Natalie
Supervisor of Elementary Education, K–12
“One of the things that I think the data dashboard has really helped us to do is to work smarter not harder.”
mCLASS DIBELS 8th Edition
Efficient assessments, robust reporting, and data-driven instructional recommendations.
As the sole designer on mCLASS DIBELS 8th Edition, I led the end-to-end redesign of one of Amplify's flagship K–8 literacy assessment products from concept to shipped product within a year. Working in close partnership with product, engineering, and go-to-market and professional development teams, I designed two interconnected product experiences: the teacher-facing assessment platform for administering assessments and progress monitoring, and a full reporting suite with instructional materials. Cross-functional alignment was built into the process from day one, with design and product conducting our own user testing to validate decisions and surface insights before build.
What made this project distinct was the pace and the breadth. Shipping a complete product redesign — design, test, iterate, and build — within a single year required tight collaboration, clear prioritization, and a shared vision across every team. The result was a modern, cohesive platform that met teachers where they were while setting a new design standard for assessment tools at Amplify.
Making teacher assessments easier and faster
Teachers enter every session knowing exactly who to assess and in which skill, with seamless class and period switching and built-in reminders keeping the focus on students, not logistics.
Making data density more legible
A consistent visual pattern and color-coded indicators give teachers a reliable, at-a-glance data story — making progress reviews, parent conferences, and reading coach check-ins faster and more actionable.
Personalized instructional materials at every level
Teachers are informed with recommendations update from new assessment and progress monitoring data, they can sort by skills and always have the right resource for every student, at the individual and group level.
What’s a project without
Challenges to consider
One year to redesign and build a new product? What could go wrong? A lot. The first step was to identify known (and unknown!) challenges. To break it down, I knew that there were some tough knots to acknowledge before starting.
- I had a lot of learning to do being the solo designer as a first time designer in the edtech space.
- Tight product launch timeline for designing, user testing, building, and creating promotional assets.
- Limited user testing resources meant running our own internal and external user testings throughout the project.
User research feedback
Angela
Director of Early Childhood Education
“If you’re trying to shift the balance and move into the Science of Reading, mCLASS is going to give you a great way to group kids by skill.”
Project takeaways
Learn by doing and iterate relentlessly
Every design iterations mean gaining more product knowledge and valuable user insights. Having openness and hunger for feedback removes ego from the design process.
Collaborate tightly and communicate openly
Being quick to voice my assumptions helped others understand my thought process and vision. It opened up easy dialogue and collaborations.
Empathy and compassion wins, every time and everywhere
Always celebrate the small wins together and remind each other that we’re all in the same boat going towards the same end goal.
Make the tradeoffs that benefit the broader vision
Learning to discern between real feedback and critiques vs. subjective opinions, and knowing when to defend which was important for building forward project momentum.