DesignforNext

12thEADConferenceSapienzaUniversityofRome

12-14April2017

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DesignCultureinschool.Experiencesofdesignworkshopswithchildren.FabrizioPierandreia,ElenaMarengonibaPACODesignCollaborativebPACODesignCollaborative*Correspondingauthore-mail:fpierandrei@gmail.com

Abstract:Thispaperdiscussesthesocialandculturalrootsoftheemergingneedforproject-based didactic approaches within education systems, showing theadvantages of the adoption of design tools and specifically of the Service DesignThinking method. These are presented in relation to extant literature in thepedagogic field, giving an overview of the domains within which Service DesignThinkingcanbebeneficial.Aseriesofworkshopscarriedoutwithchildrenarethenpresented, highlighting themost relevant findings that have been gathered fromthemanddiscussing theirmethodological potential toward an implementationofdesigneducationinprimaryschools.

Keywords: Education, Design Thinking, Service Design, Didactic Methods,Learning

1.IntroductionInthe21stcenturysociety,ithasbecomeclearthatknowledgewillbecomeincreasinglymoreimportantthanthetangibleresourceswehaveatourdisposition(Robertson,2005).Infact,itwillbemoreandmoreafundamentalassettosupportusintheattempttoovercomethosewickedproblemsthatareadailyissueinoursocieties.Thisconfrontsuswiththeneedtoensurethattheeducationalsystemisreadytotakethisnewchallengeonboard.Threekeytopicsinspirethisdebate.

1.1 Holisticunderstanding,autonomousdiscovery,criticalthinkingWhenwetalkabouttheimportanceofteachingstudentshowtosolveopen-endedproblems,thereisastreamofliteratureaboutlogicandcreativethinkingtodrawon.Expertshaveobservedthatoneofthekeyprocessesthatenableproblem-solvingoutsideofclosedsystemsisthecapabilitytotransferknowledgebetweenfieldsandtogeneralize,zoomoutandseetheunderlyingcomplexity.ThisreliesonwhatBartlettdescribesas‘adventurousthinking’,whichisthecapabilitytogobeyond

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theobvious,askillthatcanbenurturedandtrainedalsobyexposingchildrentoastimulatingenvironmentthatallowsthemtoexperiment,movebetweenfieldsofknowledgeandmakeautonomousdiscoveries(Bartlett,1958).Onthecontrary,traditionalschoolprogramsoftenconfrontchildrenwithpre-packagedinformationandasimplifiedunderstandingofreality,offeredintheformofdistinctschoolsubjects:inthisapproach,thelearneractsasan“independentobserverofobjects”(Scheeretal.,2012,p.9).Schoolsshouldevermorepromoteaholisticunderstandingoftheworld,tohelpkidsbecomebetterindividuals,equippedwithstronglogicandcreativeskills.

1.2 AdoptingavarietyofmethodstofitdifferentlearningstylesExistingresearchhaswidelyshownevidenceofhowdifferentthelearningprocessisforeachchild:studentsmaybenaturallyinclinedtousecertainintelligencesmorethanothers(Gardner,2011;Azzali&Cristanini,1995),forinstancebeingmoreateaseexercisingtheirverbal-linguisticcompetencethantheirvisual-spatialorlogical-mathematical.Thedifferentextenttowhichintelligencesaredevelopedforeachpersonresultsinendlesscombinationsandahugediversityoflearningstyles.Althoughsomedegreeofgeneralizationisneededinordertocomeupwithareplicablemethodology,itisclearthatthereisanopportunityforschoolstorecognizethisvariety,allowingstudentstoexercisethosecompetencesthatareeasierforthem,butalsostimulatingthemtotrain“otherintelligences”throughavarietyofactivities,rangingfromthemoretheoreticaltothemorepractical(Cornoldi,1999).

1.3 FosteringcollaborationandencouraginggroupworkAthirddimensionthatcannotbeoverlookedhastodowiththebroadercontextwithinwhichlearningoccurs,theclassroom.Alotofresearchhasbeendoneonhowtofacilitatetheexchangebetweenteacherandpupilsbut‘theconceptofpedagogyneedstobeextendedtoallowforothersocialrelations,inparticular,thoseinvolvingco-learnersorpeers’(Blatchfordetal.,2003,p.6).Researchhasshownthatcollaborationbetweenmembersofaclassroomcanimprovebothlearningachievementsandattitude/motivationtowardactivities.This,inturn,reinforcestheimportanceoffosteringcooperationwiththeaimtogeneratemoredebateandthereforetohelpchildrentonurturecriticalthinkingskills.

