Colleague AI

My role: UX Research, UX Design, UX Operations

Duration: 6 months

Research Type: Generative research

Research Method: Contextual Inquiry + In-depth Interview, Competitive Analysis, Co-Design

Project type: Team project (Team of 4)

Tools: Google form, Miro, Figma, Qualtrics, Google G-Suite

Stakeholder: University of Washington College of Education

Background and Goal

This capstone project focused on developing Colleague AI, an AI-powered recommendation platform designed for K–12 teachers. I completed this project as part of my Master of Science in Human-Centered Design & Engineering at the University of Washington, contributing as a UX Researcher, UX Designer, and in UX Operations.

I collaborated with three fellow students and partnered with the University of Washington's Education Policy Analytics Lab (EPAL) on a National Science Foundation-funded initiative aimed at improving lesson planning. When I joined the project, EPAL had already conducted preliminary market research to explore the landscape of learning management systems within the education technology space.

Drawing from prior data analysis, the project’s core goal was to empower educators by improving access to personalized educational resources, ultimately enhancing student outcomes.

Problems

“It would be great to have a centralized platform where I can find resources in one place.”

K–12 teachers spend significant time searching for and vetting instructional materials to meet learning standards.
They rely on multiple tools, often requiring manual data transfer between systems.
Teachers receive little support when adopting new educational platforms and tools.

Process Overview

For this project, I approached with five steps to understand K-12 workflows that led to design solution.

Final Design

Research

Usability

Prototype

Planning

Contextual Inquiry
Interview
Competitive Analysis
Co-Design

Persona
Sketches
Storyboard
Medium - Fidelity

Assumption & Questions

Usability Testing

High-Fidelity

Research Methods

Contextual Inquiry + Interview

During the sessions, teachers screen-shared and walked through their lesson planning process including their experience using online platforms and educational tools that aid in their teaching.

Competitive Analysis

Reviewed education platforms to identify product gaps, strengths and weaknesses, and main differentiators.

Co-Design

After discovering pain points, and needs, and identifying opportunities through our research, conducted remote co-design sessions with K-12 teachers.

Key takeaway:

K-12 Teachers want to adopt new technology quickly and effectively.
They need support with vetting content for alignment with educational standards.
Building interactive lessons and that boost student engagement.
Tailoring materials to meet varied student needs.
Teachers need tools that enable filtering and customizing materials for diverse learners.
Sharing resources for collaboration with peers.