Please join us for a weekly conversation about design thinking in K12 education. We will have a variety of moderators with a wide range and depth of design thinking experiences. Each week, we will connect the dots to the design thinking methodology and how it can and will play a bigger role in today’s K12 educational arena.
Tonight’s #dtk12chat is all around the Nuts N Bolts of #designthinking How Empathy? What HMW? Where Challenges? Why Now? Please share your Questions & POVS
#dtk12chat runs very similar to other chats Q1/A1 format However we welcome your Questions Please don’t hesitate to throw some out there and do it again if you don’t get a tweet Intros are up next. Thank you for joining the Nuts n Bolts convo on #designthinking in K12+ EDU
This morning in Suzhou I’m working with Ts using a #dtk12chat framework to support UbD, cognitive demand & taxonomies for learning, best practices for grading, and other #sblchat principles. #edchatme#SuzhouSunrise
Angela from Buffalo. I make and write things with kids and teachers. 70 degrees is an optimal temperature, although I've learned how to enjoy snow this year. #dtk12chat
I am Mary from ATL I’m a Housewife & self-imposed part-time design thinking player in the EDU world. Warm & Hot weather are my favs. I LOVE hot summers in the ATL #dtk12chat
Thanks for checking! I understand better what you meant about baked in solution. Got some advice from @TeachersGuild too and landed on HMW use outdoor space to enhance classroom instruction #dtk12chat
Hi #dtk12chat! I'm Gail, Tweeting from the Bay Area. I'm a science teacher-to be, currently student teaching and earning my credential. My favorite weather is clear and sunny yet with a nice crisp cool in the air, so you can walk outside and feel woken up by it.
Hi, #dtk12chat. Ken G. from Berston, Merssachusetts. I only have an accent in my tweets. Thrilled to say that the blizzard that's been predicted (sort of) doesn't seem to have arrived.
A1: Yeah, I guess I do explain it in similar ways, especially with those who are new to it. When groups have experience, it's less explanation and more exploration and questioning what we think we know. #dtk12chat
A1 I used to have several definitions I used w/ adults & students I’ve settled on “ #designthinking is a human-centered approach 2 learning, creating, & being through Empathy. “ #dtk12chat a way 2 gain deeper understanding Here’s a post I wrote awhile ago https://t.co/FlyUQCH79H
We start with talking about problems and getting students to think about how others feel. They need to understand how certain issues directly effect people. #dtk12chat
A1 I used to have several definitions I used w/ adults & students I’ve settled on “ #designthinking is a human-centered approach 2 learning, creating, & being through Empathy. “ #dtk12chat a way 2 gain deeper understanding Here’s a post I wrote awhile ago https://t.co/FlyUQCH79H
I like that I have been steering away from framing #designthinking as solely “problem” finding lately as it implies something is wrong. I tend to push it as opportunity for design #dtk12chat
This is uplifting. I worry about the unintended consequences of expecting Ss to be constantly attuned to suffering. It doesn't have to be about problems or suffering--great reflection, Mary. #dtk12chat
A1 -- I do not have to introduce S to #designthinking. When I do have to explain, I typically start by saying, DT is a framework of solving problems. #dtk12chat
Good Q! Can't think of Q's they ask about difference; we talk more about they why after a trying a quick run through like foil challenge. Kids talked about feeling nervous if partner would like design, perfect ex. of empathy #dtk12chat
TGLG is a global initiative led by former British Ambassador Tom Fletcher (@TFletcher) to give learners the opportunity to develop the knowledge, skills and character to thrive in the Digital Age. #dtk12chat@Learning_Goals
Q2 How Empathy? How can our students practice &/or experience empathy during #designthinking challenges? Observe. Engage. Immerse. How do can these verbs play a role? #dtk12chat
Oh, I am not working in School setting. I worked for a short period of time at @dTechHS. The students there were learning about #designthinking - day in and out. #dtk12chat
This is related to the conversation I was having with Naomi @RealSexyCyborg and @lndeutsch about cultural implications of trying to "solve problems"! Can cause major conflict in filial-piety cultures like China! #dtk12chat
In reply to
@AngelaStockman, @scitechyEDU, @jarollins06, @RealSexyCyborg, @lndeutsch
That's a powerful point. When we expand the def beyond problem solving, it does open many more opportunities. Inspires new viewpoints and perspectives too. Inclusive. #dtk12chat
In reply to
@McGrawBridget, @scitechyEDU, @jarollins06
Hi #dtk12chat I’m Erin from Vermont and so over winter I can’t see straight. Work for @leadanddesign bringing DT habits and mindsets to teachers and school leaders to apply in classroom and school change projects.
