DESIGN FOR HUMANS

Better Decisions Through Learner Experience Research

Explore how research, learner evidence, and thoughtful design decisions can help us reduce friction and improve online learning without reducing rigor.

Welcome

Good instructional decisions rarely come from a single source of information. In this one-module workshop, you will examine several ways to identify friction in the learner experience, connect those observations to research, make an evidence-informed design decision, and consider how you could determine whether the change worked.

The examples in this module are designed to be explored, questioned, and repurposed. As you work through them, think about places in your own courses where students may be spending unnecessary effort, overlooking important information, or trying to interpret expectations that are clear to the instructor but less visible to the learner.

Module Outcomes

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

Explain research-based practices that support data-informed instructional decision making.
Apply evidence-informed design principles to improve the clarity, transparency, or usability of an online learning experience.

Success Journey

1. OBSERVE & ASK 2. CONNECT TO RESEARCH 3. MAKE A DESIGN DECISION 4. TEST & IMPROVE

What You Will Do

Throughout the workshop, you will move between lessons, research, examples, and application.

Examine Canvas examples and identify possible learner friction.
Participate in short Find the Evidence activities using each research lens.
Compare less-effective and evidence-informed versions of instructional materials and assessments.
Use a research lens to recommend one design improvement to an online learning experience.
Identify learner evidence that could help determine whether the change improved the experience.

Keep the Cycle Going

An evidence-informed design decision is not the end of the process. After making a change, look for evidence of what happened next.

Research Literature Evidence-Informed Review Student Feedback Usability Testing Continuous Improvement

Workshop Materials

Use the resources below during the workshop and return to them afterward as you apply the ideas in your own courses.

Resources You'll Collect
Presentation	Design For Humans better decisions through learner experience research.pptx
Research Lens Cards	Sweller, Mayer, and Winkelmes Researcher Notecards - Live Reveal
Example Lesson	Data-Informed Multimedia Principles: Primary Source Evaluation - Live Reveal
Application Activities	Canvas artifacts and evidence-informed design activities - Live Reveal
Design for Humans Bonuses	Researcher Field Notes Coming Soon: Sample HTML Code for New Course Design Templates and more Lesson Samples for Across the Disciplines Resources and References, etc. are located the Canvas module pages and in the presenter's presentation slides. (TT) Trailblazer Teaching Credit available for live attendance during the Fall 2026 Connections Week session. Sign in information is posted in the room.

Get Started

Select Next in the Canvas module to begin exploring how evidence can help us design more intentionally for the learners taking our courses.