Product
Virtual Reality
Next World
I don't know how you got here but…
I don't know how you got here but…
Creating a virtual school for inclusive learning
This case study is made for desktop mode.
This case study is made for desktop mode.
See you there!
Role
3D Art Direction
UX Design
User Research
Outcomes
80% user approval rate
Top 10 out of 218 teams
Recognition from Head of Design @ Meta
Team
2 Designers
Duration
1 week
Design Challenge
“How might we intentionally create a better world through immersive technologies?”
Upon receiving this challenge, my partner and I discussed various problems that have been ongoing in the world. We recognized that effective problem-solving requires deep understanding for those affected, so we focused on an issue we had both personally encountered.
Coming from diverse backgrounds, we discovered a common thread in our experiences: education. Our differing yet similarly impactful educational journeys became the foundation for our project.
The Solution
Lessons are run by AI teachers for consistency across classes.
Students are assigned to classes based on their level which are labelled by figurative words. In Next World, there are no grades or numerical measures visible to other users.
Tutors are human buddies who help outside of class.
Tutors are readily available on their own schedule and students can ask them questions from their virtual class or day school. Since they are human, tutors can also provide emotional support.
XP & Currency Points run the platform's economy.
Students earn XP points by attending classes and currency points by taking quizzes and participation. XP points unlock tier advancements, while currency points redeem tutoring services. Most importantly, points cannot be bought with cash.
Process
Discovery
Secondary Research
Household income disparities affect the quality of education.
Among top academic students in 1st grade in the U.S alone, only 28% of them come from low-income families, whereas up to 72% are from high-income households. By the 3rd grade, 90% of the achievement gap is already present between students.
This is because children from low-income families attend low-funded schools where they are not provided the same quality of education and resources as schools in affluent areas.
Meritocracy is deeply engraved in our society.
Meritocracy is a social system that measures an individual’s success solely based on their skill and level of effort.
From the surface, meritocracy looks like a fair system for all. However, different individuals come from different backgrounds, which also means different starting points.
Furthermore, children from low-income families tend to have a negative outlook on life due to these gaps in society.
We took keywords that we found in our research and created a word cloud out of it to generate qualitative data. We concluded that meritocracy was built into our society to pursue equality, but not necessarily equity.
Gen Alpha and subsequent generations are Digital Integrators.
Commonly known as the ‘iPad kids’, Gen Alpha children are born between 2010 to 2025. Since birth, they have been exposed to advanced technology, meaning they spend more time being exposed to screens rather than engaging in traditional activities that do not involve technology, thus causing shorter attention spans.
Additionally, they have a clear preference for interactive content, with 77% of them reporting that they learn best when using technology. However, conventional teaching methods enforce passive learning, text-heavy material, and pencil and paper approach.
Defining Stakeholders
“Who would be affected by the product the most?”
At the initial stage of our research, the user interview team asked 5 participants from key user groups to get to know their opinions of the YES! website. We organized the insights into three main categories: Information & Design Clarity, Content, and last but not least, Navigation & Usability.
Teachers
Do teachers think the school is receiving enough resources?
How can teachers help students improve their performance?
Students
Do students feel confident about what they learn at school?
Do they feel a learning gap among their peers?
Parents
How do parents feel about the education their children receive?
What are their thoughts about their children’s future?
Problem Statement
“The current education system fails to provide an equitable opportunity to learn, resulting in an achievement gap from an early age.”
Empathize
Primary Research
Learning about personal experiences to understand on a deeper level.
To hear the voices of our users and fully understand their pain points, we conducted a questionnaire with 20 questions and received 25 responses. Our goal was to see if our findings were aligned with their real-life experiences. Doing so would strengthen our research and help us empathize with users.
Did you observe any educational or opportunity gap between your peers when you were in school?
If you answered yes, what do you think caused the gap? Please select all that apply.
Do you think your learning experience in school influenced your path in life?
User Persona
This is Kayla, a 12 year-old living with her parents in Toronto.
She struggles with focusing in school due to a lack of motivation.
User Journey
Kayla felt overwhelmed and disconnected from her studies, but NextWorld transformed her experience.
She finds relief, empowerment, and a sense of belonging among peers.
Define
Revised Design Challenge
Creating a user persona and mapping out the user journey led us to revise our design challenge, which we needed to do to narrow our scope.
How might we leverage immersive technology to provide an educational environment that encourages students to continue learning?
Goals & Expectations
We wanted to accommodate the needs of more children like Kayla, so we defined the goals and expectations to execute a successful solution.
Find fun in learning
Don’t feel judged by their actions
Discover a future goal/dream
Feel confident among peers
No bias or prejudice
Interactive Platform
Next World provides an interactive and immersive multimodal learning experience.
As Gen Alpha struggle to focus on passive content, our goal was to provide interactive and social features to help them stay engaged in the platform. We wanted users to associate learning with fun!
Next World strives to offer accessibility for all users, regardless of their technological resources. Our platform provides seamless access across a range of devices, including computers, smartphones, tablets, and VR headsets.
The interactive content ensures multimodal learning by stimulating various sensory channels and accommodating different learning styles such as visual, auditory, reading, writing, and kinaesthetic.
Ideate
MVP Ideation
Crafting the core of a virtual school by focusing on essential features.
During the ideation phase, we identified 3 MVPs that we thought were essential for a school in a virtual setting. Our thinking process was along the lines of “What is absolutely needed for the user?”, “Does this feature stay within the scope?”, and “Is this enough to satisfy the user?”. Then, we created a user flow to imagine at which point of the experience the users would use the features.
MVP #1: Virtual Class
As a student, I want classes that I can attend anytime, anywhere.
MVP #2: Tutors
As a student, I want tutors who can provide me help without judging me.
MVP #3: Points System
As a parent, I want a points system that doesn’t ask for microtransactions.
User Flow
Next World is designed to be accessible across multiple devices while remaining free for users.
Our approach focuses on two key aspects: platform support and strategic monetization.
Distribution & Monetization
Next World is ready for…
Virtual Reality
Meta Quest & Steam VR
Mobile
iOS & Android
Desktop
Software for PC & Mac
Virtual Reality
Meta Quest & Steam VR
Mobile
iOS & Android
Desktop
Software for PC & Mac
Virtual Reality
Meta Quest & Steam VR
Mobile
iOS & Android
Desktop
Software for PC & Mac
Virtual Reality
Meta Quest & Steam VR
Mobile
iOS & Android
Desktop
Software for PC & Mac
Our ideal no-cost revenue streams:
In-app advertisements
Partnerships with schools
Data sharing for curriculum improvement
User Testing
Feedback
Gathering insights for future development.
Last but not least, our final step was user testing. We took our hi-fi prototype and asked users for feedback. Most of the feedback we received was about additional features that would help enrich the educational experience, as well as establishing a detailed app economy so that Next World can be a sustainable app that continues to provide services to its users at no cost.
Conclusion
Adapting and thriving under many constraints.
Everyone has different working styles, and luckily for my partner and I, our working styles were quite similar. However, the real challenge was how we could work together as fast as possible. While I had experience with sprints, they were in larger, more diverse teams, so this experience taught me how to balance the full UX process from discovery to prototyping between 2 designers.
The complexity of the project may have been a factor in us not reaching the top 3, as the idea may not have been appealing to the judges who may be less familiar with immersive media. Our targets were Gen Alpha and younger Gen Z, so we believed immersive education would be more attractive to them.
If I get another chance to participate in a designathon, I will focus on developing a solution that is innovative yet easily understood by a wider audience. While it's impossible to create something for everyone, I will aim to prioritize clear communication and feasibility.
