Thriving in Chaos: Tools for Sustainable Change

Outline

Using design thinking principles, this session will utilize hands-on activities to help educators highlight a problem in their classroom and create a practical solution they feel confident implementing in their classrooms. The session will be a success when educators are able to highlight a problem, create a solution, and leave the session feeling confident implementing the solution.

With the 60 minutes provided, participants will use design thinking principles to highlight a current problem and design a practical solution.

10 minutes - introduction to the presenter and the importance of this topic
10 minutes - introduction to the idea of Upstream thinking (from Dan Heath) about solving problems before they happen and how this translates into education
30 minutes - (10 minutes) hands-on design thinking practice including finding a problem, (10 minutes) empathizing with users, and (10 minutes) creating a solution to the problem using the Putting Out Fires Framework (this section will include numerous interactive activities for individuals and small groups)
5 minutes - Next steps: how to implement the solution practically
5 minutes - Q&A

Outcomes

In this session, participants will be able to shift their mindset from reacting to innovating to solve tough challenges. They will analyze problems by pinpointing root causes and considering social and systemic contexts. By applying the design thinking activities and the Putting Out Fires frameworks, they will design and create at least one sustainable solution to a current challenge they are facing. Ultimately, participants will develop a new mentality for approaching future problems, allowing them to create student-centered solutions and foster vibrant learning environments.

Supporting research

Upstream thinking research: https://heathbrothers.com/books/upstream/

Design Thinking Activities: https://www.design-thinking-playbook.com/playbook-en?lang=en

Putting Out Fires framework book by the presenter published by ISTE: https://www.amazon.com/Putting-Out-Fires-Framework-Classroom/dp/B0CVKLNPLC - this book was published by the presenter with ISTE publishing. The framework in the book will be used in this session but will not be the entirety of the session. Purchasing the book is not a requirement to attend.