GRADESCOPE MOBILE







MY ROLES

CO-DESIGNED end-to-end Gradescope’s first mobile platform, creating a new mobile design system and mobile product strategy

CONDUCTED USABILITY TESTING with students fully remotely  to accurately gauge remote accessibility during the Covid pandemic

    PROTOTYPED mobile workflow interactions including image scanning and object recognition
    IMPACT

    3 apps to 1

     reduced the amount of apps needed to upload homework remotely from three separate mobile apps to one platform















    ① PROBLEM





    Students could submit their assignments via Gradescope’s website, but the process was not mobile-friendly. Instructors would refer students to third party scanning apps, but they wanted fewer complications when students submitted their work.

    We needed a stand-alone app that could include the entire scanning and submission process in one place.








    ② CONCEPTS






    Inspiration from other education apps, and apps with similar functionality








    Wireframe of basic workflow






    Based on prior research on student users, we had to address the following:
    CHALLENGE

    Instructors often receive last minute questions from students confused about submitting assignments.

    Many assignments are turned in at the last second, and students are anxious about the reliability of online submission.

    We faced a tension between instructors heavily requesting students tag their own homework scans to each question, and students wanting to submit as quickly as possible.
    OPPORTUNITY

    1. Make finding the assignment, scanning, and submission as simple as possible.

    2. Make very clear the status of an upload. The app should be lightweight enough to work with limited data connection.

    3. Strongly encourage tagging questions, but do not make it a requirement.








    ③ KEY INTERACTIONS






    1. ONE WORKFLOW

    Previously students would have to find a way to scan their paper homework on their phones, transfer the file to web, and upload on the Gradescope site. Now they could see all of their assignments, due dates, and turn in assignments all in one place.





    2.  MORE UPDATES, LESS STRESS

    It is very important to both students and instructors that their submission tool is reliable. Therefore we make very clear the status of a submission. No more blaming technology for a late paper.

    Not that I’ve ever done that, of course.









    3.  STRIVE FOR THE IDEAL

    We encourage students to tag their scans with homework questions by allaying fears that it would delay the actual submission of the homework.





    Assignment submission prototype








    ④ TESTING








    I held a UX testing session with the entire design team to find issues with the live app, and categorized all issues by type and priority.







    ⑤ LESSONS LEARNED






    1. HOW TO CO-DESIGN

    For this project I worked side by side with another designer to build this app. At first attempted dividing the work by platform (iOS or Android), then by workflow, but ultimately learned that we had to be in constant communication for a seamless experience.

    2. WORRY ABOUT WHAT YOU CAN CONTROL, HACK THE REST

    One of our biggest challenges stemmed from the fact that the backbone of our app relied on a third-party scanning utility. We had very little control over the UI and interactions within the scanner, so we had to build a cohesive workflow and guidance around it.








      TEAM

      • Role
      • Senior UX Designer

      ProductVictor Kernes - UX Designer
      Ryan Crews - iOS Engineer
      David Escobar - Android Engineer


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