Inspired by an optics metaphor used in ethnography, this mental model explores our perception and understanding of behaviour. Use it as part of your team’s developmental dialogue and process.
Seeing through a lens
We all bring a different perspective to the challenges we face. My story and my experience is my bias. Recognising this foundational truth to collaboration is an important step.
Explore with your team the lenses that can be held up to view the situation you are in. Consider the lenses that are present in your group and those perspectives not immediately present.
However we are not just looking through a lens, we are attempting to see. Consider what it takes to shift our perspective and reveal gaps in our understanding. Follow your curiosity and deepen your understanding of alternative perspectives.
Your Talking Points
How does my bias impact what I see here?
Are we all using the same lens on this situation?
What combination of lenses might offer something new?
Which lenses are more opaque to us?
Which perspective should be represented more clearly?
Hold up a mirror
A further step is to hold up a mirror and consider our own participation in an issue, problem or challenge. Am I part of the problem?
When we look back, at first, we may identify the role we play or acknowledge our influence on an issue. We may reflect on the positive, negative or neutral impact we have on a situation.
When we look closer and see ourselves, we increase self-awareness which is an important trigger for learning and growth. Reflexivity is that circular loop of seeing and changing because we see.
Look through a lens, but hold up a mirror too.
Your Talking Points
How does this situation provoke my thinking?
What am I noticing my thinking is drifting to?
How might I change as a result of this?
What harm might I be causing?
This has helped me to change because…
What’s in the shadows?
Ethnographic studies of human behaviour often refer to the goal, to uncover the unmet needs or poorly defined issues. For our model here we describe that as exploring what is in the shadows.
These are issues or challenges at the root of behaviour. However they may be masked, obscured or in shadow from everyone. With your team explore the shadows and consider what is poorly represented, unspoken or missing from your dialogue and discussion.
It is a challenge to see what is cloaked and obfuscated. This takes time. Commit to your inquiry and use a range of data sources to reveal more and more. Perhaps data becomes your torch exploring and illuminating the shadow.
Your Talking Points
A blind spot for me is…
What are we not paying attention to?
How do we know this is the right problem to be solving?
What is distracting our attention here?
If we looked in the opposite direction what might we see?
See through a lens ~ Hold up a mirror ~ Explore the shadows
It is widespread for us all to wrestle with the DEFINE stage of design thinking as we try and seek out a well-defined how might we statement. This might be true of your team, or perhaps your students struggle with writing a clear How Might We (HMW) statement.
If we have fully committed to the previous EMPATHY stage, we have a bucketload of data and insight for our design challenge. We are also switching our thinking mode and mindset from divergent to convergent. That change can often be tricky. We are attempting to make sense of the information we have gathered. The DEFINE phase brings clarity as you make connections and see some directions to explore.
But how do we know we have clearly defined a problem? What makes a good HMW statement from a great one? What should we focus on when offering critique to improve them? What do we know works best in this phase?
In this post, I have gathered together some of my key recommendations to improve your problem defining efforts. These are my top strategies and tactics for navigating the DEFINE stage of design thinking and creating compelling how might we statements.
Is The Problem Worth Solving?
We develop how might we statement in the DEFINE stage of design thinking. The problem should clearly state and define a genuine need or issue. Whatever happens next has to be worthy of your time and creative effort. Your defined problem should coherently represent the issue you are addressing and the learning you have experienced so far.
Once you have some examples, a good question is: How do we know this is the issue we need to resolve? This question will force you to connect back to the previous work and justify your choices.
The Goldilocks Problem
My standard approach to developing an HMW statement, or critiquing them, is to use the Goldilocks Principle. You can use this to offer feedback and review the versions and ideas you have created. We are looking for a balanced problem statement. Not too narrow and not too broad. It has to be just right.
A narrowly scoped challenge won’t offer enough room to explore creative solutions. And a broadly scoped challenge won’t give you any idea of where to start.
(DesignKit)
Consider the following HMW statement about adapting and changing the physical learning environment. Notice the different versions and how each iteration broadens or narrows: HOW MIGHT WE change the classroom to provide my students with more opportunities for choice in their learning? (Too broad) HOW MIGHT WE change the room layout and types of chairs to provide my students with more opportunities for choice in their learning? (Too narrow) HOW MIGHT WE make small changes to my learning space this term to provide my students with more opportunities for choice in their learning? (Just right)
Start and Iterate
Developing a powerful HMW question is an iterative process and takes tweaks and many versions. It is easy to get stuck wondering where to start. Perhaps you are looking at all the interviews you did or student data you have gathered and begin to feel overwhelmed. My best advice is to get started writing some HMWs down, and then you can refine and iterate as you go.
