WEB APP
Increasing Student Learning Time
With available engineering resources on the teacher experience team, we saw an opportunity to address a pressing issue: students were not engaging in math practice enough to achieve optimal learning outcomes. Recent research indicated that students who practiced math for at least 30 minutes per week showed significant improvements in proficiency, yet many were not reaching this threshold. We decided to focus on increasing student participation through a new experience in the teacher platform, as modifications to the student platform were not feasible due to resources.
Role
Design lead
Project length
10 weeks
Team
Design, Engineering, User Research
/ ideation
Designing for classroom engagement
Building on educator insights about the limited availability of collaborative classroom tools, along with our past successes in projected experiences, we landed on a projected stacking tower game. This game served as a visual representation where each student's progress contributed to the class's collective achievement. By fostering teamwork and making individual efforts visible, this approach created an interactive environment in which students worked individually while collectively tracking their class’s advancement.
/ game mechanics
/ game mechanics
Tailoring competition across classrooms
Teacher collaboration led us to explore the idea of class-to-class competition as a way to further promote student engagement. To ensure fairness and encouragement, we crafted personalized, dynamic goals for each class, tailored to varying performance levels. A leaderboard system matched classes with similar achievements, fostering a fair and motivating environment. This balanced approach encouraged friendly rivalry while supporting both classroom progress and sustained engagement.
/ VISUAL DESIGN
Establishing a unique visual direction
Mapping out the current flows of an Airbnb host
To ensure clarity when projected in classrooms, we established a high-contrast visual system that was both eye-catching and distinct from our standard design system. Beginning with a minimal prototype, we piloted it with students and teachers, gathering feedback to fine-tune the experience before a full-scale rollout.
/ game levels
/ game levels
A whole new worlds
To make the classroom experience engaging even without inter-class competition, we introduced a progression system featuring unique worlds/levels that students could unlock as they advanced. Each world has its own theme, complete with celebration moments and hidden easter eggs, keeping students motivated and excited to reach the next stage. This provided ongoing incentives for students to continue their math practice.
/ roll-out
Student-Tested,
Teacher-Approved
Mastery Tower has been well-received, with hundreds of weekly sessions primarily in grades 3–5, enhancing student interaction and engagement. Teachers often used it as an occasional reward, which increased excitement but limited consistent engagement. This data highlights opportunities to integrate more frequent, student-driven elements to sustain momentum and maximize learning outcomes.
MOBILE APP