CEP 817 taught me many more things than I ever knew about design through working through the process myself. Going into this course I had some previous knowledge about a design process, but this was only from my experience at Notre Dame, and International Baccalaureate school. I was very surprised when I first read about the Stanford Design model just how much these two methods of design paralleled. See the infographic below for more info on the comparison of these two cycles!
There was one big difference though. The IB design cycle did not take into consideration it's users or the empathy it took to design something really well. It seem to focus specifically on the designer and with the designer wanted. Pulling in the feeling of empathy into the design process really changes things. It sets your focus specifically on who you are creating a design for and not on your own motivations and likes and dislikes. I truly believe after going through this process that without empathy it is nearly impossible to create something of great value and worth.
When I look at the IB design cycle, I approached it as a step-by-step process. While I worked through the Stanford design model it became more of an organic, free-flowing process. I learned that just because you were on a specific step did not mean that you could not jump back and forth between other steps in the process. The Stanford design model is also much more in depth as far as the thinking it requires during each stage of development. Not to say that the IB design cycle is not deliberate enough, but I just didn't feel that it required nearly as much of a creative process the way that it is outlined. I really learned that in order to truly follow a creative process you must try many (and I mean MANY) exercises that may be outside of your comfort zone. I really liked that the Stanford model gave me many possible ways to get me through the thinking part. The exercises that were included really helped expand my thinking outside of the box - and kept me from only looking at constrained and possible ideas.
It was interesting because I really thought of myself as a creative person before going into this course. This course actually proved me completely wrong! Although I may be creative in the sense of creating crafts and Pinterest projects, I found that I easily get frustrated when an idea doesn't pop into my mind right away that works out perfectly. I consistently kept coming up against roadblocks that I couldn't break through using my usual ways of research and finding answers. The nice thing about our problem of practice is that these “problems” that we chose weren’t necessarily solvable. Even though in the beginning this felt like a momentous problem to tackle, I ended up liking the fact that I could have many different solutions. There just really wasn’t one right answer that worked in every context.
While going through this process - I constantly was in check about how I was feeling at each stage of design. I can compare my experiences to the ups and downs of a roller coaster. There were many different emotions and feelings that I went through as this project progressed. Content, frustration, hopelessness, joy, exuberance, and accomplishment. I wanted to show a visual of those thoughts and feelings through the use of the infographic below:
When I look at the IB design cycle, I approached it as a step-by-step process. While I worked through the Stanford design model it became more of an organic, free-flowing process. I learned that just because you were on a specific step did not mean that you could not jump back and forth between other steps in the process. The Stanford design model is also much more in depth as far as the thinking it requires during each stage of development. Not to say that the IB design cycle is not deliberate enough, but I just didn't feel that it required nearly as much of a creative process the way that it is outlined. I really learned that in order to truly follow a creative process you must try many (and I mean MANY) exercises that may be outside of your comfort zone. I really liked that the Stanford model gave me many possible ways to get me through the thinking part. The exercises that were included really helped expand my thinking outside of the box - and kept me from only looking at constrained and possible ideas.
It was interesting because I really thought of myself as a creative person before going into this course. This course actually proved me completely wrong! Although I may be creative in the sense of creating crafts and Pinterest projects, I found that I easily get frustrated when an idea doesn't pop into my mind right away that works out perfectly. I consistently kept coming up against roadblocks that I couldn't break through using my usual ways of research and finding answers. The nice thing about our problem of practice is that these “problems” that we chose weren’t necessarily solvable. Even though in the beginning this felt like a momentous problem to tackle, I ended up liking the fact that I could have many different solutions. There just really wasn’t one right answer that worked in every context.
While going through this process - I constantly was in check about how I was feeling at each stage of design. I can compare my experiences to the ups and downs of a roller coaster. There were many different emotions and feelings that I went through as this project progressed. Content, frustration, hopelessness, joy, exuberance, and accomplishment. I wanted to show a visual of those thoughts and feelings through the use of the infographic below:
So what does it mean for me as a person, as a teacher, and as an individual? For my own work as a math teacher in seventh grade classroom the design process could have a lot of impact on the way that I teach and my students learn. The process of design is almost a natural process that happens whenever students are working through a group project. Some students do not have the experience to correctly follow through with each of these steps. This process could be a great tool to teach my students so that they can be even more creative through the projects they complete throughout their schooling. I constantly use real world projects and I try to make them as open-ended as I can to allow for this sort of creativity. As seventh graders, they have not had the direction to complete a process in this manner before. That doesn't necessarily mean that they can't. I would really like to implement this process and teach the Design Model at the beginning of the year so that my students can apply the model in all of their classrooms. I think if I would have known about this when I was in school I could have been a better group leader while working on projects and I think that others students would take more ownership if they were a part of something like this.
This process also is evident in teaching and the philosophy of teaching as well. The first connection I thought of was the UBD design model. From a teaching perspective we cannot prototype a test or exam before we have empathized with our users and come up with ideas and objectives for what we want them to learn. We cannot just jump into the testing mode without first putting a lot of thought into every day that leads up to that exam. We need to make sure we are fully prepared and fully prepare our students for the designs we have created. Although the UBD model does not specifically state that you need to empathize with your users, it does talk specifically about knowing where your students are and knowing where they will and can go. Having the students at the center focus of your lessons and teaching will help the entire process flow more smoothly.
This process also is evident in teaching and the philosophy of teaching as well. The first connection I thought of was the UBD design model. From a teaching perspective we cannot prototype a test or exam before we have empathized with our users and come up with ideas and objectives for what we want them to learn. We cannot just jump into the testing mode without first putting a lot of thought into every day that leads up to that exam. We need to make sure we are fully prepared and fully prepare our students for the designs we have created. Although the UBD model does not specifically state that you need to empathize with your users, it does talk specifically about knowing where your students are and knowing where they will and can go. Having the students at the center focus of your lessons and teaching will help the entire process flow more smoothly.
This design process does not necessarily only apply to education and creativity. Design is all around us; it is in the houses in the neighborhoods that we live in, it is in the process of raising children, it is in the products we use on a day-to-day basis. Everyone had to go through this process in some shape or form to create and sustain all of the things around us. The cool thing is that this process looks different for each and every person. As I stated before, it is fluid, free-flowing, and organic in nature. There is no stop and start at each mode - you have to make the process work for what you need it for and what your users need it for.
As each year goes by I continue to prototype and test my lessons for their objective outcomes from student learning. One year I might realize that there is a better lesson out there that I could teach my students which would create a better yield in the end. Even though I am going into my fifth year of teaching, I have not found the “perfect” answer in a “perfect lesson”. And I don't necessarily think that I ever will. I have to continue to prototype and test but the number one thing that I need to do is empathize with my students. Each year I have a new set of students that come with different needs and varying levels of knowledge. If I take that into account each year when I am designing I will get closer and closer to achieving the goals that I set.
As each year goes by I continue to prototype and test my lessons for their objective outcomes from student learning. One year I might realize that there is a better lesson out there that I could teach my students which would create a better yield in the end. Even though I am going into my fifth year of teaching, I have not found the “perfect” answer in a “perfect lesson”. And I don't necessarily think that I ever will. I have to continue to prototype and test but the number one thing that I need to do is empathize with my students. Each year I have a new set of students that come with different needs and varying levels of knowledge. If I take that into account each year when I am designing I will get closer and closer to achieving the goals that I set.