Prioritizing User Experience in EdTech Development

I manage a product where if we mess up, someone doesn't get into their dream university. Their life trajectory changes. This changes how you think about product decisions. We can't A/B test critical flows. Half the users can't be in a control group that gets the worst experience when it's their one shot at the TOEFL. We can't "move fast and break things" when breaking things means a student in country X loses their test slot and has to wait another month to apply. We can't "ship it and iterate" when the iteration window is someone's grad school application deadline. You need to develop a different risk calculus entirely. Low-stakes product PM: "Let's try it and see what happens.” High-stakes product PM: "Let's map every scenario where this could go wrong.” Every edge case is someone's only case. Every error is someone's nightmare. Every downtime window is someone's missed opportunity. And you can't explain this to people who've only built low-stakes products. They think you're being slow. Being overcautious. Being bureaucratic. They don't understand that your user doesn't get a second chance. This changes how you prioritize: - Reliability beats features. - Error handling beats new capabilities. - Support infrastructure beats growth experiments. Growth means nothing if the core experience fails when it matters most. Somewhere right now, someone is taking their test. If something breaks, I can't give them their hour back. You either build for this reality, or you don't. There's no middle ground. #ProductManagement #EdTech #PMLife

Education technology is easy to build in theory. The real challenge is making it work in the hands of a student whose internet drops mid-lesson, or a working mum who is logging into university for the first time on a shared device. The test is not in creating EdTech tools but in making them work for the people who need them most. When we started uLesson in 2019, we built a platform with high-quality video lessons, quizzes, and practice tests. Everything worked perfectly in our offices in Jos and then, Abuja. But that changed when we tried to get them into the hands of students in towns and villages where electricity was unreliable, data was expensive, and smartphones were often shared among siblings. The same lessons appeared when we launched Miva Open University, an affordable, accessible university that delivers quality education with the same rigour as a physical campus. Creating the platform was one challenge; helping working adults adapt to digital learning for the first time was another. Some of our students had never studied without the structure of a physical classroom. Many were logging in from places where network connectivity was patchy at best. These challenges sit against a larger backdrop: According to Quartz, only 1 in 4 students applying to university will get accepted. Not because they didn’t study hard enough, instead, in many cases, it is because there simply isn’t enough room for all of them. From these experiences, I’ve learnt that successful EdTech implementation requires: - Designing for context: Tools must work offline or in low-bandwidth environments. - Investing in people: Teachers, facilitators, and students need training, support, and trust to use technology effectively. - Patience in adoption: Communities don’t adopt new systems overnight. Value has to be proven, and trust earned, over time. I remain convinced that EdTech will play a central role in the future of African learning. But for it to truly work, it must be built not just for ambition, but for reality. It has to be built for students walking kilometres to school, for families sharing a single device, and for communities learning to trust digital tools for the first time. We’re still learning. We’ll keep improving. And with each iteration, we get closer to delivering not just access, but quality learning wherever a student lives.

📚 New EU Report: Promoting Well-being in Digital Education 🇪🇺 The European Commission's Joint Research Centre just released a comprehensive study on well-being in digital education across EU schools. This matters for VET because our learners are digital natives navigating increasingly tech-driven learning environments—and their well-being directly impacts skill acquisition and career readiness. 🧩The Narrative Flip: We are moving from "Digital First" to "Well-being First." The document argues that digital competence is useless if it comes at the cost of physical health, social connection, or mental stability. It proposes a Model of Emerging Practices that places the human being back at the centre of the digital ecosystem. 🔑 Key insights for VET: The challenge: ▪️Digital tech enhances learning BUT creates risks: eye strain, disrupted sleep, cyberbullying, anxiety, and digital divides ▪️VET learners face unique pressures—balancing practical skills with digital competence while managing digital fatigue The opportunity: ▪️Whole-school approach works: When leaders, teachers, learners, parents, and EdTech providers collaborate, well-being improves ▪️Pedagogical balance is critical: Mix digital and analogue methods; use age-appropriate content; build in movement breaks ▪️Safety-first design: EdTech must prioritize data privacy, accessibility, and mental health considerations What VET can do: ▪️Train educators on balanced tech use and digital risks—not just digital skills ▪️Co-design learning tools with students to ensure they're fit-for-purpose ▪️Establish clear guidelines for device use, screen time, and online communication ▪️Address infrastructure gaps—reliable connectivity and devices remain barriers for vulnerable learners 💡 My take: ▪️We often treat "digital skills" as a technical box to check. This report proves that true digital competence includes the ability to disconnect, self-regulate, and stay safe. ▪️If we want a healthy workforce, we must stop treating well-being as an "add-on" to digital education. It is the foundation. ▪️In VET, we prepare young people for real-world jobs increasingly shaped by AI, automation, and digital collaboration. But if we don't prioritize their well-being in digital learning environments, we risk burnout before they even enter the workforce. #DigitalEducation #EdTech #SkillsDevelopment #WellBeing EU Employment and Skills Cedefop Eurofound European Training Foundation EfVET European Association of Institutes for Vocational Training (EVBB) European Vocational Training Association - EVTA EUproVET EURASHE eucen CoP CoVEs UNESCO-UNEVOC International Labour Organization OECD Education and Skills World Federation of Colleges and Polytechnics (WFCP) WorldSkills International National Centre for Vocational Education Research (NCVER) VETNET-Europe IEFP - Instituto do Emprego e Formação Profissional Agência Nacional Erasmus+ Educação e Formação Teresa e Alexandre Soares dos Santos - Iniciativa Educação