Thedebatearoundthesetopicsisstillopenastheyposenumerouschallengeswhenitcomestoturningtheseprinciplesintoactionableguidelinesandimplementingthemthroughactivities.Ittakesmorethanasimplemanifestotopromoteaculturalshift:thecombinationofasolidmethodologicalapproachandthere-organizationofinternalprocessesarebothequallyessentialforthisevolutiontotakeplace.

2.DesignCultureNurturingadesignculturewithintheschoolsystemisseenasaphenomenonthatcanresultinbeneficialoutcomesfortheschoolitself.Designcultureishereintendedastheheadlineunderwhichtwomajorcontributionsfall.First,ittakestheformofaproject-baseddidacticapproachthatencourageschildrentoperformdesignactivitiesand"contextuallyinformedactionswithinthedevelopmentofadesign”(Julier,2005,p.70).Second,itappearsasaspecificattitudetowardschangeandasenseofagencythatcanbeseenwithintheschoolasanorganizationandinrelationto

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theoutsideworld.Inthispaper,wewillmainlyfocusonexperiencesconcerningthedidacticapproachperse.

Promotingchangewithintheschoolinthesetwodirectionswouldmean,ononehand,allowingstudentstogainmoreactivecontrolovertheirlearningprocessthroughdesignand,ontheotherhand,absorbingthesemethodologiesattheinstitutionallevelandputtingtheminusebycontinuouslyimprovingthewayeducationalexperiencesareoffered,thusturningtheschoolintoalearningorganizationitself.

Onamorepracticallevel,thekeyenablerofthisculturalshiftistheServiceDesignThinkingmethodology,asetoftoolsandmethodsthatcouldbothhelpteacherstodeliverengaginglearningexperiencestopupilsandsustainthischangeattheorganizationallevel.

Inparticular,theServiceDesignmethodologyhasrecognizedtheimportanceofdesignasaprocessandnotjustasanoutcomeexpressedthroughanartefact,withacertainform,function,andvisuallanguage(Stickdorn&Schneider,2012).TheServiceDesignapproachadoptsahuman-centeredapproachasopposedtoamoretraditionalfeature-centeredprocess.Ithasalsopusheddesignerstolookbeyondsingleobjectsandtoexplorethecomplexsystemofinformation,interpersonalrelations,andcontextualdynamicswithinwhichtheyexist.Thisperspectivecouldhelpeducatorstofocusmoreonthelearningprocessanddeveloptheireducationalapproachbytakingthepointofviewoftheirlearners,butitcouldalsohelpthemtoconnectthedidacticexperiencewiththebroadercontextofinterpersonalrelations,environmentalinfluences,…

Inotherwords,educatingthroughDesignwillhelpchildrentousetheircreativitybeyondthelimitsofexpressingthemselvesandasatooltobecomecriticalthinkersandproblemsolvers,towardsafuturegenerationofmoreconsciousindividuals.

Table1.Designculturemanifestation

DESIGNCULTUREINSCHOOL

What Project-basedapproachwithstudents(classroom)

School’sattitudetowardschange(institution)

How Designtoolsandmethods,ServiceDesignThinkingmethodologyThiswholeapproachsetsitsrootsinthestreamofconstructivistideasoflearning,aimingtospreaddesigncultureamongexistingprograms.Italsodiffersfromtheotherconstructivistapproachesinthefollowingregards:

• Whileconstructivistlearningmethodsareseenas“opposedto”thosederivedfrombehaviourismandrealism(Scheeretal.,2012),thegoalhereistopromotetheintegrationofdifferentlearningmethodsandnottogeneratea“brand-new”onenortoaddnewdisciplinestoanalreadycrowdedcurriculum.

• ThemethodsandtoolsarederivedbythosedevelopedforServiceDesignandDesignThinking.

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3.HypothesesAfundamentalassumptionofthisresearchisthatServiceDesignmethodscanprovidesupporttodifferentmomentsofthelearningexperience,allthewayfromdiscoverytoexecution.Likewise,itisassumedthatthisdidacticapproachresultsinchildrennotonlyabsorbingknowledgeinadifferentwaybutalsoengagingindesignactivitiesandproducingknowledge.

