Headshot of Tom Cheng

Tom Cheng

Senior Learning Experience Designer
Michigan State University

I build online courses that turn dense academic and technical content into structured learning experiences for working professionals. I hold an M.S. in Learning Design and Technology from Stanford University and helped develop language-learning mobile apps for two educational technology startups. Before transitioning into learning experience design, I taught English and computer science in Hong Kong for four years.

About Resume → LinkedIn

Learning Experience Design Projects

A collection of courses, curricula, and learning systems I've designed across corporate training, higher education, and edtech startups.

Circuit board background with text Apple Manufacturing Academy

Apple Manufacturing Academy ↗

D2L

Sole learning experience designer for all 23 courses, translating SME workshops and slide decks into self-paced online learning covering AI, lean manufacturing, cybersecurity, and professional skills.

23 courses
  • Applied Machine Learning for Manufacturing
  • Automation
  • Building a Culture of Learning in Your Workplace
  • Communication and Presentation Skills
  • Cybersecurity as a Competitive Advantage
  • Data Engineering for Manufacturing: SQL Foundations
  • Digital Transformation
  • Failure Analysis Equipment and Applications
  • Green Manufacturing
  • Intelligent Data Analysis System with LLM
  • Introduction to Deep Learning
  • Leading Team Performance
  • Lean Manufacturing
  • Machine Learning with Vision
  • Navigating Change with Mental Modeling
  • Packaging Systems and AI Implementation
  • PFMEA Introduction
  • Predictive Maintenance
  • Preventive Maintenance
  • Quality Control Optimization
  • Quality Fundamentals
  • SMT Success
  • Understanding Key Technologies for Smart Factory Implementation
My role
  • Translated workshop recordings and Keynote slides from subject matter experts into structured online courses
  • Produced original graphics and video content
  • Designed interactive elements and assessment questions
  • Coordinated with Apple's legal and PR teams on copyright and brand compliance
Functional Safety icon

Functional Safety ↗

D2L

Collaborated with MSU faculty to build a full D2L course for engineering undergraduates from textbook source content, designing the learning sequence, module objectives, interactive elements, and assessments.

My role
  • Developed instructional materials from textbook source content
  • Designed the learning sequence and module-level learning objectives
  • Designed interactive elements and assessments
Flourishing Under Stress icon

Flourishing Under Stress ↗

Coursera

Collaborated with MSU faculty to develop course outlines, learning objectives, and assessments for this evidence-based course on stress management and wellbeing.

My role
  • Collaborated with MSU faculty to develop course outlines, learning objectives, and module descriptions
  • Edited teaching videos
  • Designed assessments
Apple Education Hub icon

Apple Education Hub Launching Soon

SCORM Cloud

Reviewed and validated 21 SCORM-compliant microlearning modules for WCAG 2.2 accessibility and assessment quality before deployment on SCORM Cloud.

21 courses
  • Active Listening
  • Adopting a Project Mindset
  • Assertive Communication
  • Conflict Resolution
  • Dietary Health
  • Hygiene & First Aid
  • Introduction to AI
  • Introduction to Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs)
  • Introduction to Creative Thinking
  • Introduction to Database Security
  • Introduction to Industrial Robots
  • Introduction to Internet of Things (IoT)
  • Introduction to Leadership Soft Skills
  • Introduction to Machine Vision
  • Introduction to Programming Languages
  • Introduction to Smart Manufacturing
  • Introduction to Swift
  • Machine Safety Awareness
  • Physical Exercise
  • Sleep
  • Time Management
My role
  • Reviewed vendor-designed instructional materials for assessment validity and accessibility
  • Managed SCORM package deployment on SCORM Cloud
Hands using a pen tablet with text Digital Painting Specialization

Digital Painting Specialization ↗

Coursera

Collaborated with MSU faculty to develop course outlines, learning objectives, and assessments for this beginner specialization on digital drawing and painting with Adobe Photoshop.

My role
  • Collaborated with MSU faculty to develop course outlines, learning objectives, and module descriptions
  • Edited teaching videos
  • Designed assessments
Foggy forest and stacked logs with text Forest Carbon Credits and Initiatives

Forest Carbon Credits and Initiatives ↗ Archived

Coursera

Collaborated with MSU faculty to design this intermediate course on forest carbon project lifecycles, developing course outlines, learning objectives, video scripts, and assessments.

