Teacher to UX?
What classroom skills was I able to directly transfer into UX Research when I made the jump?
User Studies: the first day of class I have my students fill out a "Get to Know Me" survey that I use for a myriad of reasons: name pronunciation, thoughts on math, family structure, home language, preference of language to learn in, favorite subjects, hobbies, and other things they want me to know. This gives me a full picture of my user and what mathematical biases they may be coming from.
Empathy: the best teachers meet their students where they are. Empathy in the classroom allows me to build relationships with students who are then more willing to communicate with me about issues inside and outside of our math class.
Data Gathering: my experience in teaching has been a non-stop data gathering sprint. From homework, to quizzes, to informal quick checks ("on a scale from 1 to 5, 1 being 'I don't understand at all' to 5 being 'I totally get it and can help my classmates', how do you feel about identifying the hypotenuse of a right triangle?"), histograms, "post-it exit tickets", I gather information multiple times each class period to iterate for each group of students on the lesson for the day and the lesson plans for the week to ensure understanding and retention of the lesson materials.
Data Analysis: I need to be able to understand the data that I gather. My "quant" section of my portfolio has a deep dive into my analysis of state testing predictions and my suggestions for improving predictions and outcomes.
A/B Testing: in order to determine which curriculum is going to work better for my students I have implemented A/B testing to see if there is a statistically significant difference in the different curriculum and or homework. For example, the 2021-2022 school year I compared success with students between two different homework softwares: Imagine Math and IXL. My students with access to IXL did much better on the conceptual level than students who only had access to Imagine Math.
Usability Testing: the methods in which I design exams is to ensure understanding of concepts and ideas. I do not design my tests to trick or confuse my students. I create my exams to show me what my students have learned and in the same way, show me what I have taught and if I have taught it well. Testing design for mathematical, academic concepts has many parallels to testing design for products.
Communication: as a teacher, I have had to be an excellent communicator in both English and Spanish. I communicate with my users (students), stakeholders (parents and administration teams), and coworkers (team mates). I must communicate verbally, written, and in presentations.
Organization and Protection of Personal Identifying Information: I must keep my files organized and secure. I have learned many different methods for both digital and hardcopy storage that allows me to always know where my information is and to keep it secure for my student's privacy.
Accessibility: 15% of all school age students have IEP (Individual Education Plan) which is a legal document that helps dictate how to increase accessibility for the student to a quality education. I have loads of experience in ensuring that all of my students have the best experience in my class, from creating audio files for every digital content that doesn't have automatic readers for students with Dyslexia, processing disorders, or ADHD along with ensuring that students with different preferred languages can easily copy and paste text into translators if I don't already provide it in desired language. Accessibility in the schools also includes health differences and differences of expectations such as students with Type 1 diabetes having freedom to eat in the classroom and students with other needs having free access to the bathroom. The rules and layouts in my classroom are not once size fits all and that is better for everyone!
Digital Design Systems: Previously I used our class website periodically but COVID drove 100% of curriculum and content to my digital class. Creating a design system allowed for scalable curriculum layouts and quick components for forms, communication, and behavioral tools