A Child with Challenging Behavior
Current research shows that large number of children in institutional care suffer from psychiatric disorders. However, they go undiagnosed and are mistaken for misbehavior.
My role in this project was both a learning designer and an e-learning developer.
Find an example of a real-life simulation developed in H5P (open-source alternative to Articulate Storyline).
The Walkthrough
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The problem: Large number of children in institutional care suffer from psychiatric disorders. However, these usually go undiagnosed and are mistaken for mere misbehavior.
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The target audience: Educators and institutional caregivers need a deeper understanding of trauma-informed care and attachment.
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The learning goal: The course goal is to move away from reactive punishment and give caregivers the tools to understand the root causes behind challenging behaviors.
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The co-design process: I facilitated four intensive workshops bringing together psychiatrists, psychotherapists, and in-service caregivers to establish a unified training framework.
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Story-driven design: Together with my team we personified state-of-the-art research through the unfolding stories of four realistic characters (Patrik, Michal, Ema, and Viola) shown at their weakest moments.
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Cognitive load optimization: To simplify complex psychological concepts, I designed three guiding metaphors: the iceberg, the tree, and the ping-pong game
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Award-winning design: This project was officially recognized for its exceptional quality, winning the prestigious DisCo 2025 Award.
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High engagement: Achieved an outstanding course completion rate of above 50%, which significantly beats standard voluntary e-learning benchmarks.
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National scale: The course is being distributed across the Czech Republic via the National Pedagogical Institute and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports to strengthen supportive care systems.
Example: Misbehaving, or not?
A simulation-based activity helps participants realize misbehavior is often a peak of an iceberg. This activity invites them to try different reactions. Upon clicking, there comes explanation of where the reaction will likely lead to.