A UX/UI workshop was conducted for an open-source university project within the Jupyter ecosystem with the aim of laying the groundwork for a user-centred redesign of the Grader Service front end. This initiative aimed to improve the clarity and efficiency of complex assignment and grading processes for students and instructors alike.

Hand-drawn sketches of a user interface on a whiteboard, showing various screen layouts with boxes, lines, and labels, illustrating the design process.

Initial situation

While the existing front end was functional, it was technically complex and challenging to navigate, particularly within the limited UI space of Jupyter Notebooks. The presence of different user roles (students versus instructors) and complex workflows caused confusion and resulted in a high cognitive load.

Flowchart illustrating the user workflows for instructors and students. A blue section represents the instructor's steps, while the green section shows the student workflow. Logical sequences and decision points are highlighted.

Goals

  • Understanding real user workflows
  • Clear separation of roles and requirements
  • Developing a lean information architecture
  • Creating initial wireframes for key use cases
A hand-drawn sketch of a student dashboard interface, showing calendar and course sections.

Workshop & Method

The workshop was conducted as a condensed design sprint. Together with the stakeholders, we:

  • Defined user roles
  • Analyzed existing workflows
  • Identified pain points
  • Iteratively developed initial low-fidelity wireframes
A graphical layout for course assignments. There are two sections titled Assignment, each containing the labels Notebook and Exercise.

Results

The results of the workshop were as follows:

  • An aligned information architecture
  • Clearly defined user journeys for students and instructors
  • Initial wireframes for key screens
  • A structured foundation for subsequent work packages

Conclusion

The workshop provided a solid foundation for redesigning the Grader Service front end, particularly with regard to the user experience (UX). Involving users and stakeholders from the outset of the process meant that complex technical processes could be translated into clear, user-centred structures.