Design Thinking Workshop

I had the opportunity to participate in a library redesign project where students, teachers, and administration got to work together to learn about design thinking and applications of technology into bettering life.  I went into the day not knowing really what to expect and the looks of uncertainty around the room didn’t help very much either.  I sat down next to a 4th grader, Gigi, and was shocked at first that someone so young was participating.  As the project started, we learned about the power of design thinking.  I was very interested in the creation process and result of IKEA’s design team creating a solar-powered refugee shelter.  It caught rain water, used solar power to create electricity, and it was made out of insulated light weight material that kept it warm in the winter and cool during the summer.  But the kick of this shelter was that it could be easily sent to the survivors of disasters all around the world.  I thought this was really cool and innovative.  

We continued the day by analyzing our schools strengths and weaknesses and then applied them to recreating our library based on those principles.  At this point, I realized why the fourth graders were there.  Even though at first glance it seemed shocking and inefficient, I actually did my best work with Gigi and we ended up creating an amazing new plan for a library.  I really felt a sense of community during the project and that made me realize the power of design thinking.  I continued my research into design thinking and found some really interesting information.  I learned that the reason why it is so effective it because it enables our creative, design, and analytical cognitive abilities all at once.  The result is a pure idea in all forms.  So instead of thinking up some idea and then shooting it down due to lack of either confidence or passion, you pursue your ideas in a whole new way.    The steps of design thinking are not linear.  Robert McKim, a known philosopher,  uses a a step series that he summarizes with “ Express-Test-Cycle”.  I am really glad to have had this experience and if you would like to read some of McKim’s journals on design thinking here is the link  : http://www.philosophy.illinois.edu/people/rmckim