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Simplified content creation so educators can focus on great learning, not the learning curve
Industry
EduTechMy role
UX/UI DesignerYear
2021 —Quitch is a mobile-first learning platform that helps educators engage students through gamified, bite-sized quizzes. The Educator Portal is where teachers create and schedule content — the quality of this content is key to student success.
As the in-house UX/UI designer, I led research, interface design, and design system improvements to streamline the content creation flow — helping time-poor educators feel confident and supported from their very first quiz.The Challenge
Educators found it difficult to get started with Quitch, often requiring live demos or support from the customer success team. This reliance on hands-on support slowed adoption and made it harder to scale. To support a product-led approach, the experience needed to be simpler, faster, and more self-guided.
The existing interface lacked clear guidance, involved unnecessary steps, and made it hard to preview what learners would see. These issues created friction and discouraged adoption — especially from new users.
The existing interface lacked clear guidance, involved unnecessary steps, and made it hard to preview what learners would see. These issues created friction and discouraged adoption — especially from new users.
Research Approach
I began with a heuristic evaluation, focusing on visibility of system status and minimalist design. I found that new users weren’t recognised by the system — there was no guidance when no content existed — and repeated elements and poor hierarchy added to the confusion.
To dig deeper, I conducted remote usability testing with three educators new to the platform. Participants (aged 30s–50s) shared their screens while attempting to create a quiz for the first time. I focused on task completion and confidence levels, asking each to rate their experience from 0–10. The average rating was 4.7, validating my hypothesis that new users were struggling with the content editor without hands-on support.
To dig deeper, I conducted remote usability testing with three educators new to the platform. Participants (aged 30s–50s) shared their screens while attempting to create a quiz for the first time. I focused on task completion and confidence levels, asking each to rate their experience from 0–10. The average rating was 4.7, validating my hypothesis that new users were struggling with the content editor without hands-on support.
Key Insights
Confusion around content visibility: Educators were unsure when or if their content had been made available to students. With multiple actions involved (toggling visibility, scheduling, and publishing) users felt anxious and uncertain.
Class structure setup created a bottleneck: The required setup of topics and class structure acted as a barrier. One user couldn’t progress to creating questions at all.
Visual clutter distracted from the core task: Non-essential settings and unclear layout made it harder to focus on building content.
Confusion around content visibility: Educators were unsure when or if their content had been made available to students. With multiple actions involved (toggling visibility, scheduling, and publishing) users felt anxious and uncertain.
Class structure setup created a bottleneck: The required setup of topics and class structure acted as a barrier. One user couldn’t progress to creating questions at all.
Visual clutter distracted from the core task: Non-essential settings and unclear layout made it harder to focus on building content.
Design Opportunities
From these insights, I developed three key recommendations:
Clarify system status: Make content states (draft/scheduled/published) more visible and reassuring.
Streamline the path to quiz creation: Reduce upfront requirements and let users create questions earlier.
Reduce visual noise: Prioritise essential elements and de-emphasise optional settings.
From these insights, I developed three key recommendations:
Clarify system status: Make content states (draft/scheduled/published) more visible and reassuring.
Streamline the path to quiz creation: Reduce upfront requirements and let users create questions earlier.
Reduce visual noise: Prioritise essential elements and de-emphasise optional settings.
IdeationI used Crazy Eights to rapidly explore solutions for each recommendation — from quick fixes like placeholder text in the class setup, to future-facing ideas like AI-generated content from teaching materials.
To prioritise, I mapped each idea using an Effort vs Impact matrix. This helped identify several quick wins (e.g. clearer content type descriptions) to include in the first iteration. Higher—effort ideas like a question bank were parked due to team resourcing.
For this release, I focused on low-effort, high-impact changes to reduce friction and help educators get to content creation faster.
For this release, I focused on low-effort, high-impact changes to reduce friction and help educators get to content creation faster.
Note: AI-assisted content creation was just emerging in mainstream tools at the time. While promising, it was considered high-effort and out of scope for this iteration — though later implemented in a future release.
Wireframing and Protoyping
I wireframed five key screens covering question creation and scheduling. Through three rounds of user testing and team reviews, I made iterative improvements:
— Removed unnecessary steps (e.g. opened dropdowns by default)
— Refined UI text (e.g. 'Save' became 'Publish')
— Adding the scheduling function to individual questions and topics
A final clickable prototype in Figma was tested with current Quitch users to ensure the new interface still felt intuitive. Due to technical constraints, some flows and content were fixed for testing, with users guided through the process.
