What Should Be: 21 Questions About Learner Experience
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What Should Be: 21 Questions About Learner Experience

By Tom Vander Ark — July 15, 2015 2 min read
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Tom Vander Ark
Tom Vander Ark is an education advocate, adviser, and author of Getting Smart: How Personal Digital Learning is Changing the World. He is Founder and Executive Editor of Getting Smart and a partner in Learn Capital.

Software developers obsess over user experience (UX) and seek enhanced satisfaction by improving the usability, accessibility, and pleasure provided in the
interaction with the product.

Retailers think about customer experience (CX) including attraction, awareness, discovery, cultivation, advocacy, and purchase and use of the products and
services.

Think of a kid you care about. Think about the world they will inherit. What do you want them to know and be able to do? Now think about what their learner
experience (LX) should be. Following are 20 questions that may help:


  1. What would their first visit be like? The greeting? Enrollment?

  2. What kinds of teacher-mentor relationships should they have? Long term? Short term?

  3. How would they learn to read? What would they read? Who would decide?

  4. When and how would their writing be published? How would they receive feedback?

  5. How would they learn about the world? How would they exposed to other cultures and diverse perspectives?

  6. How would they learn new languages - like math and Chinese?

  7. In what ways would they collaborate with other learners? How will they learn to be helpful, respectful and caring?

  8. How would they show what they know? What should mark and guide their progress? Where and how do they share their best work?

  9. To what extent could they follow their interests? How much time and support do they get to go deep into a subject?

  10. How would anywhere anytime tech access be provided to every student? Every family?

  11. What kind of support would be available?

  12. Where would they learn? How would they move through the physical learning environment? How often would they travel?

  13. How would safety and security be promoted? How would learner resolve conflicts.

  14. What opportunities would they have to express themselves creatively? How and when would they be inspired by beauty and participate in the
    performing arts?

  15. How are parents involved in deep and meaningful ways? How is growth and development communicated?

  16. How are learners encouraged to develop goals and a vision for their future?

  17. When would they have opportunities to be around adults they can imagine themselves becoming? When and how would they experience work environments?

  18. What active and healthy living activities would be available?

  19. What opportunities do they have to develop their own leadership skills? In what ways could they contribute to the community?

  20. Could they earn a college a degree and start a business in high school?

  21. Who owns their learning? Who is in the driver seat?

Teams explored the answers to these questions at the Agilix Personalized Learning Summit (#PLS2015) this week. With newlearning platforms like Buzz, teams of educators have a new opportunity to create
experiences and environments that work better for students. It starts with asking good LX questions.

For more, check out:

The opinions expressed in Vander Ark on Innovation are strictly those of the author(s) and do not reflect the opinions or endorsement of Editorial Projects in Education, or any of its publications.