One of the biggest mistakes we can make in EdTech? {We’re guilty of this too + what we did to navigate it} : Thinking that dashboards and reports tell the full story of learning. At Codeyoung, we decided to challenge that : Ran a customer feedback initiative + involved leadership team - not just support team. Instead of relying solely on numbers, we spoke directly to our customers—the parents. We reached out to parents & personally connected with them on 1:1 calls. No filters - just real conversations about their child’s learning journey. And what we learned was eye-opening. 1/ What’s working: Parents shared how their kids are growing in confidence, logical thinking, and problem-solving—skills that go beyond the classroom. 2/ What needs work: Some parents pointed out areas we could improve - insights we would’ve never spotted in a dashboard. For eg. parents wanted more involvement in their child’s learning journey - so we have started sending daily summaries to address that and now they are loving it! 3/ What surprised us: One parent had an idea so valuable, we’re already working on bringing it to life! Coming soon :) 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 📍 Proximity to Customers = Better Decisions A spreadsheet can tell you completion rates, but a conversation tells you how a child feels while learning. That’s where the real insights are. 📍 Leadership Needs to Be Involved This wasn’t just a task for our customer support team. Our leadership was in these conversations because building a great learning experience starts with truly understanding the learner. 📍 Data vs. Stories: You Need Both Metrics tell you what’s happening, but parents and students tell you why it matters. And sometimes, that one insight can redefine an entire strategy. —— At Codeyoung, we’re not just teaching kids - we’re shaping how they learn, think & grow. And that’s why listening to parents and students will always be at the heart of what we do. If you’re building in EdTech, how often do you talk to your customers? #founder #customers #edtech

User experience surveys are often underestimated. Too many teams reduce them to a checkbox exercise - a few questions thrown in post-launch, a quick look at average scores, and then back to development. But that approach leaves immense value on the table. A UX survey is not just a feedback form; it’s a structured method for learning what users think, feel, and need at scale- a design artifact in its own right. Designing an effective UX survey starts with a deeper commitment to methodology. Every question must serve a specific purpose aligned with research and product objectives. This means writing questions with cognitive clarity and neutrality, minimizing effort while maximizing insight. Whether you’re measuring satisfaction, engagement, feature prioritization, or behavioral intent, the wording, order, and format of your questions matter. Even small design choices, like using semantic differential scales instead of Likert items, can significantly reduce bias and enhance the authenticity of user responses. When we ask users, "How satisfied are you with this feature?" we might assume we're getting a clear answer. But subtle framing, mode of delivery, and even time of day can skew responses. Research shows that midweek deployment, especially on Wednesdays and Thursdays, significantly boosts both response rate and data quality. In-app micro-surveys work best for contextual feedback after specific actions, while email campaigns are better for longer, reflective questions-if properly timed and personalized. Sampling and segmentation are not just statistical details-they’re strategy. Voluntary surveys often over-represent highly engaged users, so proactively reaching less vocal segments is crucial. Carefully designed incentive structures (that don't distort motivation) and multi-modal distribution (like combining in-product, email, and social channels) offer more balanced and complete data. Survey analysis should also go beyond averages. Tracking distributions over time, comparing segments, and integrating open-ended insights lets you uncover both patterns and outliers that drive deeper understanding. One-off surveys are helpful, but longitudinal tracking and transactional pulse surveys provide trend data that allows teams to act on real user sentiment changes over time. The richest insights emerge when we synthesize qualitative and quantitative data. An open comment field that surfaces friction points, layered with behavioral analytics and sentiment analysis, can highlight not just what users feel, but why. Done well, UX surveys are not a support function - they are core to user-centered design. They can help prioritize features, flag usability breakdowns, and measure engagement in a way that's scalable and repeatable. But this only works when we elevate surveys from a technical task to a strategic discipline.

