instructional-design
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West Woods and the value of a rough first draft
A coupon app, a solar boat, and a design agency with an unusually broad toolkit. West Woods makes more sense when you look at what its designers learned before the polished version.
John Dunavan Built Learning Systems for 2,000 Therapists. Now He Wants Knowledge to Behave More Like a Conversation.
Across two decades in learning and development, John Dunavan has kept returning to one stubborn idea: useful knowledge should move at the speed of the people who need it.
Muzzy Lane
Muzzy Lane is a Massachusetts edtech company that builds tools for creating game-based learning simulations and roleplay assessments. Its flagship no-code Author platform lets instructional designers and publishers build immersive, decision-driven activities without programming, while its SkillBuild courses pair simulations with AI coaching to award durable-skills microcredentials. Founded in 2002 by MIT-trained engineer David McCool, the company has powered tens of millions of simulations and assessments for universities, publishers like McGraw Hill, and corporate training programs.
David McCool
David McCool is the co-founder, President and CEO of Muzzy Lane, a Massachusetts edtech company that builds 'no coding required' tools for creating online role-play simulations that teach and auto-assess skills. An MIT-trained electrical engineer who once bought a TRS-80 with paper-route money, he spent the 1990s building carrier-grade networking gear before turning his attention to whether software could make learning as engaging as a great video game. Since 2002 he has steered Muzzy Lane from WWII strategy game 'Making History' through publisher partnerships with McGraw-Hill to its current focus on SkillBuild microcredentials and generative-AI authoring tools, with tens of millions of assessments delivered.