By: Daysha Jackson-Sanchez, Vice President of Equity Solutions

Last month, I participated in a panel at SXSW EDU, titled “Equity-Centered Research for Innovative Courseware” where I was joined by moderator, Felice Nudelman, Associate Vice President of Academic Innovation and Transformation at AASCU, and fellow panelists Ángel López, Design Director at Blink UX and SL (Shree Lakshmi) Rao, Research + Strategy Director at Substantial. The conversation served to provide different perspectives on this topic – representing research, design, and product implementation – and discuss how technology companies can use equity-centered research and design to reimagine equitable student success.

For those seeking to design courseware with equity in mind, here are some of my key takeaways from the panel:

  • Building compassion and awareness into your team is essential. Designing courseware with equity at its core can be challenging from an interpersonal perspective, as it demands a considerable amount of grace and empathy. Building a team of individuals who can interrogate their own personal biases, interrogate what they are bringing to the design process, and embrace centering the historically marginalized user experience will ultimately set up organizations for success.
  • This process requires co-creation and continuous improvement. Those that engage in leveraging equity-centered research and design should be aware that it is a very iterative and collaborative process. Using this approach, the idea is to consistently test and iterate based on student feedback in real-time. It is also important to engage in co-creation and work with students, rather than for them, especially those representing diverse populations. When students have the freedom to share their perspective of what works and what is effective, the result can produce highly impactful input to a product’s development.
  • Integrating equity-centered research and design into courseware doesn’t happen quickly. The principles of equity-centered design call for taking the time in the development process instead of moving quickly to build a product. This time allows for those involved to be very intentional with each step and understand the nuances of gathering information, especially when it comes to working with students directly. Team members should be mindful of student schedules and commitments, and acknowledge their time and contributions by compensating them appropriately.

If you’re interested in learning more, request a demo of Lumen One, the first courseware product built with a focus on equity.