Before you write a single requirement, consider this: Are you solving the right problems? To ensure your product aligns with user needs and supports your business goals, start with a problem framing session and design thinking workshop. Why? By involving users early and identifying relevant problems, you can: 1. Identify which problems and feature requests are truly relevant. 2. Uncover pain points users experience. 3. Align features with your business goals to maximize impact. The benefit? Designers gain clarity on user priorities, while diverse perspectives uncover fresh insights to overlooked challenges—ensuring solutions that align with both user needs and business objectives. The result: • A more user-centric product. • No wasted development resources on irrelevant features. • A stronger competitive edge. Start by framing the problem to uncover what will have the most impact, and include designers and user testing to build smarter, more effective products.

Ever watch your learners' engagement gradually fade in a digital experience, despite compelling content? It’s a common frustration, but often the solution lies in a fundamental human need: a true sense of control. That feeling hit me yesterday on a long bike ride around the island I live on, gazing across the bay at San Francisco in the distance. That expansive view, with its implied freedom to choose any path towards that distant goal, powerfully mirrors the allure of well-designed exploratory experiences. It’s this spirit of exploration and self-directed discovery that games like the recent Zelda titles capture so brilliantly. As I explored in a previous article for UX of EdTech on how games create deep flow (link in comments), a key is empowering users: "Instead of the game dictating where you go and what you do, it offers a vast, interactive world and the tools to explore it freely... empower[ing] you to define your own goals, experiment with solutions, and ultimately control your own adventure." This principle is deeply rooted in motivational psychology. Self-Determination Theory, for instance, highlights that fostering a sense of autonomy (or control) is critical for intrinsic motivation and deep engagement. When individuals feel they have meaningful choices and can direct their own path, their persistence and mastery skyrocket. For EdTech and learning platforms, this means designing experiences that provide learners with genuine options to exercise autonomy – perhaps through choices in learning methods, tools, resources, or allowing them to set their own pace and goals. It’s about shifting from dictating a path to providing a landscape for supported discovery. How are you empowering your users with a sense of control? What does their adventure look like? #UserEngagement #EdTech #LearningDesign

Most edtech product managers are building brilliant features for users they haven't met in months. And it shows in the products they're building. I'm seeing a pattern: features getting built based on competitor analysis, roadmap requests from the loudest customers, or what "the market" apparently wants. But rarely from sitting in a classroom, watching a teacher struggle, or asking a TA how they're actually using the tool. Here's what happens when PMs stay behind their screens: - You build for the buyer, not the user. The person signing the contract isn't always the person opening your platform at 8:47am on a Tuesday. If you've never watched a teacher use your product in real time, you're guessing. - You miss the workarounds. Teachers are brilliant at hacking solutions when something doesn't quite work. Those workarounds? They're your roadmap. But you'll never spot them on a Teams call. You prioritise the wrong things. That feature you think is essential? It might solve a problem that doesn't exist. Meanwhile, the thing causing daily frustration gets pushed to Q3. You lose empathy. It's easy to dismiss feedback as "user error" when you've never tried to take the register, deal with a behaviour incident, and load your platform on a dying laptop - all before 9am. Your messaging feels hollow. When sales and marketing talk about "understanding schools," but product has never set foot in one, that disconnect comes through. Schools can tell. The best product managers I've worked with treat school and local authority visits like non-negotiables. They block out time every month. They sit with teachers. They watch lessons. They talk to the people who'll never fill in your feedback form but have the insights that matter most. You can't build for schools from a distance. The car journey is part of the job. When did you last spend a full day in a school or local authority just observing? Not demoing, not pitching - just watching and listening? #edtech #productmanagement #userresearch #schools #productdevelopment

