With the global shift to online learning, Zoom has become essential, yet student engagement remains a significant challenge. This project aimed to redesign the Zoom experience, transforming passive learners into active participants through detailed user research and innovative gamified interactions.
ROLE
UX Researcher and Designer
TEAM
Interaction Designer, Storyteller, Synergist*2
DURATION
10 Weeks
TOOLS
Miro, Figma, Paper, Pencil, Google Sheets, Google Docs, Audio Recorder
DELIVERABLES
Stakeholder Interviews, User Testing, Data Analysis, Prototypes, Final Design
The Problem
As learning moved online, Zoom became a default classroom. But for students, it felt transactional, isolating, and boring. For instructors, it lacked cues to student comprehension and participation.
User Research
Key Research Questions Asked
I independently mapped 60+ student and instructor pain points to uncover patterns that shaped our final design direction.
Connected Virtually, Disconnected in Reality
The synthesis revealed one converging outcome: a breakdown in meaningful participation on both sides of the classroom.
Research Methods
Observational
Studies
Mapped detailed user journeys to identify critical interaction pain points.
User
Interviews
Captured firsthand experiences from instructors and students globally.
Affinity
Mapping
Organized and synthesized research findings into patterns of disengagement.
From Patterns to Personas
Three personas emerged from our synthesis, each revealing different challenges in how students and instructors experienced virtual classrooms.
Key Insights
These insights pointed toward three opportunity areas:
Make Engagement
Visible
Students wanted acknowledgment. Instructors clearer participation cues.
Motivate Through
Play
Students responded to playful interactions; interfaces needed intuitive design.
Lower Social
Risk
Students feared speaking up; interfaces needed to feel safer.
Voices That Reflected Core Frictions
Design Strategy
The final solution featured an engaging interactive platform explicitly designed for student experiences, including:
How We Reimagined the Classroom Experience
These ideal task flows were built from real user pain points and mapped to reflect the behavior shifts our design aimed to support.
Student (Max) Task Flow
Max logs into his virtual classroom, greeted by a row of classmate’s avatars. His avatar’s Cubs hat sparks conversation with other baseball-loving classmates. As class begins, the chime of awarded points for attendance excites Max. This also motivates him to engage in class more. As the lecture progresses, Max pins his doubt in hopes that the professor can give him clarity on the topic. A few minutes later, the professor answers his query and launches the interactive quiz.
With his doubt resolved, Max feels confident he will do well on the quiz. Although he gets the third-highest score, he feels incited to do even better next time. At the end of the class, Max receives a summary of the points he earned. He is satisfied with the points and is excited to continue engaging in this format.
Instructor (Dr. Sheffield) Task Flow
Dr. Sheffield sits down at his desk to plan his class for tomorrow. He uploads his presentation to ‘Zoom Classroom’ and picks two activity templates to create short quizzes. The next day, he’s glad to see his virtual classroom full of avatars greeting him. Thanks to their unique looks, he instantly recognizes most of the student’s avatars.
As the class continues, he notices question marks pop up. This prompts him to glance over the cluster of doubts pinned on the class timeline. After addressing the doubts, Dr. Sheffield launches his pre-made quiz and gets live feedback on class performance. At the end of the class, he reviews the comprehensive dashboard that displays trends in attendance, engagement, and progress tracking. He is content that the class performance is improving when compared to previous classes.
Mockups
Interactive gamified features in Zoom classrooms
From timed quizzes to randomized topic wheels, each Figma screen reflects how gamified UX principles were applied to drive motivation, clarity, and participation.
Usability Test
60% improvement in student engagement through gamification
Usability testing of the in-class activity flow involved 5 university students experienced with Zoom and related video platforms. Two sessions were independently moderated and facilitated end-to-end, tracking behavioral cues, post-task feedback, and engagement metrics via a 13-question User Engagement Scale.
Students described the experience as highly immersive; however, testing identified three critical usability gaps, each subsequently addressed through targeted design refinements
Insight #1: Users Tried Clicking the Wheel (Not the Button)
Insight #3: Avatars Distracted During Focused Tasks
Avatars were hidden during quizzes to reduce cognitive load and minimize visual distraction.
- Nir Eyal