What is your 4th Word?
Focus on the fourth word. The imperative, the fourth word, signals the action. We use the How Might We structure, so the fourth word is the first choice you have in crafting a problem. Consider what action you want from this creative problem-solving process.
Is this aligned with what we are trying to achieve? Is it aligned with the needs of the people we have interviewed? “How might we encourage” is very different from “How might we direct.”
Explore word banks and vocabulary sets to support students with fourth-word choices. I sometimes use Bloom’s Taxonomy verbs as a good starting point.
Explore the verbs from the taxonomy. There is plenty of inspiration and options to consider.
It is powerful to have alternatives to our stock language: create, help, support, make, implement. Sometimes more nuanced word choice helps capture our intentions better.
Breadcrumb Trails
Keep it connected to the EMPATHY phase. Ask yourself: where is the evidence for this focus in the data we gathered? Which insight or experience tells me this is a real need? Force yourself to articulate the breadcrumb trail back to the EMPATHY stage again and again. That will help you develop a rigorous and well-defined problem, not just something in response to your bias or interpretation.
Stick to a Template
Use the HMW template to help comprehensively build each element of the statement. Explore the quality of the different parts as well as the overall idea and how it reads. What are we trying to communicate with each element? Who are we helping?
Use this template for writing your How Might We statement.
Focus on Your Intended Impact
Pay attention to the part of the statement that signals your intended impact, the “In order to…” element. What change are you looking for? Share feedback about the desired effect we are seeking from this process. Consider how it is aligned to the needs of the people at the centre of the issue.
A great provocation for problem framing is to finish the sentence, “It’s not right that.” This helps us focus on impact, unmet needs and genuine problems people are facing. Thanks to Annie Parker for teaching me this back when I ran the Google Teacher Academy in Sydney in 2014.
It’s not right that________
Fill in the blank
Resist Excessive Wordsmithery
Try not to wordsmith the problem statement too much. We can easily get bogged down in the language and start to split hairs over small changes. Yes, I know this might seem to contradict the use of word banks – design thinking is full of tensions.
Remember this problem definition phase is there to help you. We are not writing to impress others. Be clear and concrete in your writing style and try to avoid too much jargon and abstractions. Does it represent the needs of the people we have connected with? Is our intention clearly stated?
Take the time you need
Please don’t rush this phase, as it will have a knock-on impact on the remaining process. I have seen many design thinking processes grind to a halt because of a lack of investment in the DEFINE phase. There is no need to rush to ideas. Take your time to identify a significant unmet need and define it clearly.
A clearly focused problem statement invariably yields both greater quantity and higher quality solutions.
(Stanford d.school)
One of the most powerful ways to know whether you are on the right track with the problem DEFINING phase is to listen to your team’s reactions and trust your judgment. If the problem you have defined is a genuine reflection of the needs of the people you are trying to help, you now have the responsibility to CRACK ON and figure it out.
Let me know what resonates, and if you would like some independent critique on your ideas, email me your HMW statements. I would be happy to help.
Some other readings worth exploring
Download the PDF template guidelines and ensure each step has been explored thoughtfully. (See below)
I have updated and refreshed my popular Problem Framing Resource, which hundreds of design thinkers use to support their work in the DEFINE stage of DESIGN THINKING. You can download a FREE copy of the PDF below.
Download a free copy of my Design Thinking – Problem Framing resource by subscribing to my small but perfectly formed newsletter, the Dialogic Learning Weekly – ideas and insight about Innovation, Leadership and Learning.
Step by step process and detailed instructions for you to follow.
Key provocations to challenge your thinking.
Space to iterate and create multiple versions.
A tried and tested template for writing HMW statements.
The word spek– is a really old word root meaning “to observe”. If you prefer a little Greek: skopein means to “behold, look, consider”. Or perhaps some end of the week Latin: specere “to look at”.
You can see spek– is the root of the word perspective. This is something we are all seeking at the moment. Our isolation has meant that we are missing the normal connection and interactions that allow us to “consider” and to “observe” how others are. And so how we are.
The word perspective originates from Latin perspectus meaning “clearly perceived”. We want perspective because we seek clarity.
