Tom Cheng (he/him)

I am a Senior Learning Experience Designer at Michigan State University's Center for Teaching and Learning Innovation, leading online instructional design and web development projects. I graduated from Stanford University's Learning Design and Technology program, where I focused on designing user experiences to enhance learning outcomes. Prior to Stanford, I taught English and Computer Science in secondary schools in Hong Kong.

Email / Resume / LinkedIn / "Who Am I?" / Teaching Website / Work Portfolio

A circular headshot of a person with short, dark hair and a beard. He is smiling broadly and wearing a pink button-up shirt. The background is plain and light.
Mobile Applications
An app icon featuring a blue background with a stylized white logo. The logo consists of a curved line and several dots, suggesting a fluid motion or connection. Say: Your Language Learning Gym
Diego Salvatierra, Tom Cheng
Mobile Application, 2023

Say is a mobile application that helps learners pick up a new language by building their own phrases and practicing pronunciation with the AI Language Buddy.

An app icon with a purple background featuring a cheerful, cartoonish robot wearing a graduation cap. The robot has a smiling face, and a speech bubble above it contains the letters 'EN,' indicating English. The design is playful and educational in theme. Impromptu: A Generative AI-Powered Tool for Improving English Speaking Abilities
Tom Cheng
Mobile Application, 2023

Impromptu is a mobile application that utilizes speech recognition and generative AI to provide timely, informative feedback to secondary-school English learners on their spoken responses.

An app icon featuring a gradient purple background with a white oval shape in the center. Within the oval, there are several vertical bars, resembling sound waves, accompanied by small circles, suggesting audio or music functionality. The design is sleek and modern. Ama Speak: Your Personal English Speaking Coach
Wenyen Hua, Amanda Ai, Tom Cheng
Mobile Application, 2023

Ama Speak is a mobile application that allows you to speak with AI companions and learn authentic expressions from bite‐sized, personalized lessons.

Academic Writing
An app icon featuring a cute, cartoon-style yellow bee with blue wings. The bee has a cheerful expression and is sitting at a laptop, suggesting a playful and educational theme. The design is vibrant and engaging. CodingCUSP: Contextualized, User-Focused, Structured Pathways for Learning Text-Based Coding
Nathan Lin, Raycelle Garcia, Tom Cheng
Oral Presentation, 2023

CodingCUSP is a browser-based web application that helps learners transition from block-based programming languages to text-based languages, such as Python, by providing a scaffolded learning environment with contextualized coding tasks and situated worked examples.

An app icon with a gradient background that transitions from pink to orange. The design features a rounded speech bubble shape with a bright white smile in the center, conveying a friendly and cheerful vibe. The overall look is modern and inviting. Investigating the Impact of Flip as a CSCL tool on ESL Learners’ Speaking Ability
Tom Cheng
Research Proposal, 2023

This research proposal explores the potential of Flip, a Computer‐Supported Collaborative Learning (CSCL) tool, to support the development of speaking ability in English as a Second Language (ESL) learners.

An app icon featuring a simple design with a green circle at the top and a heart shape below it, made from lighter and darker green shades. The heart shape has a clean, modern look, suggesting a focus on health or wellness. The overall design is minimalistic and visually appealing. Digital Wellbeing Apps as an Intervention for Mobile Phone Overuse
Tom Cheng
Academic Paper, 2023

This paper reviews design principles contributing to mobile phone overuse and examines how the design of popular digital wellbeing apps mitigate mobile phone use.

An icon representing a website, featuring a circular design divided into sections of different colors: green, purple, orange, and yellow. In the center, there is a large blue checkmark, suggesting completion or approval. The overall look is bright and inviting, indicating a focus on organization or task management. Analysis of Formative
Tom Cheng
Report, 2022

This report analyses the strengths and weaknesses of Formative through the lens of Universal Design for Learning framework and proposes a Theory of Change for the platform.

Conference Presentations
A screenshot displaying a presentation slide titled 'Online Language Teaching during the COVID-19 Pandemic – What Has and Hasn’t Worked?' Online Language Teaching during the COVID-19 Pandemic – What Has and Hasn’t Worked?
Tom Cheng
Oral Presentation, The 19th Asia TEFL International Conference, 2021

This presentation explores the challenges and possibilities of online language teaching in the Hong Kong context during the COVID-19 pandemic.

A screenshot displaying a presentation slide titled 'Language Across the Curriculum in support of English Language Education – Challenges and Possibilities in the Hong Kong context.' Language Across the Curriculum in support of English Language Education – Challenges and Possibilities in the Hong Kong context
Tom Cheng
Oral Presentation, The International Conference on English Language Education in the Chinese Context, 2018

This presentation discusses the theoretical advantages and practical difficulties of implementing Language across the Curriculum in Hong Kong.

A screenshot displaying a presentation slide titled 'Effectiveness of Pop Songs in Enhancing ESL Learners’ Intrinsic Motivation.' Effectiveness of Pop Songs in Enhancing ESL Learners’ Intrinsic Motivation
Tom Cheng
Oral Presentation, The 16th Asia TEFL International Conference, 2018

This study investigates the effectiveness of using pop songs in regular English lessons in enhancing ESL learners’ intrinsic motivation in a Hong Kong classroom.

A screenshot displaying a presentation slide titled 'Digital Literacy: A Case of Hong Kong EFL Pre-Service Teachers.' The Online Community of Practice Co-constructed by EFL Teachers: Case Studies from Hong Kong, China and South Korea
Moonyoung Park, Tom Cheng
Oral Presentation, TESOL International Convention & English Language Expo, 2017

This study investigates the benefits of an online community of practice (CoP) co-constructed by English teachers in three different EFL contexts.

This site's design is adopted from Jon Barron's home page.