Elevate
W.W. Norton Publishing Co.
An online e-learning product that uses scaffolded learning to break complex assignments into manageable steps. It guides students through challenges while surfacing the critical skills they’re developing, giving them a clearer sense of progress and mastery. Instructors can track student progress, learning objectives, and skill development, with fully customizable assignments to fit their course needs.
Year 2022-2025
Role UX/UI Designer
Client W.W. Norton Publishing Co.
About
Elevate
Norton's educational publishing division identified growing demand for scaffolded learning tools and critical skill tracking through a 2022 survey showing strong instructor interest in this type of assignment. This demand has become even more relevant today as students increasingly rely on AI for answers, making independent critical thinking skills more essential than ever.
'Elevate' is a scaffolded learning platform that breaks complex assignments into manageable steps while tracking critical skill development. The platform uses progressive support and feedback to help students accomplish tasks they couldn't do independently, moving from low-stakes learning activities to customizable higher-stakes graded assessments.
After extensive research and iteration over three years, our team created a final product that academic disciplines are now using to demonstrate to colleges.
My Role
As a lead UX Designer on this three-year 0-1 project, I was responsible for the entire design process, from initial research and ideation to prototyping and testing. I ensured the product's design focused on user needs and effectively supported both students and instructors through comprehensive research with 460+ participants across instructors and students.
My work included conducting and analyzing multi-year user research across multiple studies, designing and iterating on high-fidelity prototypes for both student and instructor views, and presenting research findings to stakeholders to gain alignment. I collaborated closely with a multi-disciplinary team to create research-driven proof-of-concept prototypes that academic disciplines now use when presenting to colleges.
Our Goals
Help students develop critical skills without feeling overwhelmed.
Provide process-based learning: breaking down large assignments into smaller steps
Support instructors with tools for transparent grading, assignment scaffolding, and critical skill tracking.
Create a flexible platform that balances engagement, clarity, and academic rigor across diverse disciplines and learning contexts.
Research & Design Process
Quick Summary
2022: Discovered opportunity (found a 44% interest)
2023: Validated concepts and compared two prototypes
2024: Tested user experience with students
2025: Measured market impact (discovered a 35% growth)
Whole Picture
I conducted multi-year research with 460+ participants to validate market demand and understand user needs across four phases:
Initial Survey Research (2022)
Designed and analyzed a survey with 252 instructors to gather feedback on current scaffolded learning methods and inform our design approach.
What we found: 44% initial interest in scaffolded learning but limited current usage, with top priorities being content chunking, skill development, and assignment transparency.
Design Update: Between 2022 and 2023, we built two competing prototypes (Elevate and Seagull Skills) based on survey insights to test different approaches with instructors.
Qualitative Validation (2023)
Conducted in-depth user research and interviewed 7 instructors to validate core concepts and identify which of the two prototypes we built, Elevate and Seagull Skills, were preferred by Instructors and to evaluate potential use of a Scaffolded Learning digital product.
What we found: Strong preference for Elevate's approach, with excitement about badge systems, workspace features, and transparent assignment structures.
Design Update: Between 2023 and 2024, we developed a high-fidelity prototype of Elevate (the clear winner), ready for student usability testing.
Usability Testing (2024)
Tested 8 college students from varying disciplines to validate the prototype's usability and assignment navigation, and to gather feedback on key features.
What we found: Students loved the scaffolded structure and gamification, but struggled in understanding the assignment flow, grading transparency, and how critical skills are mastered.
Student Quotes
“I like it. It's structured in a way that makes sense. Get Started, Lesson 1, Lesson 2, Lesson 3, and onto the Graded Assignment. I think it flows very well. ”
— Elyse
“It is doing the most it can to help students to understand what they are supposed to be learning which I think is really good.”
— Heba
Design Update: Between 2024 and 2025, we redesigned the assignment homepage and refined grading and critical skill transparency. After implementing design updates, we created the final demo-ready prototype.
Follow-up Survey (2025)
Designed and analyzed a survey with 205 instructors to gather updated feedback on current scaffolded learning methods, building on insights from our initial 2022 survey and identifying critical skills relevant to scaffolded learning practices.
What we found: 35% growth in scaffolded learning usage over three years, and found that 52% of schools require critical skills reporting with an additional 24% encouraging it, confirming both market demand and institutional pressure for our solution.
Design Challenges
As we moved from research into prototyping, several key challenges emerged that shaped the direction of Elevate's design. These challenges highlighted the complexity of building a tool that balances the needs of both students and instructors, while making critical skill development clear and measurable.
Challenge 1
Balancing Low-Stakes vs. High-Stakes Work
We needed to scaffold the experience so students built confidence with low-stakes activities before tackling higher-stakes graded assessments. The challenge was to make this flow feel motivating and cohesive rather than overwhelming.
My Solution:
I added clear visual indicators on the assignment homepage to communicate which sections are graded versus ungraded. These indicators included “graded” labels within each step, and an overall grade component at the top of the page. I also included brief descriptions at the beginning of each step explaining how to complete the section and whether it's graded or ungraded. Testing confirmed that this update worked, as all students understood that "Getting Started" was a prerequisite review graded only for completion, not accuracy.
Challenge 2
Communicating Critical Skills
Instructors wanted assignments that explicitly tracked and reported on critical skills (critical thinking, problem solving, writing). Students, however, didn't always see the connection between content and these broader skills. The design needed to make skill development visible and meaningful without adding complexity.
My Solution:
I designed a modular component system that could accommodate different content types and assignment structures while keeping the student experience simple. I created a consistent left-hand panel that gave students access to Progress, Resources, and Skillset no matter what type of assignment they were working on. I also added collapsible sections so students could hide content if it became distracting or overwhelming.
Testing across different subjects like Biology, History, and Psychology showed that 7 out of 8 students could successfully navigate the core features, which proved the interface hid the system's complexity while staying intuitive for students.
Challenge 3
System Flexibility Across Disciplines and Assignment Types
The platform needed to accommodate diverse content types (tutorials, videos, different question formats) and assignment structures (with/without writing components, with/without graded quizzes) while working across Biology, History, Psychology, and other disciplines. In addition to the flexibility, the student experience still needed to feel intuitive and straightforward, and avoid cognitive overload.
My Solution:
I created a gamified system that made skill development visible by adding critical skill tags to specific questions. When students answered questions correctly, they earned stars that appeared on screen and moved to their skillset panel, creating a clear connection between content and skill development. Testing showed students found the stars motivating and understood the "interconnected relationship between the material and the skill."
Next Steps
The Elevate student and instructor interfaces are complete and we've successfully validated market demand and user value. Norton discipline writers are currently putting their content into our high-fidelity demo, and it's being presented at colleges to show what the platform can do. With our prototype and user testing completed, we're preparing for market launch!