Forum Discussion: Applying Design Thinking to Transform Learning Experiences
Instructions:
- Reflect on a learning challenge you’ve encountered—this could be in your own teaching, training sessions, or even a learning experience you participated in.
- Apply the stages of design thinking—Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, and Test—to propose a creative, user-focused solution to address that challenge.
- Share your thoughts by making an initial post, then respond to at least two peers’ posts with constructive feedback or additional ideas.
Guiding Questions for Your Initial Post:
- Empathize: What do learners struggle with? What are their needs or frustrations?
- Define: How would you frame the core problem in a clear, concise statement?
- Ideate: What innovative ideas could you develop to address this problem? (Feel free to brainstorm several!)
- Prototype: What is one simple version or small-scale example of your solution that you could create or show to others?
- Test & Refine: How might you gather feedback from real users or peers, and what changes would you consider making based on that feedback?
Example Post (Short Version):
Challenge: My adult learners often feel overwhelmed by technical jargon in our online training.
Empathize: They’ve mentioned feeling lost and intimidated.
Define: “Learners need straightforward explanations and practical examples to understand technical concepts better.”
Ideate: Brainstorm solutions like a jargon-busting glossary, interactive examples, or short “explainer” videos.
Prototype: Create a brief interactive video that introduces a difficult term, breaks it down with simple visuals, and asks a short quiz.
Test & Refine: Share this video with a small group of learners, collect feedback, and make updates (e.g., shorter videos, more real-world examples).
Feel free to be as creative as you like—consider multimedia, collaborative activities, or any other tools that might address your identified challenge. Once you’ve posted, remember to read and reply to others with encouragement, suggestions, or follow-up questions to keep the conversation flowing.