Startingfromthispreliminarydefinitionofdesignculture,asetofhypotheseshasbeendefinedtobeusedasparametersagainstwhichtoevaluatetheoutcomesofexperimentalprojects.

• ServiceDesignThinkingallowslearnerstoexercisedifferentintelligencesandcan

matchdifferentpersonalattitudes(Cornoldi,1999).

• Itfacilitatesadeepunderstandingoftopics,facilitatingtheunderstandingofcause-effectrelationshipsandcorrelations,increasingawarenessandhelpingchildrentoformopinions.

• Itencouragestheinteractionbetweenpeople,bothbetweenpeersandasymmetric,(teacher-pupilsrelation).

• Itsupportspermanenceofknowledge:inBrunoMunari’swords,“IfIseeIremember.IfIdoIunderstand”.

• Ithelpschildrentoevaluatethefeasibilityandviabilityofasolution.

• Itencouragesempathyandhelpsthosewhopracticeittotakeotherpeople’sperspective(user-centricapproach).

• Itfostersaholisticunderstandingoftheworldandencouragesspontaneousconnectionsbetweendifferentfieldsofknowledge.

AseriesofexperiencesthatbringchildrenclosertotheServiceDesignThinkingapproachhasalreadytakenplace.

4.Lessonsfromthefield

4.1IntroductionInitiativespromotingtheuseofdesignmethodswithandbychildrenhavetakenplacesince2014.Fuelledbythecontributionofdesigners,educators,andteachers,theseinitiativesadoptedaproject-basedapproachwiththegoalofapplyingServiceDesignThinkingmethodsineducationalcontexts.

DesignsessionsmainlytookplaceduringDesignEventsinPrimaryandSecondaryschools,inItalyandabroad,orwerehostedbyinstitutionslikeChildrenandSciencemuseums,oftenwiththesupportofthelocalMunicipalityandofdesignassociations.

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Overall,ithasbeenmadeuseofthreeformats,whichdifferintermsofgoals,length,activitiesandtoolsusedbythestudents:

• DesignJams• Workshops• SchoolPrograms

Inallofthesecases,thetraditionalDoubleDiamonddivergent-convergentapproach(DesignCouncil,UK,2005)hasbeentakenasareferencebutadaptedtotheneedsofthesession,sometimesmodifyingphaselengthasrequired.

Thebackboneoftheprocessadoptedinallthethreeformatsisstructuredasfollows:

• Receive(thechallenge):thesessionbeginswiththepresentationofachallenge,often

relatedtotheeverydaylifeofthepupils.Atthislevel,thefacilitators’roleiscrucialindrivingthechildrentoembracethechallengeempathically.

• Understand(theproblem):childrenareengagedinaprocessofdefiningresearchquestions,findingcriticalpointstosolveandgatheringkeyinformationthroughdeskandfieldresearch;theyarethenguidedthroughareflectionaboutwhattheyhavelearned.

• Develop(anidea):thisisamanualandcreativephaseinwhichchildrenareaskedtosketchworkablesolutionsonpaper,usingdifferenttechniquesandamixofvisualandverballanguage.

• Prototype(thesolution):byusingdifferentkindsofmaterialsandprobes,childrengivevisibilityandtangibilitytotheirideasbymockingupobjects,keyinteractionsorspacesinwhichtheirdesignsits.

• Present(theproject):aftercollectingfeedbackontheprototype,childrenarrangeapublicpresentationoftheirproject,explainingtotheirparents,teachersortherestoftheaudiencetheadvantagesoftheirproposalanddescribingthesalientaspectsofthedesignprocesstheyhavegonethrough.

Also,someexperiencepillarscharacterizetheexperienceacrossphases:

• Fromcomplextosimple:breakingdowncomplexnotionintosimplerfactsandusingstorytellingtodeliverconceptstokids

• Fromabstracttoconcrete:focusingoneverydaylifetopicsandpracticalchallenges• Fromknowledgetoinvolvement:promotingengagementthroughrole-playingand

gamingandrelyingonkid’sself-consciousnessandresponsibilityintakingaction• Fromtalkingtodoing:learningwiththeirhands,activatingbehaviouralchangein

children

Ontheotherhand,themaindifferencebetweentheformatsisreferredtothedurationandhowtimedifferentlystresseachdesignsessionphaseandtheinteractionsamongparticipants.

