Nebraska Assessment Platform
Building a platform for state-wide student testing and administration.
My Role
Lead designer
Interaction designer
Visual designer
Prototype
Project manager
Platforms
Web
iOS
Android
Product Type
Web App
Client /
NWEA (now HMH)
Overview
The educational landscape was shifting, with the decision on which assessment products to use moving from individual districts to state departments of education. As a result, the existing platform was no longer sufficient, as it couldn’t support the scale and complexity of statewide administration.
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To address this challenge, we built a new platform designed to meet the unique needs of state-level testing, ensuring efficient administration and seamless scalability.
Problems
Our research showed that administering statewide tests was more difficult as additional regulatory bodies were involved. This resulted in the following problems:​
Test administrators were required to ensure every student was tested while maintaining accurate records, a new requirement the company had not previously addressed.
Additionally, new accessibility and accommodation requirements needed to be visible beyond the typical teacher/principal role. To support this, we completely overhauled our tech stack, enabling data access for all relevant stakeholders at every stage of the testing process.
Students were now required to log in independently to take their tests, rather than relying on test administrators and proctors. This shift demanded an intuitive login experience, simplifying the process for students as young as third grade while maintaining security and functionality.
Opportunity
How might we design a platform that empowers student agency while supporting flexible staff administration?
Goals
We converted our key problems into opportunities to solve during the creation.
Adult-led → Student led
The user interface should be highly intuitive and modern, enabling students to log in independently without requiring assistance from an administrator.
Limited → Robust
The new platform should offer comprehensive visibility into the entire testing process, ensuring that all user types can easily understand what has occurred, what tasks remain, and what comes next.
Restrictive → Flexible
System user roles should enable a diverse range of contributors to access consistent insights and guidance, ensuring they have the necessary information to perform their roles effectively.
The MVP
I conducted user research to define the minimum viable experience required for a successful testing season.
State administrators could monitor testing progress across all schools, ensuring seamless oversight.
Testing coordinators could quickly identify which students still needed to be tested, helping them meet deadlines efficiently.
Students were able to log in independently and mark their tests as complete, all without the assistance of an adult.
Cross-team confusion
A major internal barrier to delivering a seamless experience arose when I observed several scrum teams struggling to determine which design components were shared across the testing experience.
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To resolve this, I provided crucial guidance, ensuring alignment by posting every screen along with the shared interactions. This allowed teams to accurately assign components based on their domain expertise, significantly reducing redundant work and development churn.
User testing feedback
With the prototype in hand, I traveled to Nebraska, our primary customer, to test the experience with senior district administrators, testing coordinators, and students. Their feedback led to critical refinements in both the interface and platform capabilities.
Addressing user and market needs
The new platform provided simple solutions to previously complex workflows.
Intuitive design. Effortless adoption.
User interactions were designed to align with modern UI patterns, naturally enhancing the user experience and streamlining the testing process. This approach accelerated test completion while minimizing the need for extensive user onboarding, making the platform more intuitive and accessible.
Clear insights. Seamless access. Smarter testing.
District and state-level administrators praised the platform’s ease of use and its ability to provide comprehensive visibility into the testing process. A diverse range of contributors can now seamlessly access insights and guidance, ensuring they have the information needed to perform their roles effectively.
So simple, a 3rd grader can use it... and they do!
By replacing text with icons whenever possible, while adhering to usability best practices for eye tracking and locational memory, students were able to self-administer their test sessions with ease. This approach streamlined navigation and reduced cognitive load, enabling students to complete their tests with 40% less stress and confusion.
