Systems Thinking For Trustees

June 2011

Consider these issues!

Education Issue 1

• Despite years of research, education, promotion of alternatives, most teachers still prefer a “stand and deliver” lecture style of instruction.Transferring

my notes to your notebooks without going through either of our brains!

Education Issue 2

• Despite the fact that it was designed to meet the needs of a rural, agricultural society and may no longer be relevant or functional, the annual school calendar remains fundamentally the same.

Education Issue 3

• Despite numerous interventions and government programs, student graduation rates remain stuck at about 80%.

Why A Different Approach?

“The world we have made as a result of the level of thinking we have done

thus far creates problems we cannot solve at the

same level of thinking at which we created them”

Albert Einstein

A Definition Of Insanity

Doing the same things in the same way you have always done them … and expecting different results!

Three Types of Challenges

• Simple: learning keyboarding skills• Complicated: learning to play the

violin• Complex: learning to raise a child

Three Types of Challenges

• Simple: learning keyboarding skills• Complicated: learning to play the

violin• Complex: learning to raise a child

Many modern leadership challenges are of the “complex” variety: non-linear,

ambiguous and continuous. Nothing is ever completely “fixed”.

Systems Thinking

• SYSTEM: a perceived whole whose elements “hang together” because they continually affect each other over time and operate toward a common purpose.

Systems Thinking

• SYSTEM: a perceived whole whose elements “hang together” because they continually affect each other over time and operate toward a common purpose.

• SYSTEMS THINKING: the discipline of

thinking in wholes – of seeing the big picture as well as the parts; the relationships and trends as well as the isolated actions.

Systems Thinking – Key Ideas

• It is hard to see the system when you are in it• You need to see the whole and the parts – the

forest & the trees• Stable systems want to stay the same• Small changes can lead to big results• Quick fixes often backfire• We think and behave individually and collectively

in patterns• We don’t always notice the patterns unless we pay

close attention• By understanding patterns, we can discover

leverage points for improving personal & organizational performance.

Working With Systems Thinking

• See the system• Analyze the system• Look for leverage points• Consider unanticipated

consequences• Implement changes slowly• Be patient: don’t expect immediate

results• Pay continuous attention

Questions - Pictures

• What do you see in the picture? What is going on? Tell the story.

• What questions could you answer by looking at the picture?

• What other data would you like to gather from looking at the picture?

• What can you predict by looking at the picture?

Picture 1

Picture 1

1. What do you see in the picture? What is going on? Tell the story.

2. What questions could you answer by looking at the picture?

3. What other data would you like to gather from looking at the picture?

4. What can you predict by looking at the picture?

Picture 2

Picture 2

1. What do you see in the picture? What is going on? Tell the story.

2. What questions could you answer by looking at the picture?

3. What other data would you like to gather from looking at the picture?

4. What can you predict by looking at the picture?

Picture 3

Source: Banyai, Istvan ZOOM, Puffin Books, Toronto, 1995

Picture 3

Source: Banyai, Istvan ZOOM, Puffin Books, Toronto, 1995

1. What do you see in the picture? What is going on? Tell the story.

2. What questions could you answer by looking at the picture?

3. What other data would you like to gather from looking at the picture?

4. What can you predict by looking at the picture?

Pictures Discussion

• What lessons about systems thinking and seeing systems can you learn from the pictures activity?

See The System

• Recognize “blind spots” and limitations

• Take different perspectives• Use brainstorming and other “mind

opening” activities• Draw the system – make it visible• Consider cause-effect relationships

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• It mimics (supposedly) the way the brain works

• It uses a “picture” which may stimulate the right side of the brain

• It shows links and connections• It captures the system of thought• It prepares us for thinking

systemically• It is fun!

Mind Mapping To See The System

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How to Mind Map

Topic/Question

Use Brainstorming Rules!

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How to Mind Map

Topic/Question

Level 1Response

Level 1Response

Level 1Response

Level 1Response

Use Brainstorming Rules!

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How to Mind Map

Topic/Question

Level 1Response

Level 1Response

Level 1Response

Level 1Response

Level 2ResponseLevel 2

ResponseLevel 2Response

Level 2Response

Level 2Response

Level 2Response

Level 2Response

Level 2Response

Use Brainstorming Rules!

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Sample Mind Map - Education

MindGenius

Be Cautious About Quick Fixes

Cart wheel is squeaky

Symptom

Be Cautious About Quick Fixes

Cart wheel is squeaky

Apply water

Symptom

Fix

Be Cautious About Quick Fixes

Cart wheel is squeaky

Apply water

Symptom

Fix

Axel gets rusty Unintended

consequences

Quick Fixes

• What are your “squeaky wheels”?• What “quick fixes” have you applied?• What have been the consequences?

Leverage: Monkey Theory

• Chimpanzees share 99.4% of our human DNA

• What is the .6% that makes us different?

Leverage: the small interventions that over time make the biggest difference.

Leverage: Places To Intervene

1. Numbers – adjustments to “faucets” like minimum wage

2. Information availability3. The rules of the system4. The goals of the system5. The mindset or paradigm out of

which the system arises

Your Leverage Challenge

What are the small things you could do in your school district that would bring

about the most beneficial changes with the least possible undesirable side

effects?

Thanksand

Good Luck!