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4.2DesignJamsDesignJamsareactivitiesopentochildrenandpre-teensandcharacterizedbyastrongemphasisonimprovisationandfastprototyping.Theyareusuallycarriedoutinlessthan4hoursandaimatteachinghowtotransformideasintoprototypestobetested.

ThegoaloftheJamsistohelpparticipantstotryoutthebasicprinciplesofaServiceDesignThinkingprocess,byshowingthemthatweliveina“designedenvironment”inwhichproducts,services,andinteractionscanbeimprovedthroughdesign.Theyarealsoencouragedtoconceivesolutionsthattakeintoaccountwhat“theothersthink”andneed,understandingtheirperspectiveasusersandassessingthecomplexityofsituationswhichincludemultipleactorsandpointsofview.

Thescheduleistightlybuiltaround6activities:kick-offandchallengepresentation(15-20min),brainstormingsession(30min),userinterviews(40min),projectinsightsgeneration(30min),rapidprototypingofsolutions(60min)andpresentationtotheaudience(20min).

TheJam’sactivitiesarecarriedoutingroupsof3-5kidseach,supportedbyafacilitator,usuallyadesigneroraneducator.Groupsofthissizehaveproventobethemosteffectiveintermsofinternalcollaborationandpeer-to-peerexchange,whilethesupportofafacilitatorhelpsthemtofollowtheprocess,makedecisionsandfocuson“doing”ratherthantalking.

Figure1.Interviewingapasser-by

Characteristicofajamistointroducethetopicattheverybeginningofthesession.Thisisacriticalphaseinwhichitisimportanttomakechildrenfeelemotionallyconnectedtothegivenchallenge,whichcanbeencouragedthrougharole-playactivityinwhichalltheparticipantsareaskedtotellwhattheir‘superpowers’areandarethencalledtousethemintothespecificcontextoutlinedby

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thetopic.Toincreaseempathy,facilitatorsareaskedtotakepartintotherole-playtoo.Perceivingthemselvesas“heroes”calledtoactionhelpskidstoembracethechallengeinamoreenthusiasticway.Plus,choosingthemesthattouchuponaspectsoftheirdailylifeincreasesrelevance.Examplesoftopicsare:“Avisittothedentist”,“Thefearofdarkness”,“WhatifIcouldfly”.

Throughbrainstorming,childrenexploreanddeepentheirunderstandingofthegiventopic,sharingopinionsandstartingtocollect“preliminaryinsights”uponwhichtocreateadiscussionguidefortheinterviews.Largesheetsofpaperandaseriesofprintedimagesrelatedtothetopicactasicebreakersinthediscussionandhelptheparticipantstosharepersonalexperiences.Interviewsrequirekidstoaskquestionstoadultsorpeersandtoreporttheinsightstheyhavegathered.Parents,teachers,andpasser-byareofteninterviewed.Theuseofstickynotesisencouragedtobetterorganizeuserfeedback,whilepropssuchasfakemicrophonesorbadgesareusedtohelpkidsinterprettheroleofresearchers.Interviewnotesareclusteredbyaffinityanddiscussedtoselectthosethatcanbemoreeasilydevelopedintoprototypesinthelimitedavailabletime.

Prototypingistheactivitythattakesthelongest:childrenusethistimetogivelifetotheirideasthroughartefactsandtoperformthekeyactions/interactionsrelatedtotheirsolutions,focusingontheentire‘userjourney’.Actingout,simulatinggesturesandtalkingoutloudhelpkidstobetterimaginehowtheexperiencewillbelikeandtoideatefaster.Prototypesarebuiltwithpoormaterials,suchascardboardandglue,colouredplasticsheets,fabric,andmodellingclay.

Eventually,eachgroupisaskedtopitchtheirproposaltoanaudiencecomposedofalltheparticipantsandtheirparentsbystagingtheirsolution,showingthekeyfeaturesandmaininteractionsbutalsoexplainingtheprocesstheyhavefollowedthroughouttheJam:thisalsobecomesamomentoffeedbackonthepotentialoftheServiceDesignThinkingapproachasalearningmethod.

Figure2.Quickprototyping

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4.3DesignWorkshopsDesignWorkshopsdifferfromJamsinrespecttothreefactors:

• theyaremainlycarriedoutinschoolswiththepresenceandparticipationofteachers• theyarecomposedofdifferentdesignsessions:2-3shortencounters• thetopicisagreeduponwiththeteachersandpresentedtothekidssomedays

beforethefirstdesignsession.