Forget MVPs. Why Lovability Matters More Than Viability Here’s the painful truth: You can build a product that technically works, but if it doesn’t spark joy or emotionally connect with your users, they’ll try it … and forget it 🗑️ Viable products solve problems. But are NOT ENOUGH. Users today have zero patience for products that don’t delight. ➡️ That’s where the Minimum Lovable Product (MLP) comes in. It's about creating not just a product that works but one that sparks joy, builds trust, and keeps users coming back. 📌 Here’s a simple example: you need a tool to manage tasks. You could grab a basic notepad and pen to jot down your to-do list — MVP. It works, but it’s not inspiring. Now imagine a sophisticated task management app 📱 It lets you prioritize tasks, set reminders, integrates with your calendar, and has a sleek, user-friendly interface. It motivates you to be more productive and makes the process enjoyable. That’s an MLP. It’s functional, yes. But it also DELIGHTS, creating a relationship that encourages long-term engagement. 🤔 What’s the difference? An MVP solves a problem, but an MLP builds an emotional connection that keeps users loyal. Think about your favorite apps: 🌟 Slack keeps you connected effortlessly 🎶 Spotify surprises you with that perfect song 🌍 Duolingo turns language learning into a game These products don’t just function — they DELIGHT 👏 So, how do we build a MLP? Here are 6 key learnings I took from the book Lovability by Brian de Haaff, co-founder and CEO at Aha!, who first introduced the concept of the MLP): 1️⃣ Deep Dive into User Needs: Go beyond basic pain points .. understand your users’ DREAMS and DESIRES.  2️⃣ Know Your Landscape: Research your market and find ways to DIFFERENTIATE your product from the competition.  3️⃣ Clarify Your Vision: Define what SUCCESS looks like for your users and your business.  4️⃣ Holistic User Experience: Prioritize the ENTIRE USER JOURNEY, from onboarding to support. Every touchpoint matters.  5️⃣ Track the Love: Use tools like NPS, surveys, and user feedback to measure your product’s EMOTIONAL IMPACT.  6️⃣ Invest in the Details: Small touches like intuitive design, clever messages, personalized features can create LASTING CONNECTIONS. In today’s crowded market, delighting users and amplifying those 'magic moments' are what turn functional products into lovable ones. Focus on joy .. it’s the secret to loyalty, advocacy, and long-term success. 💬 Let’s talk: What’s one small touch you’ve added to your product that turned it from good to lovable? Share your thoughts below! I’d love to hear your experiences #ProductManagement #Lovability #MinimumLovableProduct #UserExperience #StartupStrategy

𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗲 ‘𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁.’ 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘄𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗵𝗲 ‘𝘄𝗵𝘆. It’s been a while since I last shared here, but I’ve been itching to get back to talking about product, users, and the craft of building things that actually solve problems. This is Post 1 in my series on #EssentialPMSkills, starting with a cornerstone of Product Discovery: 𝗨𝘀𝗲𝗿 𝗥𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵. Here’s the thing: users rarely say, “This is why I dropped off.” Often, they don’t even realise the exact friction until you walk them through their journey. That’s why primary research, actually talking to users, matters so much. A few lessons I’ve learned along the way: 1️⃣ Don’t ask, “Why did you drop off?” Instead, explore their journey, the choices they made, and their perception along the way. 2️⃣ Don’t push your product. Listen first. When users feel heard, they naturally open up to why your product might fit. 3️⃣ Speak with conviction. If you don’t believe in your product, your users won’t either. When I worked on an edtech platform, I ran 100+ user interviews to uncover why students abandoned the journey. I didn’t start with the website. I started with questions like: “Why this subject? What career path are you aiming for? What challenges do you face while choosing a college?” That shift built trust. Students realised I cared about their goals, not just clicks. Patterns emerged that helped me build personas, map journeys, and propose solutions. Was it time-consuming? Yes. Was I juggling other tasks at the same time? Absolutely. But nothing beats the clarity you get when you truly understand your users. > Pro tip: Frame questions around behaviours, not just opinions. For example: ✅ E-commerce: “What kind of jeans were you looking for, and how did you land here?” ✅Fintech: “When you last made a digital payment, what worried you most?” ✅SaaS: “How do you solve this problem today without our tool? What’s hardest about that?” ✅EdTech: “When you last tried to learn (skill), what made you stop?” The magic is in listening. Users don’t always tell you the problem, but they’ll always show you if you pay attention. 𝘐’𝘮 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘰𝘶𝘴: 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵’𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶’𝘷𝘦 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘯𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥? #ProductManagement #UserResearch #UXResearch #ProductDesign #CustomerExperience #ProductSense #EdTech #PMCommunity