“Design is thinking made visual” by Yeray Vega is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 

This weeks themes have been critical thinking, problem solving, decision making and design thinking.  As a high school math and science teacher, I spend significant time discussing how to identify valid information and trustworthy resources. Each semester I begin with several lessons that define, model and teach higher level thinking, critical thinking, and problem solving and these themes permeate all my classes. As such, I will focus my energies this week on the less familiar concept of design thinking.

The Interaction Design Foundation defines design thinking as:

a non-linear, iterative process which seeks to understand users, challenge assumptions, redefine problems and create innovative solutions to prototype and test. The method consists of 5 phases—Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype and Test and is most useful when you want to tackle problems that are ill-defined or unknown.

The 5 phases of design thinking (as outlined by the Interaction Design Foundation) really require learners to be well rounded and sophisticated thinkers. Let’s break it down:

1. Empathize: See a need, fill a need. This requires that the design thinker understand others and has a high level of emotional intelligence.
2. Define: Although defining is usually considered first level thinking, here the design thinker must gather the data collected through empathizing and then analyze and synthesize that information to define a problem to be solved. This process requires that design thinkers are skilled and experienced higher level thinkers.
3. Ideate: The true test of the higher level thinker! One must think outside the box to create innovative solutions.
4. Prototype: Start to create solutions. Left brain thinkers, prepare to challenge your abilities and strengthen your right brain’s creative and artistic capabilities.
5. Test: Try your solutions out

It follows that digital tools used with the intention of design thinking and learning should promote critical and higher level thinking because of the very nature of the process. Critical thinking (the objective analysis and evaluation of an issue in order to form a judgment) is a necessary skill required for design thinking.

Although I really like lists and step by step instructions, Stephanie Overby warns in an article published in The Enterprisers Project that we should not attempt design thinking as a process, but rather as a mindset geared towards creating and providing a service. She describes the major tenets of design thinking as observation, empathy, human need, and ongoing engagement. Another interesting read, also by Stephanie Overby, is  10 Design Thinking Myths Debunked.

Stephanie Overby suggests the following 5 Ted Talks for describing the intentions, process, and key characteristics of Design Thinking: (It is important to note that I am watching these Ted Talks though the lens of an educator during the Covid 19 pandemic, and hence have a focus on being innovative when designing online learning opportunities for my students.)

Tony Fadell: The first secret of design is…noticing

Favorite Quote from Tony Fadell: “I try to see the world the way it really is. Not the way we think it is. Why? Because it’s easy to solve a problem that almost everyone sees, but its hard to solve a problem that almost no one sees.”

Tim Brown: Designers – Think Big!

Favorite Quote from Tim Brown: “In times of change we need new alternatives, new ideas…and in these times of change we need these new choices because our existing solutions are simply becoming obsolete.” I especially like Tim Brown’s 4 characteristics of design thinking:

1. Design is human centered
2. Design thinkers learn by making (prototyping)
3. The primary objective is participation
4. Design may have its greatest impact when its taken out of the hands of designers and put into the hands of everyone.

David Kelley: How to build your creative confidence

Take-away or provocation from David Kelley: How can we change the trepidation that teachers and students have towards online learning?

Paul Bennett: Design is in the details

Favorite Quote from Paul Bennett: “It’s not about huge, ridiculous things we need to do. It’s about tiny things that can make a huge amount of difference.” Also, I really like the term Paul Bennett uses: Empathic solution.

Guido Stompff: Speed up Innovation with Design Thinking

Favorite Quote from Guido Stompff: “Before, no one knows what the outcome will be. In the end they have something they’re quite proud of. But they learn on the go, they learn while they create what they are inventing.”

Since much of this week’s learning was done through watching Ted Talks, I decided to conclude with a recorded reflection using Zoom:

Additional Resources:

Buchanan, R. (1992). Wicked Problems in Design Thinking Design Issues: MIT Press, Vol. 8, No. 2 (Spring, 1992), pp. 5-21

Galileo (2019). Designing Learning. Retrieved from https://galileo.org/designing-learning/ (Inquiry and Design Thinking)

“Albuquerque 2016” by lito is licensed under CC BY-NC 2.0 

This week has been historical. And emotional. And incredibly challenging. Amid the Covid-19 pandemic most of our daily routines have been disrupted, many of our securities erased, and some of our worst fears are being realized.  The financial situation for many has, or will soon, become crippling. And the health concerns, whether they be for ourselves or our loved ones, can be overwhelming. Amid this crisis many ‘regular’ citizens have become heroes, such as nurses, doctors, grocery clerks, pharmacy workers, custodians, food producers, and warehouse workers. Teachers have not been asked to join the countless others that have had to dug their heels in and alter their ways of thinking and working. Yet. We are half way through spring break now, and it is my hope that when it is time to return to work that teachers might be able to create a sense of  normalcy amid the chaos and uncertainty of this pandemic.