Let’s look at some other uses of the word and how they are important utilities for us right now.
Introspective
You know this one. Looking inside ourselves. Many of us have had to spend more time with ourselves than we might have liked (!)
It is not just about looking and observing. This is a time for increasing self-awareness of our response to change and the problems that have emerged.
Regular introspection and reflection give us the chance to capture what is happening with our disposition. The ups, downs and spirals.
Write it down, talk to a colleague or loved one. Using language to express how we see ourselves is a powerful way to process what we are going through.
Your Talking Point What do you notice about how you have responded to the uncertainty of your current experience?
Retrospective
Looking back is a critical position to take in the coming months, as we transition to some sort of normality. Future innovations will build on the success of the past. They are not disconnected.
Our schools need to consider the powerful practices that were already having a high impact. In our enthusiasm for change and the “new normal” we have to look back at what worked for our community.
What were we doing before? What did we value and how is that different? What still works? Which first principles still exist?
In many ways, it is illogical to consider a snap back to the way things were. Learning, leadership and innovation are intricate and complex behaviours. The stories we carry now and the experiences we have gone through will mean it will be irrevocably changed because we have changed.
Your Talking Point How has your value set shifted and changed?
Prospective
When we add pro- we look forward. We are scanning the horizon and looking ahead. Here in Australia (in early May) we are starting to see a shift in the restrictions and easing of the constraints.
Many of us are looking ahead and figuring out the path through the next few months. Prospective thinking will serve our communities well, as we navigate a return to the normal rhythms of school and consider what is ahead.
There are school events and rituals to be celebrated that will undoubtedly be on our minds. Will we run those as normal? Will they be different this year?
As we lead we need to be prospective. Crucially our students and families will not have had a homogenous experience. Regardless of the synchronous and asynchronous labels we might use. That diversity will mean we might be all looking ahead and prospecting for different things.
Exploring and surfacing that type of insight may help us design a better learning experience in the future.
Your Talking Point How will you discover what your community members are looking forward to?
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As always let me know what resonates.
Look back, and smile on perils past meaning
The blog post “Look back and smile on perils past” is a quote from Sir Walter Scott’s poem, The Bridal of Triermain: Or the Vale of St. John:
That this same stalwart arm of mine, Which could yon oak's prone trunk uprear, Shall shrink beneath, the burden dear Of form so slender, light, and fine; So! now, the danger dared at last, Look back, and smile at perils past!
Let’s unshackle from the present pressures and look ahead to a further horizon.
See these as provocations you can use with your teams as you begin to navigate your way through the next few months. How will you process the transition? What language will guide your thoughts and actions?
Restart
Is it even possible to go “back to normal”? Where would we be going back to?
Restart the race. Restart your modem, Restart your Fitbit. Turn it off and on again. “Just restart it and it should return to normal”. Is that what we will be doing in this transition?
The challenge with the restart disposition is that it implies everything else has remained constant. We can achieve the same outcomes in our schools and businesses with ideas that worked before. Relying on an assumption they will work again.
Everything has shifted and maybe our approaches and ideas need to adapt.
Taking a hardline on this may also be a blindspot. “This is not a restart, everything has changed” may also be implausible. Let’s stay connected to the amazing ideas we had two months ago and adapt those that had the highest impact. Don’t lose sight of what works.
Your Talking Point What has remained true and constant? Why are those ideas and approaches more resilient than others?
Reframe
Framing and reframing a problem is a common approach in creative problem-solving processes like design thinking.
What benefits might there be from approaching the transition as an opportunity for reframing what we do?
In therapy cognitive reframing is used to help explore a range of different perspectives and restructure experiences.
a psychological technique that consists of identifying and then changing the way situations, experiences, events, ideas, and/or emotions are viewed. Cognitive reframing is the process by which such situations or thoughts are challenged and then changed.
We might not be able to change the circumstances we are facing and real changes we experience, but reframing helps us to see alternative perspectives.
A simple example of this would be the difference between saying, “we are stuck at home” compared with “we get to spend more time with our loved ones”. That is an example of reframing.
Approaching our transition to a new pattern of work and learning, through reframing would help you:
Identify and understand different perspectives
Recognise competing truths
Challenge assumptions
Identify opportunities for growth and development
Your Talking Point How is your frame of reference, for work and learning, different to your colleagues? Reflect on something that you have recently changed your perspective or opinion on.
