Reblog: @LindseyOwn Introducing DT to School Faculty
I must take this moment to reblog a post by a fellow EDU/DT/Collab pal from Seattle, WA, Lindsey Own. of The Evergreen School. I've had the chance to hang with Lindsey face to face first at Educon this past January and a lot more at #SXSWedu in March. These two f2f meetups have ignited two major initiatives we have been involved in this summer, #dtk12chat and #LeanInEDU as well as countless other shares/learning moments via social media.
This past week, Lindsey and some of her colleagues at The Evergreen School spent three hours with their faculty experiencing design thinking together. I want to give props to The Evergreen School for their success in beginning their design thinking story together and with such enthusiasm. In Lindsey's post she shares her insights, the structure, & outcomes from the three hour experience but she also shares the behind the scenes set up for the facilitators & slide deck. I love that she did this because all to often as teachers we see the finished product and not the process to the product. I often forget that those who are teaching me at one point had a 1st presentation, a 1st workshop, or a first talk to the masses. And it was during these 1st moments that the person holding the mic was not that far away from me as I sat in the peanut gallery eager to learn from the sage & wise facilitator/speaker/innovator. And I will say, it is those first timers that have a foot or two still in the trenches of teaching that I learn and am most inspired by for so many reasons. For Lindsey, this was her & teams admitted first time delivering/introducing the "design thinking" methodology.
And having a little more insight into the work, thoughts, and efforts Lindsey put forth into these three hours, I can tell you that the behind the scenes prep would be eye opening and a great learning moment for those trying to figure out this fun world of design thinking. And even from afar here in Atlanta, I know those three hours were successful because even if no one jumps right into a design thinking challenge in the next few months, mindsets were broadened and possibilities were encountered that will trickle down into students' learning very, very soon. As evidence by their one minute final product elevator speeches on How Might We support keeping energy positive and healthy throughout the school day?, can you just imagine what their students might design?