My role
  • Collaborated with MSU faculty to develop course outlines, learning objectives, and module descriptions
  • Edited teaching videos
  • Designed assessments
Blue interface with a shield icon and text Professional Certificates in Brand Protection

Professional Certificates in Brand Protection ↗

D2L

Revised learning objectives and designed knowledge-check and summative assessment questions for MSU's A-CAPP professional certificate program.

My role
  • Revised learning objectives
  • Designed knowledge check and summative assessment questions
Think Fast Talk Smart ELL icon

Think Fast Talk Smart ↗

Stanford Graduate School of Business

Created English learning resources for Stanford GSB's Think Fast Talk Smart, the #1 careers podcast in 120+ countries. Selected one verb, noun, adjective, and idiom per episode and wrote a definition and example sentence for each.

My role
  • Selected key vocabulary from each episode: one verb, noun, adjective, and idiom
  • Wrote learner-friendly definitions and example sentences grounded in the episode's language

App & UX Projects

These projects reflect my work at the intersection of learning experience design and product development, designing learning experiences for mobile and web platforms.

Impromptu app screenshot

Impromptu: AI-Powered English Speaking Coach Archived

400+ survey responses · 50+ prototype testers

My Stanford capstone: an AI-powered speaking coach for secondary-school English learners. I designed the instructional scaffold, ran 10+ prototype iterations with 50+ student testers, and built the feedback loop around real-time speech recognition.

Say app screenshot

Say: Your Language Learning Gym

50+ users interviewed · 600+ downloads

Led UX research and learning experience design for Say's AI language learning app. Conducted 10+ usability tests and 50+ learner interviews, and applied learning design principles to the pronunciation feature, driving a 10× increase in engagement.

Ama Speak app screenshot

Ama Speak: Your Personal English Coach Archived

Published on the App Store · TOEFL tutor top-used feature

Designed personalized learning pathways integrating AI tutor conversations and adaptive content sequences, and developed a speaking assessment model using pronunciation accuracy and fluency metrics.

Chenglish.hk mascot icon

Chenglish.hk: HKDSE English Resources ↗

A self-built teaching site I developed and maintained while teaching in Hong Kong, offering free HKDSE English exam resources, study guides, and vocabulary tools for hundreds of students.

Academic Research

Selected academic writing from Stanford's LDT program. Each piece applies a different learning design framework to a real product or teaching context.

Formative icon: colorful pie-chart with checkmark

Analysis of Formative (UDL Framework)

Applied the Universal Design for Learning framework to audit Formative's accessibility and engagement features, identifying gaps and proposing a theory of change for more inclusive design.

EDUC 281: Technology for Learners · Stanford LDT Program

Digital Wellbeing icon: green circle & heart

Digital Wellbeing Apps & Phone Overuse

Examined the design principles that drive phone overuse and evaluated how leading digital wellbeing apps attempt to counter them, finding that most tools work against the very patterns they claim to fix.

EDUC 218: Technology and Multitasking · Stanford LDT Program

Flip CSCL tool icon: pink-orange gradient speech bubble

Investigating Flip's Impact on ESL Speaking

Proposed a CSCL research study examining whether asynchronous video responses on Flip improve spoken fluency and confidence in ESL learners, with a full methodology and theoretical grounding.

EDUC 315A: Introduction to CSCL · Stanford LDT Program

Professional Development & Presentations

Faculty professional development and conference work in learning experience design and English language education.

SLXD Spartan Learning Experience Design icon

SLXD: Spartan Learning Experience Design Faculty Workshop

Michigan State University, 2024–2026

A monthly faculty development workshop series I co-designed and have led independently since September 2025, covering learning experience design, D2L, accessibility, and evidence-based teaching strategies.

What Now!? with AI podcast icon

What Now!? with AI ↗ Podcast

Michigan State University · 2026–present

A biweekly podcast co-hosted with MJ Jackson, analyzing the latest AI developments through a teaching-and-learning lens. New episodes every other Wednesday.

Personal

A couple of things outside the day job that say something about who I am: recognition for character along the way, and a three-and-a-half-year travel habit I saw through to the end.

Maroon and gold medal with laurel branches, the Cheng Ming Award

Cheng Ming Award Citation

New Asia College, CUHK

The highest undergraduate honor at New Asia College. Read the full citation in English and Chinese.

Teal and gold illustration of a dotted flight route crossing a skyline, the 50 States project

50 States, One Wild Ride

72 trips · 3 years, 8 months · 90% solo

A personal challenge to visit all 50 U.S. states, mostly solo and on a budget, told through real trip data, charts, and the friends made along the way. Completed May 2026 in Anchorage, Alaska.