Reimagining Blackboard
A 24-Hour Sprint to Redesign the Student Experience
TEAM
Justine Tijerino and Disha Agrawal
ROLE
Sprint Lead
TOOLS
Figma, Jitter & Procreate
The Problem
The Navigation Tax
Students lose valuable time navigating Blackboard’s cluttered interface. The lack of structure makes it difficult to find materials, track deadlines, and stay organized. This “navigation tax” leads to frustration, wasted effort, and reduced productivity—ultimately making learning harder than it should be.
Project Goal
A Homepage Built for Getting Things Done
Our redesign streamlines Blackboard into a clear, intuitive space. A customizable dashboard gives students quick access to classes, assignments, and tools that matter most. By simplifying navigation and improving accessibility, we help students focus less on searching—and more on succeeding.
Understanding Student Pain Points
We surveyed 51 Blackboard users to uncover pain points. Confusing navigation and cluttered layouts make it hard to stay organized. Students want a simpler, clearer experience that helps them focus on learning, not searching.
25 out of 51 Students have expressed a need for improved navigation.
31 out of 51 Students struggled to find the resources they need.
Where Students Get Lost
Students navigate multiple separate pages; Messages, Resources, Courses, Profile, and Calendar, just to find basic information. With no true homepage, the experience feels fragmented and inefficient.
Blueprints for Better Navigation
We created quick sketches and low-fidelity wireframes to shape layout and flow before refining visuals. This let us test ideas fast and focus on clarity, customization, and usability early on.
Where Students Get Lost
Our redesign reimagines the platform with a true homepage, one that centralizes messages, resources, courses, and schedules into a single, intuitive space. The result: less time navigating, more time learning.
One Page, Personalized
We built a modular design system that brings key tools, calendar, courses, profile, notifications, and resources,onto a single customizable homepage. Students can organize what matters most to them, creating a more personal and efficient Blackboard experience.
Lessons Learned