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Manage Conflicts in a Multicultural Classroom
Discover an engaging, scenario-based project designed to equip language instructors with the skills to effectively navigate multicultural conflicts and cultivate inclusive classroom environments.
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Audience
English language instructors who struggle with resolving students’ conflicts in a multicultural classroom
Responsibilities
- Instructional design
- Storyboarding
- Action mapping
- Graphic design
- Prototyping
- eLearning development
Tools
- Articulate Storyline
- Adobe Xd
- Adobe Illustrator
- MindMeister
- Google Workspace
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Problem
Drawing from my experience as a language instructor, trainer, and learner, I have identified a significant gap in traditional teacher training programs.
These programs frequently overlook the development of cultural competence and classroom management skills, leaving instructors ill-equipped to handle multicultural conflicts.
This skill gap can lead to failing learning experiences, diminished student satisfaction, and potentially lower retention rates.
Solution
To address the cultural competency and classroom management skills gap, I created an immersive, scenario-based eLearning experience that exposes instructors to classroom conflicts, allowing them to navigate realistic situations and explore diverse actions and outcomes.
This engaging, story-driven approach outshines conventional training methods, such as in-person workshops, videos, or articles, by offering immediate feedback, realistic consequences, and a low-stakes environment for educators to experiment with different actions on the spot.
My Process
Define the Goal
Action Mapping
Through extensive research, I first identified a series of high-priority actions that both prevent and resolve multicultural conflicts using action mapping.
By interviewing and collaborating with other teacher trainers, practicing instructors as well as ESL students, I narrowed down actionable solutions to the three most critical and practical actions instructors can practice applying in the classroom:
- Use a level tone to stop the conflict immediately
- After the class talk with students involved in the conflict individually
- Take a generalized version of the conflict back to the class as a learning activity
Design the solution
Text-based Storyboard
After identifying the key actions, I crafted a text-based storyboard centered around a multicultural conflict.
Corresponding to the three key actions, the story pauses at three critical moments that prompt learners to intervene in the situation. At each juncture, learners choose from three possible actions, each leading to unique consequences affecting students, classroom dynamics, and instructors themselves.
Mindful of the theme's sensitive and nuanced nature, I incorporated a positively-worded trigger warning to prepare learners for potential discomfort.
I also introduced a mentor character ‘Allie’ to immerse learners in a novice instructor role while providing guidance and on-demand assistance throughout the experience.
Visual Mockups
I began the visual design process by curating a mood board with diverse sources for inspiration.
Realistic photos of language schools informed the scenes and props, while illustrations influenced the overall visual style.
Given the prevalence of dialogues between characters in my learning experience, I drew inspiration from role-play video games featuring first-person perspectives and dialogues to create an immersive interface and layout.
I then developed a style guide in Adobe XD to create visual specs and maintain consistency of the graphical elements throughout the learning experience.
To soften the scenario's conflict and tension, I opted for a saturated yet soothing color scheme, elegant yet playful sans-serif font families, and sophisticated yet approachable flat character sets.
I also designed a range of expressions and gestures for each character, enabling learners to visually perceive subtle dynamics in the classroom.
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Finally, I created and iterated on wireframes and mockups in Adobe XD to refine the layout for each slide type.
This process allowed me to explore different design approaches and optimize user interactions, ensuring a seamless and intuitive experience for the learners.
Interactive Prototype
To gather feedback on functionality and interactivity, I designed a rich prototype featuring animations, sound effects, and diverse scenes, providing a holistic experience for testing purposes.
I incorporated ambient sound effects, such as whispers, discussions, and door slams, to emulate a realistic and dynamic atmosphere.
Custom motion paths, like shakes, were also introduced to simulate surprising moments.
By evaluating feedback on these early-stage designs, I identified areas for enhancement and refined visual elements to better align with learners' needs.
This iterative approach proved instrumental in delivering a polished and effective final product.
BEFORE:
Long dark green buttons look heavy and cramped.
AFTER:
Buttons are in the same color as the box, looking lighter and more breathable. A witty bulb is also added to the mentor button to further draw learners' attention.
BEFORE:
Insufficient color contrasts, indefinite borders, and low saturation and brightness on the background make the screen look a bit dull.
AFTER:
It looks more delightful with brighter colors, higher contrast and easy-to-read text. Characters are also facing each other to enhance the conflict between them.
Develop the experience
Full Development
Using feedback from the prototype, I developed the final product in Articulate Storyline, piecing together the content and multimedia assets. To ensure optimal functionality and user experience, I tested the product with users extensively before delivery.
Based on the feedback, this scenario-based eLearning experience provides an effective and practical solution for resolving cultural conflicts in the classroom.
Results & Takeaways
Testimonials
Although it is a conceptual project, it has been shared within the Instructional Designers' community and with current and former language instructors and teacher trainers and received considerable positive feedback.
"There are so many negative consequences when teachers aren't properly aware of this problem and how to solve it. This is great content for ALL teachers."
"Whoa the visuals for the word bubbles for the reviews, along with the animations and audio are INCREDIBLE! Same goes for the 1-star review I saw when I chose wrong the first time."
"The color combination is clean and pleasant, and it’s so visually engaging. I love that it uses the shake to show the disruption. What a great visual way to understand the sudden nature of what's happening!"
"This is some top-notch stuff. I love how it uses the dialog, visuals and the strategy of showing instead of telling. I’m drawn into the story. I can’t help clicking through."
This project is also honorably featured on Devlin Peck's YouTube channel. Watch the videos where Robbie Christian and Nicole Stephens talk about how the project's memorable and immersive experience is achieved through my storyboarding and visual design approaches.
Takeaways
With additional time, I would integrate xAPI into the testing process to collect data on time spent, success rates on questions, and potential bugs hindering learner progress, ultimately enhancing the learning experience.
In slides featuring lengthy background sound effects, I employed complex programming, including triggers, layers, and timeline jumps to create seamless effects. If undertaking this project now, I might explore using Articulate Storyline's newer background music feature to simplify programming.
Let's collaborate!
If you're looking for someone who is dedicated to designing effective learning experiences, let's connect and discuss how we can work as a team!
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