Many teachers enter the profession because they had a positive experience during their own education. Maybe  it was a creative and engaging teacher, or a supportive counselor, or an inspirational administrator. During this unique and difficult time we have a chance to connect in new and meaningful ways with our students. We can strengthen a sense of community, exercise our compassion and creativity, and be the calm and caring leaders that our students need in these uncertain times.

It will not be easy. The learning curve for teachers and students will be steep. But if we do not let fear of failure or the challenge of the unknown stop us from trying we have the opportunity to provide an invaluable service to students, parents and the community at large. By simplifying our lessons,  sharing resources, being creative and flexible, and focusing on personal connections we stand to have a very significant and positive impact on society.

It will require leadership. I believe our provincial leaders are doing a remarkable job uniting Canada during this pandemic.  They are modelling how important it is to work together, in spite of any differences, for the benefit of all citizens.  Our school districts and our administrative staff will need to come together to envision a new way for our education system to move forward and serve our students. They will also need to focus on supporting and encouraging their staff, and nurturing the personal relationships and connections they have with their staff so that we can work as a united community.

It will require that we take care of ourselves and each other. It can be a challenging task to take care of ourselves and our families during these trying times.  That will look different for every individual, and may be different for each individual every day. I am grateful that I have had this first week of spring break to take care of myself and my family, to process the situation we are in and to be thoughtful and deliberate in how I want to proceed. My goal for this next week is to reach out and start building the strong community that will be necessary if we, as a community of educators and public servants, are going to have the tools, resources and support we will need in our new reality.

I believe we can join the growing community of everyday heroes. This is an opportunity for teachers to be far more than educators, and to have the positive impact on our students and community that initially drew us to this profession.

“2014 Google Digital Literacy Multimodal Skills slide 19” by jjfbbennett is licensed under CC BY 2.0 

This week our masters cohort had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Tim Winkelmans from the Ministry of Education to explore the story behind the development of the BC Digital Literacy Framework. Reflecting on the webinar with Dr. Winkleman and additional research into other existing frameworks I will consider the following questions:

• What is the purpose of digital literacy frameworks?
• What is the digital literacy and what characteristics does it involve?
• What are some other existing digital literacy frameworks?
• How does B.C.’s Digital Literacy Framework compare? What is missing?

To conclude, I will reflect on how literacy frameworks can assist with my project design or redesign.

What is the purpose of digital literacy frameworks?

Dr. Winklemans experience with technology stretches back to the 80’s when Pascal was the main programming language and dial up text-based conferencing tools were cutting edge. In the 90’s he evaluated software for the Ministry of Education’s and became the manager responsible for correspondence learning. Dr. Winklemans states that the digital literacy framework came about as a response to a platform commitment that Christy Clark made as one of her election commitments in 2008 or 2009 to ensure that every student was digitally literate at an early age.  The intention of the framework was to provide the best advice to politicians and make sense of statements like “digitally literate at an early age”. The steps that Dr. Winkelmans and his team took were to convene a working group in the ministry and an advisory group comprised of educators, trustees and others involved in public education to consider and research the dimensions of the problem and to put together a project plan. Their goal was to establish an opinion as a ministry to define digital literacy and outline ways that it can be achieved. They considered what was currently available in educational technology, and identified the set of standards established by ISTE (who created the National Educational Technology Framework), and used it as a basis for their work intended for British Columbians. The resulting framework would remove content from the equation and talk about contexts, ethics and values around technology use. It appears that the intention of the document was to define characteristics of digital literate students, however I believe it can also be an effective tool to assist, guide and assess curriculum development.

What is digital literacy and what characteristics does it involve?

Digital Literacy is defined by BC’s Digital Literacy Framework as “the interest, attitude and ability of individuals to use digital technology and communication tools appropriately to access, manage, integrate, analyze and evaluate information, construct new knowledge, and create and communicate with others”. The Government of BC states that digital literacy is an important skill to have in today’s technology based world, and defines the characteristics of digital literacy as:

1. Research and Information Literacy
2. Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making
3. Creativity and Innovation
4. Digital Citizenship
5. Communication and Collaboration
6. Technology Operations and Concepts. 

