Portfolio
Real instructional design work, and original interactive demonstrations.
Two kinds of evidence: the professional work Kirsten has delivered in higher education and professional learning, and purpose-built learning demonstrations that show how she designs today.
Flagship projects
Five projects that show how I work.
Quality over quantity: each one demonstrates a different kind of complexity and a different part of the design process.
Signature learning experience design
Odyssey Discovery: Real-World Learning Design
A learning experience platform connecting educators with scientists, researchers, and field experts — designed as repeatable programs, not one-off events. Field Notes: Explorer and Educator Expeditions turn active research into clear, applicable learning.
Demonstrates: Learning experience design, SME collaboration, knowledge translation, and program design.
Science & knowledge communication
Science Communication: Turning Research Into Understanding
Helping researchers and technical experts be understood without being diminished — audience analysis, message hierarchy, and rehearsed question handling, practiced on their own work.
Demonstrates: Science communication, SME collaboration, and knowledge translation.
Conservation & environmental education
Conservation Learning Experience
A place-anchored learning experience for a conservation site: field orientation, interpretive moments tied to one behavior each, and volunteer steward training.
Demonstrates: Environmental education, field-based learning, and public engagement.
Corporate & workplace learning
Employee Onboarding Experience
A guided first-week experience: an explorable workplace, culture taught as decisions, branching scenarios, and a final check for understanding.
Demonstrates: Corporate learning design and workplace role readiness.
Analysis & improvement
Online Learning Experience Redesign
A five-lens audit of a course library nobody finished — learner journey, structure, engagement, assessment alignment, accessibility — with a prioritized remediation plan.
Demonstrates: Analysis, learner experience evaluation, and instructional strategy.
Real work
Moodle LMS course design
Higher education instructional design and faculty support: partnering with subject matter experts to build, structure, and maintain online college courses in Moodle.
Course structure
Organized semester-length college courses into consistent weekly modules so learners always knew where they were, what was due, and what came next — the single largest driver of completion in online courses.
Module organization
Each module opened with objectives, moved through readings and media, then practice, then assessment. The same pattern repeated across the catalogue so navigation itself never became a cognitive load.
Learning activities
Discussion prompts designed for application rather than summary, guided practice with instructor feedback checkpoints, and low-stakes self-checks placed before graded work.
Assessments
Aligned assessment to stated objectives, replaced recall quizzes with applied tasks where appropriate, and worked with faculty on rubrics that made grading criteria visible to learners in advance.
Learner experience design
Consistent naming, predictable due-date patterns, accessible documents, and clear instructor presence — small structural decisions that reduce the questions learners have to ask before they can start.
Real work
Odyssey Discovery learning experience design
Designed and delivered science-based learning experiences and professional development for educators — connecting learners with scientists, researchers, and field experts through digital, place-based, and partnership-driven programs.
Read the full case studyEducator professional development
Designed and facilitated professional learning for teachers and informal educators, built around what participants would take back into their own classrooms the following week.
Science-based learning experiences
Translated field science and research content into hands-on learning experiences for learners of varied ages and backgrounds, keeping scientific accuracy intact while removing unnecessary technical language.
Curriculum design
Developed sequenced curriculum with clear objectives, aligned activities, and assessment that showed whether the intended understanding actually formed.
Virtual learning experiences
Adapted place-based programs into virtual and hybrid formats — restructuring pacing, interaction, and materials rather than simply moving sessions to video.
Partnership-based learning
Built programs in collaboration with schools, agencies, and community organizations, negotiating scope and outcomes so each partner's goals were served by the same learning design.
Secondary library · Interactive demonstrations
Learning experiences you can take right now.
Each demonstration is an original design sample inspired by modern eLearning practice, paired with a full instructional design case study.
- Place-based scrolling experience with field interactionsConservation Learning ExperiencePlace-based stewardship training for visitors, volunteers, and seasonal staffView project
- Scrolling module with practice activitiesAI Workplace EssentialsPractical, responsible AI use for everyday knowledge workView project
- Slide-based interactive courseEmployee Onboarding ExperienceA guided first-week experience for new corporate hiresView project
- Scrolling module with practice activitiesScience Communication TrainingTurning complex ideas into understandingView project
- Slide-based interactive course with simulationCustomer Product TrainingProduct onboarding and certification for software customersView project
- Scrolling course with design activitiesDesigning Better Online LearningKirsten's signature course for faculty, trainers, and subject matter expertsView project
- Slide-based branching scenario courseLeadership ConversationsScenario practice for the conversations managers avoidView project
- Scrolling microlearning moduleHealthcare Privacy & Compliance TrainingMicrolearning for staff who handle patient informationView project
- Scrolling microlearning with practice activitiesAI Productivity ToolkitShort lessons and practice for putting AI into everyday workView project
Design documentation
Case studies behind the work.
Each case study documents the challenge, audience, learning objectives, instructional strategy, development approach, assessment strategy, and accessibility considerations.
- AI Enablement · Change ManagementAI Adoption Program for EmployeesTurning tool access into confident, responsible daily use.Read the case study
- Customer Education · SaaSCustomer Education AcademyShortening time-to-value for a complex platform.Read the case study
- Corporate L&D · Employee ExperienceEmployee Onboarding ExperienceGetting new hires productive and confident faster.Read the case study
- Healthcare · ComplianceHealthcare Learning ExperienceMaking complex requirements understandable and actionable.Read the case study
- Technical Communication · Knowledge TranslationScience Communication Learning ProgramHelping experts be understood without being diminished.Read the case study
- Conservation · Environmental EducationConservation Learning ExperienceTurning a conservation challenge into something visitors act on.Read the case study
- Learning Strategy · ConsultingOnline Learning Improvement AuditDiagnosing why a course library nobody finishes is failing.Read the case study