Challenge

According to Jeremy Alexis, there are two types of problems that an organization can face : puzzles  and mysteries. Puzzles are problems that can be solved by an absolute number, or data. Mysteries  are specifically differentiated by the fact that no single piece of data can solve the problem. They  also require systems thinking, prototypes. That’s why designers more adapted, as experimenting is a  key solution. Of all the mysteries out there, I have chosen to highlight the challenge that schools are  currently facing. Let's imagine that a school wants to ensure the well-being of its students, who  number 550 in 2021 and are between 20 and 25 years old. There are French people, and the  stakeholders who are involved are the administration, the teachers and the students.

Selection

The tool I first use is Storytelling. Storytelling is the activity of telling or writing stories. I chose it  because it puts the human beings and their experience front and center. As we’re facing a social  problem, I think it is the tool that suits best to caption all emotional and material needs.

Application

I start the process by dividing students into smaller groups (30 students), so that everyone has the  possibility to speak. Then, I ask each teacher in the groups to ask them this question, "Tell the other  students about a problem you encountered this year." All students then report their stories, and they  are then asked to classify their various problems into categories that bring together problems related  to the same topic. For example, one category for money, one for food, one for exams, one for  distance work, etc.  Furthermore, I want to know how they faced those problems. So the next  question is asked : “How do you solve the problem ?”. In the same way, a list of solutions is created  according to each category of problems. It is also asked to list the difficulties encountered, as well  as the problems that could not be solved. Finally, a last question is asked: "What would be THE  thing that would make you happier at school?". A new list is created highlighting possible  connections between the different ideas.

At the end, students are asked to choose one category from all those that have been told. The  category that received consensus is then chosen and told in front of the different stakeholders, by the  students themselves, who report their different stories and their possible solutions. I then ask for  feedback from them as well as the emotions felt while listening to the students. "What are we doing  for these students?" : I translate the challenge into a cause. The different stories allowed to create a  group conversation that is concerned by concrete situations, and then facilitated the emergence of  ideas and efficient solutions.

Insights

What I have learned from conducting this exercise with several groups is the fact that emotional  stimulus is important for reinforcing their understanding of the problem they are working to solve,  the more valuable aspect of the activity is the shared experiences and trust between students. I also  realized that some types of problems were recurrent, regardless of the students' social profile. For  example, the exercise showed that all students had suffered from the isolation caused by the  pandemic. Design thinking has put the human back at the center of the concerns, rather than just the  academic level of the school. Finally, thanks to this human-centered strategy, and open to all  options, I understood that the students' well-being was a priority and could only contribute to the  success of the school and their studies.

Approach

Since I discovered that the most valuable aspect is the shared experiences and trust between  students, next time I would use the mindmapping activity as a starting point. The multitude of ideas  and stories that emerged can easily be thought of in themes and patterns. The systematic differences  could have allowed us to draw up different personas and in this way good insghts too.