Hi all. Leslie from ATL popping in late. Q2 intrigues me. It seems that a precursor for creating opps for Ss to experience empathy is creating opps for Ts to experience it. Leaders have to model a stance of curiosity & wondering over certainty as core value of sch. #dtk12chat
A1 I teach dt to adults and just had the hardest time explaining it to my 5th grade daughter - realized the need to simplify explanation without jargon. #dtk12chat
A2: Somehow the exp I've been using w/Ss has led to a lot of convo around inferences related to empathy; reading between the lines; what's said w/o being said #dtk12chat
Hey #dtk12chat! It’s gonna be 72 in Denver tomorrow! Also, @erin_cohnPhD is and amazing facilitator. Great energy and clarity. Trying to figure out how to work with her, @Tara_Jahn, and @Carla_R_Silver more often.
Hi #dtk12chat I’m Erin from Vermont and so over winter I can’t see straight. Work for @leadanddesign bringing DT habits and mindsets to teachers and school leaders to apply in classroom and school change projects.
As educators of "modern learners," we need to engage students in thinking about issues beyond the classroom. Designing curricula to reflect this is in itself DT. #dtk12chat
Yes! Nicole was my host, and I was super impressed by the staff approach she described of having a default "yes" to trying new things unless there was a good reason to say no. Also impressed by students' agency, and deliberately thinking about teaching self-advocacy! #dtk12chat
Q3 What is the HMW? all about when it comes to #designthinking (btw there is NO wrong answer) What is the Power of HMW? Can you share some HMW? you’ve used &/or Ss/Ts have crafted? #dtk12chat
Lauren from Nashville. Checking in and out of the chat tonight. A1: I explain DT the same way to Ss and adults. However I also say DT helps us design opportunities rather than just solving for problems. Found opportunity speaks to some more than problem. #dtk12chat
A2 -- I would invite students to pause(stay) within the challenge. It takes time to build understanding, and connection -- to be able to empathize. #dtk12chat
A3 For me, the HMW is all about a) shifting yourself to an open mindset where you can consider new possibilities and b) reframing the problem/situation so you make sure you're identifying the parts that actually matter. #dtk12chat
Hi all. Leslie from ATL popping in late. Q2 intrigues me. It seems that a precursor for creating opps for Ss to experience empathy is creating opps for Ts to experience it. Leaders have to model a stance of curiosity & wondering over certainty as core value of sch. #dtk12chat
Hey @AngelaStockman in case you missed Leslie’s A2 I would love your thoughts on it ( I will circle back when chat is over for a deeper digestion) #dtk12chat btw Leslie meet Angela and vise versus
Ohhh, I won't be back in time but will share w/staff. Would love to learn of future ones! #dtk12chat Do you have full time staff in MN or just flying in? #dtk12chat
Nicole is the best! I am an example of that default "yes". I was given the opportunity to pilot "Curiosity Project" with students during Design Lab. #dtk12chat
We participated as part WE schools with a focus on social issues and justice, and continue to develop the curricula involving issues of diversity, inclusion, and intersectionality. #dtk12chat
Just RT it because it really resonates. Today, working with gr. 1 writing Ts: HMW we practice empathy as we launch a new writing unit, in order to create a truly emergent curriculum? Then: HMW help writers empathize w/audience prior to writing? T first, then Ss. This? #dtk12chat
A3: taking a side step from Q3 but related; what are best strategies for interpreting empathy exercises? Where does POV statement fit in w/HMW? How do you best write POV? #dtk12chat
A3 (cont) For examples:
a) "Our curriculum is bad" --> "HMW improve our curriculum to ______?"
b) "We should add an advisory" --> "HMW make students feel belonging & being known?"
