Mento Design Academy project
BrainSprout - accessibility
Lowering barriers for marginalized communities and neurodivergent learners with inclusive features
BrainSprout is a comprehensive learning web
app designed to create an engaging and inclusive learning experience for career professionals.
This project focuses on addressing accessibility in online learning to lower barriers for marginalized communities.
This is the second part of a larger project. See part 1 here.
My role
UX/UI Research & Design
Tools
Figma, FigJam, Miro, Lookback, ChatGPT
Problem
Online learning falls short of its potential to positively impact millions, especially those lacking access to traditional education
Current solutions don’t fully address accessibility issues, deepening the digital and learning divide between marginalized groups and those with fewer barriers.
Solution
Reduce barriers in online learning for marginalized communities
BrainSprout prioritizes accessibility features, enabling students achieve their learning goals and fully benefit from online education
Research
Online learning has the potential to democratize education, bridging the global skills gap
In my American Dilemmas college course, we studied societal issues such as education. It was clear that education can significantly lower barriers for people, close income gaps, and help build a better society.
Non-inclusive digital design deepens the digital divide for disabled individuals
In the U.S., 1 in 7 individuals have some form of learning disability - 10 million people in just one country. This indicates a large, untouched market that could benefit from online learning.
Limited technology resources disproportionately affect children from low-income families
Widening inequality in education extends into adulthood
Image source: NYT
Research highlights increasing gaps in education inequality in K-12 students, a widening disparity that’s reflected in the participation of adult learning between low and high-skilled adults. Disadvantaged students are also more likely to lack reliable internet and digital skills, continuously leaving them further behind.
Three features to improve accessibility
Offline access
- Students should be able to download materials to access and study offline later
- Increases access for students in areas with unreliable or no internet, lowering geographic and economic barriers
- Allows continuous learning so students can study in environments where internet access isn’t available, such as subways or remote work sites
Video transcripts
- Can help hearing-impaired students and non-native speakers understand course material more effectively
- Reading option improves retention and comprehension
- Allows students to skim content more quickly
Multiformat lessons
- Offer material in various formats, such as videos, podcasts, readings, and interactive modules
- Helps cater to different learning styles and preferences and enhances accessibility
Competitors often overlook the needs of marginalized communities
I analyzed competitors’ features, to see whether they included key accessibility features I identified during my research. My analysis revealed mixed results. Features vary widely across devices and applications, even within a single company.
Feature: Offline access
Only Coursera allows for downloading content on web for offline access
Feature: Video transcript
Only Coursera has transcripts on mobile devices
Only Coursera allows downloading of transcripts, and only on web
Feature: Multi-format content
Only half the examined competitors have multiple lesson formats
No competitor has an audio only option for videos on web, Coursera only allows for an audio only option when connected to the internet.
I found competitors' features lack consistency in accessibility and offline content availability. Moreover, they don’t include alternative formats for reading content, further restricting accessibility for some Learners.
Users share format preferences, accessibility struggles and helpful tools
To get firsthand insight into people’s experiences with online learning, I reached out to various social media groups, chat groups, and my personal network, recruiting people to share their experiences with me.
I interviewed 9 participants for 30 minutes
Chatting with users showed the importance of multiformat online courses.
"I prefer audio, because I look at the computer all day"
Participant 1
“I like to have it in written down because then I can refer back to it more easily”
Participant 2
"I need visuals"
Participant 3
“I like videos most because it’s easier to follow and less boring”
Participant 4
Users shared tools like text-to-speech helped people with ADHD and dyslexia stay focused
"I use Speechify to help me focus on long readings"
Participant 5, has ADHD
"You can remember things better if you can read and listen to it at the same time"
Participant 6, has family member with dyslexia
Design
Research helped uncover key accessibility features
Bionic text a strategy I discovered in an #adhd channel of one of my Slack groups
Option to download content for offline access
Transcripts and audio only for videos, both also downloadable for offline access
ITERATIONS
Observations and testing inspired me to include 2 additional features
Font-size options
Text-to-speech audio player for reading lessons
Overall feedback was that users appreciated the comprehensive features, and were excited to learn about new ones like Bionic text.
Final designs
Putting it all together in high fidelity
Options for video lessons
Features:
- View transcript
- Download in multiple formats
- Play audio only
Downloads available for multiple formats
- Transcripts are available in .docx format which can be opened with various apps and is screen reader friendly
Takeaways
Final thoughts and future visions
Key learnings
- Although the initial recruitment for the project did not specifically focus on differently-abled and neurodivergent learners, several participants mentioned or required accessibility features. This underscores the prevalence of accessibility needs and importance of gaining a comprehensive understanding of all learners' unique needs within the online learning landscape.
Caveats
- Online recruitment of interview participants meant the participants were less likely to struggle with digital skills and reliable internet access, so I had to base some of my decisions solely on secondary research
- I didn’t have any users wanting to use mobile for online learning, except for one person towards the end of my design process, limiting insights into preferences and behaviors of mobile learners.
Impact and future opportunities
- With 10 million people in just the U.S who have a learning disability, and millions more with limited access to traditional forms of education, there is a large, untouched market that can benefit from an online platform that prioritizes accessibility and inclusivity.
- Actively engaging with people from diverse socioeconomic communities can provide opportunities to both help close the educational and skills gap
- I would like to do further research with people who do use mobile apps for online learning - there are millions of users according to Apple’s App Store
- I would also like to do more targeted research and interview more neurodivergent people to learn more about their learning needs, regardless of whether they participate in online learning
- Add and test engaging congratulations messages and stuff
- Other languages
