The scene was set...

Welcome to my blog! 

I hope you have been enjoying some of the previous posts and if not please feel free to have a squiz and add any thoughts that you think are relevant in the comments below. This post is another in a series following my MIT ( Maniakalani Innovative Teacher) journey through the design thinking process.

My challenge: Children do not listen to what another child says in an independent group.

The scene was set. It was another one of those parent community meetings. We gathered in the old school hall and the board chair opened that meeting. We were to talk about all the problems the school was having and ask some hard questions and offer potential solutions or ideas.

I was a lawyer. Born and raised in the community my children attended the school, however only the absolute best education would be sufficient for my children.

The problems the school was facing came up on the screen. Parents around me from all walks of life pulled them apart. How come the school wasn't doing anything about these problems? What on earth did some of these mean? How come the teacher's weren't doing enough? What kind of education were the children getting? Why were some of these issues even valid?

The questions were valid. Some of them were harsh. Some of them represented the cultural views of the parents.

The picture was clear. The wording and justification for the schools challenges needed some serious justification if they were to be accepted by a diverse community.

This role play was the opening session for our group of MIT teachers in our first hui of the year. The problems presented by the 'chair' were our challenges that we had submitted. And the parents asking the difficult questions were ourselves, the teachers, with specific roles given to us to play.

This was a serious eye opener to how a community might respond outside of 'teacher bubble'. It allowed me to reconsider my challenge through different eyes.
Did my statement even make sense?
Could I word it differently?
If I was to be questioned by a member of the public, how would my challenge stand up?