Learnovate - Course Management System
About This Project
The client wanted to develop a responsive, centralized course management web application for instructors, students, and school administrators. The goal was to streamline the management of course materials, assignments, and communication. As a freelance designer, I contributed to the design, creating a user-friendly interface that ensures seamless access to resources and efficient assignment management, tailored to the needs of educational institutions in Myanmar.
ROLE
Visual Design
Prototyping
Date
March 2023
Tools
Problems
Manual Material Sharing: Instructors often struggle to share course materials through emails or physical copies, leading to inefficiencies and missed information.
Lack of Centralized Communication: Important announcements and updates are scattered, causing confusion for students.
Assignment Tracking Issues: Managing assignments manually results in delayed feedback and difficulty in tracking submissions.
Solution
Centralized Material Management: A platform where instructors can upload, organize, and share course materials effortlessly.
Unified Communication Hub: A dedicated space for posting announcements to keep students informed in real-time.
Streamlined Assignment Workflow: Tools to assign, submit, and track assignments efficiently, reducing delays and improving accountability.
Design Process
Requirements
To gather requirements from the client, I held discussions to understand their specific needs and goals for the application. The client emphasized the importance of a centralized platform for managing course materials, announcements, and assignments. Key features identified included:
Key Features
Course Material Upload: Instructors can upload and organize course materials by subject or module.
Announcements Section: A centralized space for sharing updates, reminders, and class notifications.
Assignment Management: Allows instructors to post assignments, set deadlines, and review submissions, while students can easily submit tasks online.
Assignment & Exam Calendar: Displays assignment deadlines and exam dates in one place, automatically synced when posted, with reminders for students.
Responsive Interface: A mobile-friendly design for seamless access to course content anytime, anywhere.
User Roles: Separate interfaces for instructors and students to provide tailored experiences.
Notifications: Automatic alerts for new materials, announcements, or upcoming deadlines.
Research
As part of the design process, I conducted competitor analysis to understand similar course management platforms and identify best practices. I also researched Myanmar's higher education sector to gain insights into the specific needs and challenges faced by universities and colleges in managing course materials and communication. This research helped inform the design, ensuring it was tailored to the needs of Myanmar's higher education institutions, rather than high schools.
User Goals and Pain Points
To ensure a user-centered design, I focused on understanding the goals and challenges of instructors, students, and administrators. This helped in creating a solution that addressed their needs effectively. Below are their key goals and pain points:
Brainstorming with the Team
I conducted brainstorming sessions with the team to align on requirements, explore solutions, and ensure the design was feasible and met user needs.
Stakeholder Presentations
I presented the low-fidelity wireframes to stakeholders, discussing the initial designs to ensure they aligned with the project requirements. This session helped gather feedback, confirm the user flow, and refine the system’s functionality.
High Fidelity Prototype
I created the high-fidelity prototype based on the low-fidelity wireframes and incorporated feedback from the stakeholder presentation. This process involved iterating on the initial designs to address any gaps and ensure the prototype met user expectations.
Dashboard
The dashboard serves as a centralized hub, displaying enrolled courses, upcoming lectures, special announcements, and notifications like assignment submissions. I designed it to be fully responsive, ensuring seamless access across devices.
Calendar
The calendar provides a clear overview of all lecture sessions and assignment deadlines, helping users stay organized and manage their schedules effectively.
Course Material
Instructors have access to a comprehensive course homepage that displays recent announcements and organized course materials. The content is systematically categorized into assignments, quizzes, marks and grades, and live lectures, providing a structured and user-friendly interface for efficient navigation.
Course Material
Instructors can organize course materials by creating modules, each containing multiple pages. This structure allows for a well-organized presentation of content, enhancing the learning experience.
By implementing such structures, instructors can ensure that course materials are presented in a logical and accessible manner, enhancing the learning experience for students.
Assignments
In the assignment section, instructors can create assignment groups to organize tasks effectively. Each assignment allows instructors to monitor submissions from all students, assign tasks to specific individuals or groups, and set due dates, ensuring efficient tracking and management of student progress.
Quizzes
In the quizzes section, instructors can create quizzes with detailed settings and individual questions. Each quiz comprises two main components: Quiz Details: Instructors to set the overall parameters of the quiz, including its title, description, time limits, and availability dates. Questions: Instructors can add and organize individual questions. They can choose from various question types, such as multiple-choice, true/false, or short answer, and assign point values to each question.
Announcement
Instructors can post course-related updates and information. These announcements are visible to all course participants and can be set to display for specific dates. Instructors can also allow participants to comment on announcements to facilitate communication.
Message
Users can send and receive private messages within the course environment. This feature facilitates direct communication among users, allowing for discussions, clarifications, and feedback.
