My UX design journey actually began several years ago when I worked as a teacher living in Japan and Taiwan. Teaching through a linguistic and cultural barrier presented a particular challenge. Not only did I have to consider the structure and topic of the lesson, but I also had to consider clarity of language, visuals, whether students were paying attention, and whether or not they understood. On top of this, I needed to make sure that students were motivated in class. I had to consider the needs of my “users” in everything I did. The skills I developed during this time would later lead me into user experience design, which turned out to be the role I’m most passionate about. While attending General Assembly’s bootcamp for UX/UI design, I found I already had a strong foundation in considering my users, and the specific skills I learned in the class came naturally to me. I am not seeking new opportunities to continue to develop as a designer and create joy for many more users in the future.

For the sake of clarity and structure, a teacher’s best tool is the whiteboard/chalkboard. As an English teacher, I used a color system to explain grammatical structures. Red for verbs, green for subjects, blue for objects, etc. Maintaining a clear and consistent visual language helped my students understand any new concepts by building on prior knowledge. 

Keeping students engaged was a twofold approach. The pacing of the lesson minimized downtime while also following a review, learn, then reinforce structure. Reviewing the previous lesson offered a way to reinforce the knowledge of the last lesson while also providing a good segue into the new topic which frequently was related to the older one. Moving along at a good pace with no ‘dead time’ kept student’s attention. 

However, good pacing alone does not guarantee students will pay attention. I employed gamification to keep their attention by keeping a running tally of points earned by participation in activities designed to reinforce new knowledge. Rewards were usually minor, if not nonexistent. Since I divided the class up by teams, friendly competition was enough to motivate my students. My goal was always to have my students enjoy each class while learning, and this was usually the case.

‘How do you go from being a teacher to a product designer?’ You might be wondering. Well, everything I mentioned above is relevant to product design. The job of a product designer is to teach the user how to achieve tasks within your product. Visual design should be as clear as possible with a consistent visual language. Products shouldn’t have much ‘dead time’ so that users don’t lose interest or give up on their task. Gamification motivates the user to complete their task and/or keep returning to use the product. And in the end, the experience of using the product should be a joyful one.