Recast
To recast is to take the existing parts and to reshape them into a new form. Is that what we might experience with school? With our work-life?
Recasting the role of school in our society. Recasting the experience of learning for students. Recasting what it means to ‘work’.
Bellfounding is the casting of bells in a foundry for use in churches, clocks, and public buildings. Broken or out of tune bells would often be melted down and recast into something new.
Bell metal was considered so valuable that the first bronze coins for England were made in France out of melted-down old bells.
If our approach to transition is to recast, this is fundamentally different from restarting. We apply an intentional force to what we have. Reshaping it to a new form of our own design. Not simply restarting with what we had.
It also differs from reframing. We are not simply describing our situation in a new light. We are not just thinking of the opportunity as opposed to the hurdle. We are creating something new from the salvageable, unimaginable and valuable experiences we face.
Your Talking Point What aspects of education and work need to be recast and reforged? What do you think Winston Churchill meant when he said, “Never let a good crisis go to waste”.
Restart, reframe and recast. Perhaps our transition to normality, the repeatable habits and patterns we enjoy, will incorporate a whole range of approaches. As always, let me know what resonates with you.
This special project update was first published in Issue #163 of the Dialogic Learning Weekly Newsletter.
Welcome along to another weekly newsletter. This week a full update about a project I just completed in Papua New Guinea.
On Wednesday I landed back on Australian soil after spending four days in Papua New Guinea working with 50 teachers from 12 provinces.
Chris Harte invited me to co-design and facilitate a 2-day workshop on learner-centred pedagogies. It was lovely to work alongside him again.
The workshop was part of PNGAusPartnership Secondary Schools. A new initiative partnering 12 PNG and 12 Australian high schools to strengthen education, leadership and people-to-people links.
Here are some of the insights I take from an amazing trip.
Sharpening Our Tools
Our 2-day course focused on learner-centred pedagogies. We spent time together exploring a range of teaching and learning strategies.
Building the toolset was a deliberate aspect of our time. One of the teachers explained that she had used some of the ideas before, but our work had helped to sharpen our tools. 🛠
Another explained there was a lack of language to accurately describe some of the strategies. It made me reflect on the importance of a shared language and names for these strategies, and how this mediates collaboration.
Papua New Guinea has 832 living languages (languages, not dialects), making it the most linguistically diverse place on Earth. With that in mind you can understand that sharing practice, ideas and strategies is challenging.
Exploring some new project ideas.
Commitment to the Teaching Craft
Within hours I began to reflect on the teacher’s purposeful attitude. They were there to improve their craft. 🖐
There was a clarity about what was valued in the session. The strategies and techniques that shift the emphasis away from too much teacher talk. Our participants were soaking everything up.
Even the methods Chris and I used to co-facilitate were noticed and explored. We modelled, then developed the skillset through collaboration and dialogue.
One of the teachers explained that in many of the rural communities teaching students was significantly challenging, but “thankfully and hopefully it might not be anymore”, due to the skills she had learned.
When we have choices in our pedagogical toolset and a broad skill base to enact them, we might feel a little less worried about the challenge.
Workshop is a-buzz with project hives, learning design and pitch preparation. Working with @tombarrett is always a joy and a privilege. pic.twitter.com/V15m9i95SX
There was no question about the mindset of the teachers in the room. They were ready to learn and open to improve their teaching. 🧠👐
Although they may have been teaching in a teacher-directed and centred way, they were not obstinate about this approach. It was dominant amongst the secondary teachers we worked with, but they were ready to improve and change.
For many of the teachers, this was a new approach to professional learning. We modelled pedagogies and offered an abundance of strategies. Some participants felt it revealed what sort of teacher they were.
Here is some feedback from one teacher.
I used to think that I should dominate the lesson on how students should learn. But, now I think that I should be more flexible and design lessons in a way that provoke more curiosity, discover their capabilities and what they can contribute in the real world.
It was exciting and refreshing to help teachers who were so humble and open in their efforts to get better.
Smiling after the final presentations
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Perhaps the most important insight for me was that despite 832 living languages and all of the challenges these teachers experience, many of which I am only beginning to understand – we gathered together as one group and connected around the language of learning. A universal human truth.
Thanks for taking the time to read the update this week. See you next time.
~ Tom Barrett
You can access all of my previous newsletters using this link or subscribing using the forms on this blog 👇🏼
