070511SMR © JESNA 2011

EDjewCON 5772.0

April 30, 2012

REINVENTING SCHOOL: APPLYING DESIGN THINKING

Jonathan Woocher

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

Jewish Education in a Time of Change

• Success of assimilation• Diversity• Hybrid, fluid identities• The “sovereign self”• Prosumerism• Declining loyalty to institutions• Simultaneous divergent developments• The pace of life and the rapidity of change• Technology as an accelerant

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

Design Thinking for Educators*

Design thinking is a mindset for creating new solutions that is:

• Human-Centered

• Collaborative

• Experimental

• Optimistic

REAL VALUE = mix of tangible problem solving and abstract thinking

* Based on IDEO Design Thinking for Educators Toolkit. IDEO is a global design firm with a human-centered design-based approach to help organizations in public & private sectors innovate & grow.

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

The Design Process

• Discovery– I have a challenge. How do I approach it?

• Interpretation– I learned something. How do I interpret it?

• Ideation– I have an opportunity. What do I create?

• Experimentation– I have an idea. How do I build it?

• Evolution– I tried something new. How do I evaluate it?

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

Putting the Approach to Work

Discovery: – What is a major learning challenge that your school

faces today?

Interpretation: – Describe your challenge from the perspective of

– Students– Teachers– Parents– School administration– School leadership– The wider community

– Summarize and organize your insights about the challenge

– Frame opportunities: “How might we…?”

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

Putting the Approach to Work

Ideation:• Brainstorm ideas

– Defer judgment. – Encourage wild ideas. – Build on the ideas of others.– Stay focused on topic. – One conversation at a time. – Be visual. – Go for quantity.

• Select, imagine, and describe: what does your idea look like in practice?– A drawing, a mock-up, a role-play – then a concise

description

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

Putting the Approach to Work

• Experimentation:– Prototype– Test the idea in the real world– Get feedback

• Evolution:– Continued testing, refinement, development

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

Lessons and Implications

• Put learners and learning at the center– How does your school fit in their lives

(observation)?– What are their needs, aspirations, constraints

(empathy)?– Invite learners (and families) to be co-creators

• Understand the ecosystem – Where does your school fit into the larger

communal framework?– What value exchanges will you need in order to be

successful?

• Cultivate an experimental mindset– There are no once-and-for-all solutions– Cultivate feedback– Be willing to “fail forward”

070511SMR © JESNA 2011

Guiding Principles for 21st c. Learning

Lippman Kanfer Institute• Learner-

centered• Relationship-

infused• Life-relevant

Charlie Schwartz & Russel Neiss• Open• Remixable• Meaningful

and relevant• Community-

building

New American Academy• Empowering• Collaborative• Transparent• Reflective