DESIGN IMPROVEMENT Handbook

Discovery

In this phase, the Design Improvement team delves deeply into multiple perspectives for context and empathy into stakeholder/user experience, including those students or families historically underserved by the school system. The team asks questions, observes, notices, explores points of view, is curious, and challenges biases. This work is done with an emphasis on equity for all stakeholders through a lens of cultural proficiency and development.  The work is made problem-specific and user-centered. There is a focus on identifying the ‘right’ problem to solve and engagement of stakeholders is vital.  After identifying a problem area, the team engages in activities (e.g., empathy interviews, research scan, analogous settings, system mapping, and process mapping) to understand the problem and identify the root cause. 

Interpretation

In this phase, the DI team analyzes, interprets, refines, reframes to clarify, works past assumptions, identifies core issues, makes meaning and identifies the ‘right’ problem of practice.  The critical issue is not how to work but rather what works, for whom and under what conditions. The intended outcome is to advance efficacy reliably at scale. Variation in performance is the core problem to address and promotes equity for all participants.

Ideation

In Ideation, it is important to see the systems that produce the current outcomes.  Improvement comes from fully understanding what the DI team wants to improve. Take into consideration how local conditions shape work processes.  Create a hypotheses for change public and clear, Generate ideas from a range of creative and divergent viewpoints to explore possible paths toward solutions.  As a DI team, use imagination and curiosity, be open and build prototypes.

Experimentation

This is where opportunity blooms!  Experiment with potential solutions and test prototypes. Metrics is the key to experimentation.  The DI team cannot improve at scale what we cannot measure. Embed measures of key outcomes and processes to track if change is an improvement.  Anticipate unintended consequences and measure these, too. Engage is rapid cycles of Plan, Do, Study Act (PDSA) to learn fast, fail fast and improve quickly.  That failure may occur is not the problem; that the DI team fails to learn from the failure is the problem.

Evolution

Reflect on the work that the DI team has done.  Gather feedback and identify next steps, including adopt, adapt, or abandon.  Network with analogous settings to gain wisdom and experience.