These six characteristics are based on the National Educational Technology Standards for Students developed by the International Society for Technology in Education, CommonSense Media’s K-12 Digital Literacy and Citizenship Curriculum, and European Commission’s Online Consultation on Experts’ Views on Digital Competence.

What are some other existing digital literacy frameworks? 

Upon the creation of BC Digital Literacy Framework there was little common agreement of what digital literacy was. For some it was all about computing and coding, and for others it was the social and ethical aspects involving technology.  Current digital literacy frameworks include all considerations relevant to digital literacy. A few examples of other frameworks include:

• Media smarts digital literacy framework for Canadian Schools
• Singapore’s Digital Media and information literacy framework
• The Welsh government’s Digital Competence Framework
• Jisc Digital Capability Framework
• La Trobe University Digital Literacies framework

It is interesting to note the different names of the frameworks, as some refer to digital literacy (singular), some refer to digital literacies (plural), and some refer to competencies or capabilities. Regardless of the specific words used to describe the characteristics that are required for efficient and effective technology use, there are many similarities among the noted frameworks.  Of course, there are also some differences.

How does B.C.’s digital literacy framework compare? What is missing?

ISTE has different standards for Students, Teachers, Educators, Coaches, and Education in general, while BC’s Framework has focused on standards for students. Interested individuals could find more specific standards relevant to their personal context by referring to the ISTE Standards. Media Smart’s framework is very similar to ISTE and BC’s standards, however it further breaks down student digital literacies into grades K-3, 4-6, 7-8, and 9-12. Singapore’s Digital Media Framework is directed to program owners and public agencies, so it’s 3 categories are broader and less specific to education (benefits, risks and possibilities of technology; how to use information responsibly; and how to use digital technology responsibly). The Welsh government’s framework is very similar to BC’s, however it is broken down into digital competencies for each year/grade. Jisc and La Trobe are also similar in their categories and content for digital literacy, although they have a higher education focus. Jisc is a UK non-profit organization that supports UK higher education institutions in digital technology and resources, and La Trobe University is in Australia.

BC Digital Literacy Framework also breaks down the literacies for specific grades, although it does so under each category rather than providing distinct frameworks for each grade. So far, my research is showing common themes and information among the frameworks, although they vary in to whom they are intended and how specific the literacies are for each grade or age group. This is not surprising when you consider that ISTE was the first framework available and has likely served as a primary reference for the development of subsequent frameworks. I believe this speaks to the depth of understanding and research that initially went into the ISTE standards.

It is interesting to review the Core Competencies of BC’s New Curriculum in light of BC Digital Literacy Framework.  One can see many parallels, and (as Dr. Winkelmans noted), it is evident that the BC Digital Literacy Framework was a reference for the developers of BC’s New Curriculum.  That being said, something that is prominent in the new curriculum but not referred to in the BC Digital Literacy Framework is indigenous content and perspectives.

Applications for me…

For my project, I am particularly interested in Digital Literacy #5 from the BC Digital Literacy Framework: Communication and Collaboration. Students in my Environmental Science class will be working together to create a short film that will be shared on social media to communicate the meaning and importance of Earth Day. This project will require that students:

• research the history of earth day and relevant environmental facts that support it’s inception. (Digital Literacy #1: Research and information Literacy)
• Employ critical thinking strategies, problem solving, and decision making when it comes to deciding on which tools and resources to use that best suite the project design. (Digital Literacy #2: Critical Thinking, Problem Solving, and Decision Making)
• practice creativity and innovation when constructing the project piece with a goal of captureing the attention and evoking the emotions of their audience. (Digital Literacy #3: Creativity and Innovation)
• understand Digital Citizenship when creating and sharing their contribution to the final product, including staying safe on the internet through an awareness of privacy and security concerns. (Digital Literacy #4: Digital Citizenship)
• use digital media to communicate and work collaboratively. This will further develop their general knowledge and functional technology skills. (Digital Literacy #5: Communication and Collaboration)

The ISTE standards for educators is helpful in assisting self reflection of my role as Learner, Leader, Citizen, Collaborator, Designer, Facilitator, and Analyst (ISTE standards 1-7 for educators). The one fundamental tool that is missing from the aforementioned frameworks is a repository of quality technological apps, platforms, Learning Management Systems and other resources that can assist student and teacher utilize technology efficiently and effectively. But perhaps that is the natural consequence of being Digital Literate.

Finally, I would like to share following short film by the BBC, which has inspired me while developing the curriculum for Environmental Science, and especially when designing our upcoming Earth Day Project.