LADDER | Solo Project (Sep - Dec, 2022)
Making Large Tasks More Approachable for Students
Introduction
The Problem Statement: How might we make managing numerous school tasks less overwhelming for students?
Through talking to peers and mentoring students on campus, I noticed that students commonly have an organisation system, however, feel overwhelmed when approaching and managing their tasks. This project aims to incorporate a learning strategy called "chunking", to make achieving goals more attainable.
The Problem
Students have an organisation system but find managing their tasks overwhelming.
Working as an accessibility services mentor on campus, I supported students with temporary and/or permanent disabilities through their academic success. I found that the problem was not that students don't have an organisation system but that they have difficulty approaching and managing their tasks. I began to explore this problem space.
Research
Conducting a survey with 73 responses, I found that 75% of students feel overwhelmed by large tasks.
This is Amy. Amy is a student who relies on various management tools to organise her school tasks.
Despite this, she often feels overwhelmed when tackling them.
Conducting 8 user interviews, I found that while most students try to break down their tasks mentally, only 9.6% actually incorporate this into their organisational systems.
Like many of her peers, Amy attempts to break down large tasks into smaller, manageable parts, but she does this mentally rather than using her organisation tools.
To explore potential solutions, I interviewed a learning strategist at the University of Toronto. They introduced me to the concept of 'Chunking':
Chunking makes tasks less overwhelming: “Instead of trying to go through everything at once, they can keep in mind the different steps that they can take to get where they want to be eventually” - Learning Strategist
Chunking makes to-do lists more effective: "You can make to-do lists more effective by breaking down tasks into smaller tasks. For example: write paper ⇒ write introduction, make tables, etc."
Chunking helps supplement ones working memory: “By writing these steps down to an external resource, it off-loads a lot of that information onto the external resource, allowing them to save their cognitive capacity for actually working on the task”
A learning strategist recommends 'Chunking' as a solution to Amy:
"The idea behind chunking is to break down some of the larger tasks you have into smaller parts to an external resource."
3 out of 4 competitors do not have a feature for breaking down tasks; in order to understand existing competitors and identify opportunities, I conducted competitive analysis on 4 widely known and used time management / organisation apps.
The current market does not provide an organisational tool with 'chunking' as a feature.
Process
After multiple rounds of iterating LADDER, I conducted usability tests with 5 potential end-users. I observed the participants behaviour and listened to each participant think-aloud. This allowed me to easily identify which areas of LADDER users found confusing or frustrating to use.
Testing with 5 potential end-users to guide iterations.
Design Decisions
Design Decision 1
An example of an area that I iterated after usability testing was the tutorial - I shortened the number of pages the tutorial had and added a visual representation so that even users who skim through the tutorial can quickly grasp information.
Design Decision 2
I re-explored the design of the home screen as 2 out of 5 users had questions understanding the initial design. Through creating multiple design options and working with users, I decided to go forward screen outlined in red because (1) users preferred to know when they would be free through a message notification and (2) making all messages and suggestions from LADDER the same colour reduced confusion for users.
Solution
1. Sync your calendar to LADDER
By syncing your calendar, LADDER can provide you with suggestions on what to complete during your free time blocks - LADDER also provides rest blocks. Calendar blocks are white, chunks (smaller portions of tasks) are purple, and rest blocks are green. LADDER makes suggestions depending on deadlines and how long you are available for. LADDER will learn to be smarter as you continue to use it.
2. Add your tasks on LADDER
Create your to-do list by adding tasks on LADDER. If the task is similar to one you have completed in the past, LADDER will remind you how long it took to complete last time. All tasks come with red, blue, or green blocks, indicating urgency by deadline.
3. Break down your tasks into chunks
Choose to see chunks (smaller portions of tasks) that are yet to be complete, add new chunks as part of the larger task, or click 'view all' to see the task's history. By clicking on a chunk, LADDER will provide you with a timer, and you're ready to get started!
Reflection
Keep it up! This was my first UX project, and I am so proud of the amount of progress that I have made in the past couple of months. While there are still many areas for growth and improvement, I am happy to say that UX design is my spark, and I'm so excited to continue striving to become a better user advocate through design!
Iterate, iterate, and iterate again. This project followed an iterative UX process, where I was constantly going through the cycle of designing, receiving feedback, and then making iterations. Looking back, I see how significantly my designs have changed to meet user needs and address various pain points - your first design will never be your final design!
Design for human behaviour. When designing the tutorial, I initially wanted to add as much detail as possible to guide the user's understanding. However, it took 1 user to skip the tutorial during usability testing for me to recognise that as UX designers, we are adapting to human behaviour. I took this feedback and simplified my designs instead of expecting users to adjust their behaviour.
