This piece reflects how my journey as a Korean language teacher has profoundly influenced my approach to UX design. By observing students, customizing content, and iterating based on feedback, I gained deep insights into user behavior, inclusive communication, and human-centered thinking.
I didn’t always know I wanted to be a UX designer. I began my journey in visual communication design, drawn by the idea of communicating through images rather than words. During my undergraduate studies in South Korea, I completed a teacher training program and even taught design classes at a vocational high school. I loved the time I spent with students, but after much thought I realized I wanted to design experiences that could reach people in broader, more diverse contexts. That desire eventually led me to UX design.
During my teaching practicum at a Korean high school (April 2019)
Actually, It was actually a pedagogy class that first introduced me to “Design Thinking.” One lesson showcased a creative teaching method based on the Double Diamond model—Discover, Define, Develop, and Deliver—encouraging students to solve problems through structured exploration and iteration.
This moment reshaped how I understood teaching: not just as instruction, but as a collaborative, human-centered process. Even though my school didn’t offer UX courses at the time, this approach resonated deeply with me and quietly set me on the path toward UX design.
After moving to Augsburg for my master’s, I wanted to stay connected to my roots while adapting to a new culture. That’s how I began teaching at a weekend Korean school called “Hangul Schools" supported by the Korean government. Since then, I’ve been teaching Korean every Saturday to children from Korean-German families and adult learners.
This side role has unexpectedly become a rich source of inspiration and learning especially as I began to see teaching and UX through the same lens.
Classroom moments from my Korean class
From the time I studied pedagogy, I noticed many similarities between education and design. The most significant commonality is that both are centered on benefiting others. While UX design emphasizes being “user-centric,” education focuses on being “student-centric.”
Within this context, the design thinking process can also be meaningfully applied to teaching. The act of teaching naturally follows a similar iterative, human-centered logic—constantly evolving to meet learners’ needs. The diagram below illustrates how these roles align and how design thinking can shape not only products, but also learning experiences.
When I first began teaching Korean, I assumed students would follow a traditional Korean curriculum. But my students were German-speaking learners studying Korean as a second language, and their needs were completely different. This gap challenged me to observe more carefully, let go of assumptions, and adapt quickly—just like in user research or usability testing.
Some students learned best through visuals, others through conversation, games, or repetition. Based on these observations, I began designing learning experiences the same way I approach product design: with usability, clarity, and engagement in mind.
I created custom worksheets and supplementary materials beyond the textbook—grammar aids, visual games, and even translated K-pop lyrics—tailored to students’ interests and learning levels. Each semester, I adjusted the lesson flow based on in-class feedback, responding to confusion, motivation, and energy levels in real time.
In many ways, it felt like designing a user interface. I observed behavior, identified friction points, iterated the experience, and restructured information to improve clarity. From casual conversations (user interviews) to optimizing the structure of class materials (interface flow), teaching became a full-cycle UX process.
Just as we gather user feedback in design, I surveyed my students at the end of the semester to understand their learning goals. Based on their input, I created new lessons: translating German fairy tales into Korean, playing language games, and exploring Korean culture.
These efforts paid off—my class received positive feedback, the number of students doubled compared to when I first started, and their Korean skills improved significantly.
What I found most fulfilling was seeing real impact: identifying problems, improving experiences, and helping people grow—just like what I value most as a UX designer.
Student feedback form used to improve lessons (Summer 2024)
I’m now a certified Korean language teacher, having completed a formal training program at Yonsei University. In the summer of 2024, I was invited to Korea by the Korean government to participate in a teacher training program held in Incheon. It was a deeply rewarding experience—connecting with passionate educators from around the world and exchanging insights on language, education, and culture. That summer also marked a turning point in my teaching practice. Inspired by the training, I began gathering more structured feedback from my students to improve my lessons—such as the end-of-semester survey shown earlier. These efforts helped me create more relevant, engaging experiences for my learners.
Balancing two roles hasn’t always been easy. Teaching takes up weekends and often spills into weekdays with preparation. But it’s worth it. It gives me space to reflect, reconnect with people, and strengthen my empathy as a designer. Over time, this dual role has sharpened my ability to observe users closely, adapt to real-world needs, and communicate complex ideas with clarity and empathy.
More than anything, it has deepened my belief that great design, like great teaching, is not just about delivering content, but about creating meaningful, inclusive experiences that truly serve people. That’s the mindset I carry into every UX project I take on.
