Ashley Ludolph - Learning Framework

As a team of designers, we worked with Intuit to develop an framework and template that would model world class instruction. These designs would be used by the Intuit learning and design team for creating learning materials for their employees. This experience was part of a design partnership experience in my Master’s program through Utah State University.

The Process

Research

We conducted interviews with team leaders to discover what their problems were both on and under the surface. After conducting our interviews as a team, each team member conducted a card sort on which we could compare notes. We identified five principles that we felt defined World Class Content: experience, feedback, empathy, instruction, and culture. These guiding categories would later be transformed into our definition for World Class Instruction:

1. Personal Connections

2. Empowered Learners

3. Progressive Structure

4. Immersive Experience

5. Performative Evaluation

We developed a list of principles for each of those terms that clarify what they would look like or how they might be implemented (see image below). Many of these specific principles came directly from our card sort. Others were modified or added based on feedback from our user tests.

World Class Learning in Action

Once the definition was solidified, we built an interactive example of what the framework would look like in action. Using Adobe XD we planned out a course overview for new support technicians at Intuit.

For the sake of simplicity, we built out a single module of training for their online product called Mint.This design was also refined through multiple rounds of user tests, both with instructional design professionals, and lay participants as stand-ins for Intuit’s learners.

Several concrete instructional design decisions were made to align the course with the world class definition. We broke the course into tiers based on complexity. Each tier was broken up into units based on category, and the units were broken down into modules covering specific learning outcomes, tasks, or topics. This is an implementation of the progressive structure aspect of the world class definition. This essentially created hubs and sub-hubs for navigation, and as a result, learners rarely got lost and could usually find their way around. This was reflected in our user tests; users rarely got lost when navigating through the course tiers and modules.

Learners receive the freedom to work along differentiated learning paths. Those with prior knowledge can test out of a unit, and focus on areas in which they need more support. This is a direct application of the empowered learners aspect of the world class definition.

To provide an authentic learning experience, we grounded all instruction, practice, and assessment in scenarios. This is an application of the immersive experiences aspect of the world class definition. These scenarios focused on achieving specific tasks that mimic the types of work expected to be performed by learners.

At the end of each unit, learners demonstrate their understanding through an assessment. Those who have prior knowledge can skip through a unit’s instruction and go directly to completing the assessment. At the end of the assessment, feedback will be provided, along with the option to review instruction, or to conduct further practice. Those who pass the assessment may move on to another unit. This is an implementation of the performative assessment aspect of the world class content definition.

We also wanted to help the users by limiting access to previous and current training materials, rather than giving them an entire library up front. This virtual lock-out is an essential element of the progressive structure element of the training. Learners cannot advance to Tier 2 before completing Tier 1. Because the prototype doesn’t have the interactive capacity to track users, this is implied in the on-screen text. In practice, the link to progress from a tier’s learning content to the assessment would only be visible once the learners have completed each module.

A similar approach may be taken when users are selecting a module. Many users expressed confusion when choosing between so many modules, so smaller groups of modules were “unlocked” as the learner completed previous modules. This is not only enforced with what is clickable, but in the visual presentation of the modules.

Next Steps

With the definition of World Class Instruction and framework now available, Intuit can determine the best way to develop learning solutions. This definition can also be used to identify possible areas for improvements in existing solutions. Using the definition to evaluate current training practices and materials would be an ideal first step to better understand where improvements can be easily made, where they are most needed, and then to prioritize and guide the development of future learning content.

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Get in touch at ashleyvludolph@gmail.com