Final updates included:
— Combining questions and resources in one view
— Adding a persistent '+ Add' toolbar
— Displaying a placeholder question to remove extra steps
— Contextual hover interactions to reduce clutter
— Arrows in preview to flip through content
— Removed unnecessary steps (e.g. opened dropdowns by default)
— Refined UI text (e.g. 'Save' became 'Publish')
— Adding the scheduling function to individual questions and topics
A final clickable prototype in Figma was tested with current Quitch users to ensure the new interface still felt intuitive. Due to technical constraints, some flows and content were fixed for testing, with users guided through the process.
Final updates included:
— Combining questions and resources in one view
— Adding a persistent '+ Add' toolbar
— Displaying a placeholder question to remove extra steps
— Contextual hover interactions to reduce clutter
— Arrows in preview to flip through content
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Visual Design
The interface was kept clean and minimal so the educator's content could shine. I leaned on an existing design system for colour and typography, while introducing new icons for content types.
New components included:
— The '+ Add' dropdown menu
— Question/resource UI elements (with states)
— Simplified preview view
— Updated settings panel
The layout was also responsive: the preview is hidden on smaller desktops to prioritise editing, and mobile users are directed to larger devices for content creation.
The interface was kept clean and minimal so the educator's content could shine. I leaned on an existing design system for colour and typography, while introducing new icons for content types.
New components included:
— The '+ Add' dropdown menu
— Question/resource UI elements (with states)
— Simplified preview view
— Updated settings panel
The layout was also responsive: the preview is hidden on smaller desktops to prioritise editing, and mobile users are directed to larger devices for content creation.
Beta Testing and Launch
We ran a beta testing phase, giving educators the option to opt-in to the new interface. This reduced anxiety around change and allowed them to switch back if needed. We coordinated the launch to avoid peak class setup times and supported it with a persistent feedback modal.
Key results:
— 71.5% of existing users opted into the new editor
— 62.96% of sessions were completed using the new content editor
We also observed sessions via Hotjar and received direct feedback:
“I appreciate the streamlined processes, redesigned interface, and new features. This will undoubtedly improve our content creation and delivery experience. The ability to preview questions is a particularly valuable addition.”
We ran a beta testing phase, giving educators the option to opt-in to the new interface. This reduced anxiety around change and allowed them to switch back if needed. We coordinated the launch to avoid peak class setup times and supported it with a persistent feedback modal.
Key results:
— 71.5% of existing users opted into the new editor
— 62.96% of sessions were completed using the new content editor
We also observed sessions via Hotjar and received direct feedback:
“I appreciate the streamlined processes, redesigned interface, and new features. This will undoubtedly improve our content creation and delivery experience. The ability to preview questions is a particularly valuable addition.”
To support the launch, I designed a Quick Start Guide that highlighted key actions like adding a question, previewing content, and publishing.
The tutorial was skippable but persistent, so users could explore at their own pace and return to it anytime for support — balancing guidance with flexibility.
The tutorial was skippable but persistent, so users could explore at their own pace and return to it anytime for support — balancing guidance with flexibility.
Iterations and Refinements
– Default settings matter:
We introduced a “Publish Now” option to simplify scheduling, but many users rushed through setup and unintentionally sent content before they were ready. To fix this, we changed the default to “Publish Later” and made scheduling options more prominent.
– Moving content was more important than expected:
Users wanted to reorganise content frequently, and while drag-and-drop was preferred, we couldn’t ensure a smooth experience within current technical constraints. Instead, we implemented batch actions — allowing users to select and move multiple items at once.– Formatting improves clarity and engagement:
Educators wanted more control over how their content appeared. We introduced basic text formatting options — bold, italic, and underline — to help them emphasise key points and make content clearer and more engaging.
– Default settings matter:
We introduced a “Publish Now” option to simplify scheduling, but many users rushed through setup and unintentionally sent content before they were ready. To fix this, we changed the default to “Publish Later” and made scheduling options more prominent.
