Introduction

• Brief: Build an engaging, interactive personal finance course for junior cycle students.

• Challenge: Make finance fun and practical for teens, not just another boring subject.

• Goals: Help students make smart money choices now and in the future.

Discovery Phase

• Stakeholder interviews: Teachers and curriculum leads shared what works (and doesn’t) in the classroom.

• Business requirements: Must be easy to teach, modular, and support interactive learning.

• User needs: Students want bite-sized lessons, real-life scenarios, and clear next steps.

Problem Framing

• Problem: Traditional finance lessons are dry—students tune out and don’t retain key skills.

• Success: Students actually engage, complete modules, and apply what they learn.

• Constraints: Needs to work on school networks, support lots of visuals, and fit within curriculum time limits.

User Research

• User interviews: Teachers and students tested early concepts and shared pain points.

• Competitive analysis: Most finance ed sites were text-heavy and dated.

• Market research: Interactive, scenario-based learning drives better retention for this age group.

Synthesis

• Personas: “The Reluctant Learner,” “The Eager Saver,” and “The Skeptical Spender.”

• Journey mapping: From lesson intro → interactive scenario → quiz → real-life application.

• Key insights: Chunked content, clear feedback, and relatable examples are a must.

Solution Development

• Info architecture: Modular lessons with easy navigation and visual progress.

• Wireframes & prototypes: Focused on scenario flows, quizzes, and feedback screens.

• Visual design: Bright, approachable, with lots of icons and real-world imagery.

Testing

• Usability testing: Ran with students and teachers—flagged confusing flows and slow load times.

• User feedback: Tweaked navigation, added more interactive elements, and clarified instructions.

• Design iterations: Polished visuals and streamlined lesson progression.

Implementation

• Handoff: Delivered annotated wireframes and lesson flows to devs.

• Dev collab: Weekly sprints to ensure smooth delivery and quick bug fixes.

• Go-to-market: Rolled out with teacher training and classroom pilots.

Results & Impact

• Metrics: Higher lesson completion, more student participation, and better quiz scores.

• User adoption: Teachers kept using it, students actually talked about money outside class.

• Business impact: Helped position Money Matters as a leading resource for junior cycle finance education.

• Lessons learned: Keep it visual, interactive, and relevant—finance can be fun.