Post 2

I will describe the design thinking approach to learning. I will first use information from our assigned post on Planning Frameworks, which says that design thinking is an approach to learning that encourages learners to prototype in order to solve a real world problem. Design thinking is also based in the category of the Understanding by Design principles, where instructors plan their courses based on a set of desired outcomes. Design thinking says that learning designers must base their objectives off of the human needs of their learners because empathy and human need are the foundation of design thinking. There are five phases (empathy, define, ideate, prototype, and test) which can be incorporated into an outline of a project (once an instructor has grabbed the learner’s attention). During these five phases learning designers may find they need to revisit the phases in order to better cater the design to their learners. Overall, the post Planning Frameworks argues that design thinking uses a group-based approach that motivates students to solve a problem in a creative and pragmatic way (like the constructivist theory), where the thinking process of the designer is catered to the individual who will benefit from the result of the project. I found more information on design thinking in a blog by the Harvard Business School titled What is Design Thinking & Why is it Important? This blog provides the insight of design thinking into work life. For example, the blog suggests that employers should increase employee engagement and not focus on problem-solving (Han 2022). Reading through the rest of the blog provides awareness into design thinking outside the realm of education, such as design thinkings’ benefits in the modern working world.

In my group’s interactive learning resource on the topic of sleep, the learning objectives and activities line up with a constructivists approach and therefore align with design thinking. To incorporate design thinking into our resources, we can find more learning activities that incorporate the needs of the participants in our study of sleep, where learners track their sleep and mood everyday. Asking the learners ways in which they prefer to track their sleep or what is most convenient for them can help the learners feel motivated to participate in tracking their sleep and discussing their experiences. By incorporating the opinions and needs of our learners, my group can integrate design thinking into our interactive learning resource.

Reference

Han, Esther. (2022, Jan. 18). What is Design Thinking and Why is it Important? Harvard Business School Online. https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/what-is-design-thinking.