XINYI ZOE MAO - 🔍 UX Research

🔍 I have 6+ years of experience conducting both qualitative and quantitative research in applied settings. Building on my background in studying how children engage with teachers and learning environments, I have recently expanded into user research, completing UX projects with educational platforms through internships. I aim to continue working with diverse user populations to enhance accessibility and spark curiosity across all ages.

🖥️ Ongoing UX Research Project:

Evaluating and Enhancing a Learning Management System Iteratively

❓Background & Goals

I collaborate with a cross-functional team to evaluate and improve a state-funded, open-source Learning Management System (LMS) designed for educators' professional learning. As the user researcher of the team, I conduct multimethod research and have successfully informed design decisions to enhance the overall user experience. My goals are to:

Assess how effectively, efficiently, and satisfactorily users navigate and engage with the LMS;
Conduct user research across LMS iterations and document the continuous cycle of evaluation and revision.

🔧 Methods

Round 1 (LMS 1.0) focused on onboarding and content engagement:

Individual usability testing (N=2);
Focus groups (N=4).

Round 2 (LMS 2.0) focused on navigation and content discovery:

Individual usability testing (N=4);
Online survey (N=53).

Participants included in-service and pre-service teachers, teacher educators, and undergraduates – reflecting the LMS’s intended user base.

💡 Insights & Deliverables

Users reported positive experiences with onboarding, navigation, and content engagement, but usability testing revealed friction points when searching for and accessing specific resources. To address this, I created multimedia report 1.0 and report 2.0 that included:

Key findings and pain points;
Summary charts and user quotes;
Clips of user real-time interactions and reactions'
Proposed design solutions.

🚀 Impact

User insights directly informed the LMS redesign, including streamlined onboarding, refined search functionality, clearer content overviews, and reorganized homepage layout. These improvements guided the progression from LMS 1.0 → 2.0 → 2.1 (current release) and are shaping priorities for LMS 3.0, such as multimedia enhancements and integrated learning communities.

Looking ahead, my next round of user research will focus on evaluating these new features and ensuring the LMS is accessible for all users.

LMS 1.0

LMS 2.0

LMS 2.1

📖 Complementary Research Experience:

Human Subjects Research

In addition to my UX-focused projects, as a current PhD student, I also conduct interdisciplinary, cross-cultural, and multi-method academic research, at the intersection of developmental psychology, education, and the learning sciences. My work spans experimental studies, statistical modeling, interviews, focus groups, observations, surveys, and content analysis. I am also passionate about science communication – translating research findings into accessible insights that inform real-world practice and policy.

👉 Read a little about my 📖 Academic Research.

📖 Academic Research

🌐 Past UX / Instructional Design Project:

Reforming an Accessible Online Learning Experience

❓Background & Goals

During my internship at the non-profit organization National Geographic Society, I developed an instructional (re)design project by integrating UX perspectives into learning design. The organization required all funded scientists to complete four online onboarding courses. After reviewing these courses, I found that accessibility for learners with neurodiverse needs was limited. After presenting my observations to leadership, I initiated a redesign project with the following goals:

Examine accessibility gaps in the user experience of the existing online courses;
Revise course features to enhance accessibility and engagement.

🔧 Process:

My work took place in three phases:

Proposal – Assessed the current courses and identified accessibility challenges. Explored the course platform's capacity for user experience.
Report – Developed recommendations grounded in Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles. Sorted recommendations based on both impact and effort. Highlighted feasible revisions and long-term opportunities.
Implementation – Partnered with senior designers to incorporate revisions into course content and delivery.

💡 Insights & Deliverables

I identified several key accessibility gaps:

Overreliance on text-heavy presentation formats;
Limited opportunities for learners to reflect and apply knowledge;
Quiz structures that emphasized correctness over comprehension.

As a result, I revised all four courses, focusing on:

Redesigning presentation (e.g., breaking up text, incorporating visuals, providing alternative formats);
Adding structured opportunities for learner reflection;
Providing explanatory feedback for knowledge checks to support deeper understanding.

🚀 Impact

These revisions resulted in a more inclusive, engaging, and user-friendly onboarding experience for new scientists joining the organization, and it inspired other designers to adopt an accessibility-oriented approach to course design.

Implementing the changes required close collaboration with the media and communications team, which strengthened my skills in cross-functional coordination and in navigating a fast-paced nonprofit environment.

Redesigning Presentation & Adding Opportunities for Learning Reflection

Providing Explanatory Feedback for Knowledge Checks

zoemao@g.ucla.edu