Design Thinking

In Design Thinking, students learn to be human-centred problem solvers. They identify complex challenges, understand the needs of those around them, and then work in teams to prototype and test innovative solutions that meet those needs. 

In the process of solving these problems, students learn empathy, collaborative skills and the value of radical ideas. This is in line with the school’s vision of developing “a community of passionate learners who spark imagination, illuminate new frontiers, and inspire change for a better world.”

Design Thinking Mindsets
_Human-Centred_  
Students exercise empathy for the users they are designing for, and gather feedback from these users. This is fundamental for good design.

_Radical Collaboration_
Students work in mixed groups and leverage on different viewpoints to generate creative ideas and realise their design.

_Mindful of Process_
Students know where they are in the design process at any time, what methods to use in that stage, and what their goals are.

_Embrace experimentation_
Students build as a way to think and learn.

_Bias Toward Action_
Students learn to do and make, rather than think and meet.

Design Thinking Process
_Empathise_
As human-centered designers, students need to understand the people for whom they are designing. Students learn to build empathy for who they are and what is important to them.

_Define_
Based on a deep understanding of the people they are designing for, students learn to generate a meaningful challenge – a problem statement from the designer’s point of view.

_Ideate_
At this stage of the process, students focus on idea generation, coming up with a large number of varied ideas.

_Prototype and Test_
Students learn to create prototypes, - a physical object that people can interact with and experience. These interactions drive deeper empathy and help shape successful solutions. 

Design Thinking Curriculum

The CWSS Design Thinking Curriculum is taught as a spiral progression from Secondary One to Three.

_Secondary One_: Students experience short design sprints and mindset-building sessions to introduce them to design thinking.

_Secondary Two_: Students take on a more rigorous design challenge which will deepen their learning and through their application of the design thinking mindsets and skills. The challenge requires students to address a need in the community.

_Secondary Three_: Students initiate their own design challenges with their CCAs as they work together to plan for their Values-In-Action (VIA) Projects using the design thinking approach.

Design Thinking for School Improvement

In addition to being a key programme for students, staff the school also employs the design thinking approach to drive innovation and continuous improvement.

The school has applied design thinking in the following areas:

• Developing innovative learning spaces including the school library and Design Space 

• Transforming school events, including the annual Open House 

• Rethinking school communications, including the Graduation Yearbook