Maire Smith - MKCS (Page 2)

Learning

NZATD 2025: When to test e-learning

I like to run my user testing at the same time as the stakeholder review. Not just to cut down the number of iterations, but for another reason.

Learning

NZATD 2025: How to test e-learning before launch

We need both these types of evaluation during our design and development process, if we want to deliver resources that actually teach the learners what we are trying to teach.

Learning

Establishing context

When people ask me to design a learning intervention, they often already have a solution in mind. It’s generally a fairly simple one: a workshop or an e-learning module. Sometimes they ask for blended learning, but if so, it is usually one particular format: an e-learning module followed by

Learning

NZATD professional membership

Every part of this process was worth it for me.

A drawing of two dead brushtail possums on a grey background.

Learning

Creative solutions and feedback

My most creative work is usually the result of unusually challenging sets of constraints. It’s digging in, and really understanding all the requirements, that make space to come up with something unique.

Art

Procreate

Procreate reminds me of using oil paint in that it does exactly what I think it will do.

Margaret Mahy

Dangerous Spaces and Labyrinth

In both works, a girl is drawn by a charismatic male figure into a fantasy world where she has experiences that symbolise her real-world wants…

Diana Wynne Jones

Power and class in the Chrestomanci series

In Charmed Life, by Diana Wynne Jones (1977), we see a young boy with magical powers going to live in a castle, where he will be taught how to use his magic. (Before assuming this is a knockoff of any other children’s fantasy, it is important to note that

Accessibility

NZATD Accessibility Toolkit

In late 2023, I was at a workshop with other learning designers, and we were discussing accessibility. Of our group of six professionals, only two of us felt confident we knew where to start. So I wrote an introductory guide.

Learning

NZATD 2025: Technology to support engagement in workshops

What I’m writing about here is the format we used for the session, which was a bit of an experiment around using AI to drive engagement in a live session.

A glowing avocado or egg shape, with a red sprout growing from it; behind are multicoloured paths leading up to a glowing sun that radiates yellow light

Conference Sessions and Seminars

NZATD 2025: Miranda Verswijvelen

My key takeaways: Let learners feel something. Let them make decisions that matter. Let go of the idea that there’s always one right path. And look up Miranda’s Story Avocado and tools for writing dialogue and choices in more detail.

A majestic maunga with light rays flowing across it, with a rising sun behind and a glowing red heart enclosing the black of the mountain’s slope and the white of the empty sky.

Conference Sessions and Seminars

NZATD 2025: Natalia Wi

One thing that really impressed me about Natalia’s session was how she provided not only a clear explanation but also a demonstration of how good practice looks in action.

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