– Moving content was more important than expected:
Users wanted to reorganise content frequently, and while drag-and-drop was preferred, we couldn’t ensure a smooth experience within current technical constraints. Instead, we implemented batch actions — allowing users to select and move multiple items at once.– Formatting improves clarity and engagement:
Educators wanted more control over how their content appeared. We introduced basic text formatting options — bold, italic, and underline — to help them emphasise key points and make content clearer and more engaging.
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Final Design
Streamlined publish flow
Removed the toggle-and-schedule confusion by combining both steps into a single, intuitive publishing action — making it easier for users to share content and reducing missed steps.
Removed the toggle-and-schedule confusion by combining both steps into a single, intuitive publishing action — making it easier for users to share content and reducing missed steps.
Streamlined publish flow
Combined scheduling and publishing into one simple step
Combined scheduling and publishing into one simple step
In-browser preview
Added a Preview mode so educators can see exactly how content appears to learners — improving content quality without requiring the mobile app.
Added a Preview mode so educators can see exactly how content appears to learners — improving content quality without requiring the mobile app.
Preview mode
Gave educators a clearer view of learner experience
Gave educators a clearer view of learner experience
All-in-one editing screen
Enabled users to create and edit questions in a single view, eliminating the need to open/close modals and helping them move through tasks more efficiently.
Enabled users to create and edit questions in a single view, eliminating the need to open/close modals and helping them move through tasks more efficiently.
All-in-one editing screen
No more modals — edit, add, and navigate in one place
No more modals — edit, add, and navigate in one place
Clear content states
Introduced clear labels for Draft, Scheduled, and Sent — giving educators confidence in what their students can access and when.
Introduced clear labels for Draft, Scheduled, and Sent — giving educators confidence in what their students can access and when.
Content states
Draft, Scheduled, and Sent indicators improve clarity
Draft, Scheduled, and Sent indicators improve clarity
Smarter defaults and tooltips
Placeholder content, question type descriptions, and contextual tips support learning and ease of use
Placeholder content, question type descriptions, and contextual tips support learning and ease of use
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Impact
The redesign strengthened user confidence, particularly for new users, by simplifying content creation and reducing friction. Features like preview mode, clearer status indicators, and an all-in-one editor helped users work more independently — leading to fewer support tickets and less need for hands-on onboarding.
These improvements also enabled a key business shift: for the first time, Quitch could offer self sign-up, reducing reliance on live demos and aligning with the company’s product-led strategy.
Key feedback included:
“I appreciate the streamlined processes… this will undoubtedly improve our content creation and delivery experience.”
The redesign strengthened user confidence, particularly for new users, by simplifying content creation and reducing friction. Features like preview mode, clearer status indicators, and an all-in-one editor helped users work more independently — leading to fewer support tickets and less need for hands-on onboarding.
These improvements also enabled a key business shift: for the first time, Quitch could offer self sign-up, reducing reliance on live demos and aligning with the company’s product-led strategy.
Key feedback included:
“I appreciate the streamlined processes… this will undoubtedly improve our content creation and delivery experience.”
🔓 Enabled self sign-up
Quitch supported self sign-up for the first time — removing the need for manual onboarding and demos
📉 Reduced support load
Fewer setup-related support tickets and onboarding requests
🧭 Increased user confidence
Preview, clearer content states, and a simplified UI helped educators feel in control
🚀 Faster onboarding
New users were able to create and preview content more quickly
💬 Positive feedback
“I was actually just playing with this yesterday – it looks good!”
Quitch supported self sign-up for the first time — removing the need for manual onboarding and demos
📉 Reduced support load
Fewer setup-related support tickets and onboarding requests
🧭 Increased user confidence
Preview, clearer content states, and a simplified UI helped educators feel in control
🚀 Faster onboarding
New users were able to create and preview content more quickly
💬 Positive feedback
“I was actually just playing with this yesterday – it looks good!”
Lessons Learnt
The
The
Next steps
To build on this foundation, the next phase will introduce new features that further reduce workload and improve content quality:
— AI-powered features to rewrite content and generate hints
— Canvas LMS integration to auto-import class structures
— New question types and a more flexible content structure
— UI updates to better highlight AI and import options
To build on this foundation, the next phase will introduce new features that further reduce workload and improve content quality:
— AI-powered features to rewrite content and generate hints
— Canvas LMS integration to auto-import class structures
— New question types and a more flexible content structure
— UI updates to better highlight AI and import options