There are always ways forward, & they're not necessarily the first ways we think of! #dtk12chat
#dtk12chat Helping design thinkers realize they are analyzing stories and behavior in the same way they would literature, or a historical source, or an anthropological object is key. Use same analytical skills we teach elsewhere.
A3 (more thoughts) When I was a kid, I remember learning about shifting from "I can't..." to "I could if I..." The HMW takes that a step further by acknowledging that I don't know the end of that second phrasing yet, but actively wondering about how WE could #dtk12chat
My cooperating teacher's advisory class is doing "#20time projects" this semester: https://t.co/tjoRRJZ2p2 The Ss/groups choose a project of their own interest to pursue this semester, which must have some community benefit+audience. Will share at a spring exhibition #dtk12chat
I know this is probably not what you had in mind, but it seems like a lot of the challenges in schools that adults complain about/feel constrained by are great candidates for them to USE DT to address. Use first, then teach. #dtk12chat
A4: DT are truly all around if eyes are open to what's not working or could be improved >turning in papers, keeping track of supplies; challenge for Tt comes from finding curriculum connections #dtk12chat
A4 I use tweets as launch pads, I keep a running list of possible DT challenges https://t.co/fy1Y53nyhe I also tend to frame DT Challenges as Topics to allow 4 possibilities Characters in novels, newspapers, Discover Walks etc #dtk12chat#DEEPdt
Sort of like at feedback stage where a student says: hey it’s awesome! There’s no “problem” to solve. Response: how can your partner make their prototype even more awesome? #dtk12chat
In reply to
@AngelaStockman, @scitechyEDU, @jarollins06
Q5 For the Nuts n Bolts of #designthinking 411 What Questions do you have around DT? Do you have any Qs you would love to hear other’s POV (point of view)? #dtk12chat
A4 I also like thinking about how dt mindsets can be drawn out in all kinds of ways without taking on a full design challenge. Inspired by @ChelleWabrek today re: Harold & Purple Crayon as prototyper #dtk12chat
You're welcome! This is the school's first time trying it, so I'm curious how it will work out. Some of the kids seem a little unsure what to do with being able to CHOOSE what to spend their time on... hence why that self-awareness/self-advocacy piece is so important #dtk12chat
A5: strategies for interpreting empathy exercises? Where does POV statement fit in w/HMW? How do you best write POV? is a POV needed or can you jump to HMW after processing empathy? #dtk12chat
A5: Is it important to distinguish design from design thinking? How might design thinking shift school culture? When/how does it become a meaningless buzzword? #dtk12chat
What strategies have been most productive for gently drawing folks - especially folks that might dispositionally tend toward high certainty - into the discomfort zone of DT? What experiences most quickly bridge gimmick to substance? #dtk12chat
A5 What strategies do y'all have for helping Ss develop a brainstorming/bias towards action/throw out an idea and see if it sticks mindset? I've been thrown a few times when I expect things like "brainstorm as many questions as you can!" to be easier for them
#dtk12chat
When we deny opportunities for learners to identify, own, and solve real world problems whether local or global , we lose a chance for them to feel like they have a voice in change. #dtk12chat
Great Qs. I find that POV is important and provides powerful lens, esp. if seeking diverse perspectives is a priority. Is that ever not a priorty? Hmmm. #dtk12chat
A5: strategies for interpreting empathy exercises? Where does POV statement fit in w/HMW? How do you best write POV? is a POV needed or can you jump to HMW after processing empathy? #dtk12chat
I was in a fun Twitter exchange the other day with @HalGregersen and one idea was modeling "wild ideas" at the beginning of the brainstorm. Also @perfinker modeled a great activity where we took on different personas and brainstormed as though we were someone else. #dtk12chat
In reply to
@gallahergh, @HalGregersen, @perfinker
A5 -- Is #Designthinking accessible for the average person? If not, how can they learn & implement without spending $ on training & resources? #dtk12chat
What strategies have been most productive for gently drawing folks - especially folks that might dispositionally tend toward high certainty - into the discomfort zone of DT? What experiences most quickly bridge gimmick to substance? #dtk12chat
Sometimes when a group stinks at going there I have them spend 2 minutes coming up with the WORST ideas possible. Sometimes those help them then accept wacky ideation and then dial back to good ideas. #dtk12chat
