As a newly formed organization led by some of the most senior educators in the US, the client wanted to design technology that would address the fundamental shortcomings of existing literacy education. They brought the vision and pedagogical expertise, and engaged Modern Mantra to help translate that into an end user experience.
Modern Mantra worked with the client from inception, going from problem statement to the eventual build out of a literacy-focused games platform for underprivileged youths.
Our venture design sprints always begin with stakeholder discovery. In this case, we met with film directors, financiers, and producers to identify their pain points, and then the founders to understand their product journey so far.
Using affinity mapping, we processed the discovery work and identified common themes. We explored the future of Web3 for short films, unpacking ideation and developing foundational concepts for the project. We also considered design elements, design parameters, and How Might We statements in their design considerations.
Using the How Might We statements as a foundation, our team developed venture requirements, evaluated potential technical partners for the build and decided on technical infrastructure: which blockchain to use. We ultimately selected Solana as the blockchain platform due to its robust architecture and relatively favorable environmental impact.
Finally, we also created a go-to-market strategy for NFTs and developed a tokenomics model that included supply, breakdown, and utility.
We finished off the project with product roadmapping and high-level strategy so the founders had a clear path to move forward with.
To begin the project, we started by defining and refining the objectives and then identifying target age groups and user personas. We honed in on a core design challenge and conducted foundational research to inform our scoping and ideation efforts.
Rather than developing a single product, we centered around the concept of a gaming platform upon which the client could launch different games to address the unique needs of different learners. This would be the fulcrum of their R&D efforts, giving them a platform to not only deploy and test new learning experiences, but directly retrieve data on the efficacy of those experiences to then add to the broader pedagogical literature.
We worked on designing the learning experiences on the platform, and led user testing and usability testing for both the platform and the games.
We then provided strategic guidance, including identifying potential partners such as schools and tutoring organizations, and developed a scalable software architecture for the platform.
In marketing and comms, we worked on branding and identity, including brand strategy, mission, vision, and values. In addition, we composed a go-to-market strategy.
To support the completion of the product, Modern Mantra provided human resources and technical team building support. We worked with the client to vet and hire a Head of Product, a Head of Engineering, and two development studios with expertise in gaming and education to bring the product to life.
A pilot of the first prototype learning experience was conducted in October 2022 with 9 different partners, including 6 schools and 3 community tutoring organizations. After being deployed and tested for 2-3 weeks, the results of the research were analyzed and used to scope the necessary iterations for the final product.
Our collaboration ultimately led to the launch of an instructional platform with literacy development games that are fun and engaging for children while also centering the experiences of black and brown children living in low-income neighborhoods.
