Connect with Joy Leelawat: - LinkedIn - Twitter - Website --- 🔺 Follow the UX of EdTech Network and Alicia Quan: - UX job...
May 04, 2021•18 min•Ep 36•Transcript available on Metacast How do you create a valuable digital user experience for children? Alicia Quan chats with Rubens Cantuni , designer and author of Designing Digital Products for Kids. We discuss this guide to designing beautiful, usable, and ethical digital experiences for kids. Be sure to follow up on the UX of EdTech publication for his guest article that gives a sneak peek of the book. 👉 Email Series: Exploring EdTech Product Design, UX, and Education HERE --- ⭐ Connect with Rubens Cantuni: - LinkedIn - Medi...
Apr 27, 2021•35 min•Ep 35•Transcript available on Metacast How do you teach UX design to teens? Alicia Quan chats with Hazel Wyllie , UX Designer at BBC. Hazel is passionate about introducing young people to design thinking and careers in the design and tech industry. This conversation unpacks a 30-minute lesson Hazel gave at a Tech Taster Day for girls. They also discuss how to scale this experience and why it is so important to share design thinking with young people. --- 👉 Email Series: Exploring EdTech Product Design, UX, and Education HERE --- ⭐ C...
Apr 20, 2021•36 min•Ep 34•Transcript available on Metacast Let’s dig into the important work of EdTech innovation and how founders, designers, and researchers can team up. Alicia chats with Ash Kaluarachchi , an EdTech startup guru, about several questions including: Do EdTech companies and entrepreneurs have a real grasp on what actual classrooms, teachers, and students need in K12 and higher ed? What edge do former educators have in the EdTech startup space? What advice would you give EdTech startup founders? Do they need designers? What should design...
Apr 13, 2021•22 min•Ep 33•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia Quan chats with the product team at Adobe for Education . The team unpacks many aspects of their roles and they answer questions that include the following: • How did you transition from teaching into your current role? What transferable skills do you rely on? • How do you connect Adobe products to what educators and students are already using and experiencing? • How is your design approach improving the UX of teachers sharing content, lesson plans, etc? • Tips and advice for those design...
Apr 06, 2021•45 min•Ep 32•Transcript available on Metacast Alicia chats with Dr. John Spencer , education professor and former middle school teacher. When John discovered UX design, it transformed how he approached his classroom. This is a must-listen for educators of all types. 👉 Email Series: Exploring UX, Education, and EdTech HERE ⭐ Connect with John Spencer: - Twitter - Blog article : 7 Ways UX Design Theory Transformed My Approach to Course Design - Video Deep Dive : How to Create Better Classroom Systems with UX Design 🔺 Follow the UX of EdTech...
Mar 30, 2021•37 min•Ep 31•Transcript available on Metacast 