Whilejamsareusuallyofferedtoanopenaudience,workshopsareofferedtochildrenfromthesameschooloreventosingleclasses.Therefore,teachersplayacrucialroleaspartoftheteamwhopreparesanddeliverstheactivities,makingsurethatthereisintegrationbetweenthedesignsessionsandtheothercurricularactivities:

• Theypreparethegroundfordesignactivitiesthroughpreliminarygroupdiscussionsorshort

• lecturesfocusedonthetopicoftheworkshop• Theygraduallyintroduceaproject-basedapproachalsotoformprojectteamsbased

onkids’• personalattitudesinadvance.• Theirpresencethroughoutthesessionsfacilitatestheworkshopprocess,increases

children’sparticipationandhelpstocreateormakemoreevidentthelinkwithpreviouscurricularactivitiesorexperiences.

Exercisesareformulatedinordertodrivechildrentoproposeworkablesolutionsaroundatopicrelatedtotheireverydaylifeorexperienceatschool:themescanbeconcrete,suchas“Redesigntheschoolcanteen”,ormoreabstractlike“Howtohelpteacherstoteachlovefornatureatschool”.Thequestionthattriggersthedesignsessionisneverseenasataskorahomeworkbutratherasaninvitationtoexplore,understand,elaborate,prototypeandpresent,thusfosteringadiversityofresponsesandmovingbeyondconventionalmentalmodels.

Inordertofacilitatethisoutcome,pupilsareengaged,notinstructed,bybeingprovidedwithaclear,butopen,end-goaltoreachandaselectionoftools(toolkit)fromwhichtheycanchoosetheonestheywanttouse.Thetoolkitisbasedonthemostcommonandeasy-to-useServiceDesignandDesignThinkingtools:itincludesaguidetocontextualinterviews,adiary,astoryboard,someworksheetsthatguidechildrenthroughthe“fivewhys”and“whatif”tools,renderedmoreapttochildrenbyaddingplayfulcontentandbymakingthesetoolspartofagameinordertoencouragethemtoparticipate.

Theconceptof“workablesolution”requireschildrentodrawontheirpersonalexperiencesandonpreviously-learnednotionsfromdifferentdisciplines.Asinthejams,theyarealsoaskedtoevaluateotherpeople’sopinionsbyinterviewingthemorcreatingalistofquestionsonthetopicstheyarelessfamiliarwith,usuallyinvolvingparentsandteachersinthisprocess.

Overall,theworkshopprocessencompassesthesamephasesofaDesignJam,allthewayfromresearchtoideationandshare-out,withtheexceptionthatactivitiesarestretchedoveralongerperiodanddividedbetweensessions:thisgivestimeforin-homeinterviewsandformoregroupdiscussionsatdifferentstagestoensurethatkidsgettoreflectupontheiractivitiesandconsolidatetheirlearnings.

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Figure3.Discussingasolution

4.4SchoolprogramsThepeculiarityofschoolprogramsisthattheyareplannedaroundanexistingdidacticprograminordertointroduceaholisticapproachtolearning:programstouchupondifferentschoolsubjectsatonceandprovideteacherswithnewtoolsandmethodstocreatea“learningbydoing”experience.Theseprogramstakeplaceatschooloveraperiodoftimeofoneorseveralmonthsandtopicandmethodologycanvaryaccordingtotheageofthestudentsandtheirbackground.

Amongotherexamples,twostandoutastheprototypesofthisformat.

• Agame-basedprogramonfoodeducation,inwhichchildrenareguidedtodiscoverthecharacteristicsofvitaminsandnutrientsinfruitsandvegetables,bytransformingtheminto“super-powers”.Accordingtothegamerules,childrenarechallengedtoeatfruitsandvegetablesregularly,bothathomeandinschool,sotoincreasethepowersoftheirfavouritesuper-heroesandgetstrongenoughtodefeatthevillains,representedbyunhealthyfood.Usinggamescreatesamomentinwhichtheconceptslearnedinclassandthroughtheactivitiesathomefuelaction,thusencouragingchildren’scollaborationandcompetition.

• A6-monthlongweeklyprogramon‘designandbasicentrepreneurship’offeredtopre-teens(10to12yo),withthegoaltohelpthemideate,produceandlaunchaproductorservice.Thedurationofthisprogramallowsteachersofdifferentdisciplinestocontributetotheprojectwithspecificlectures(e.g.basicprinciplesofeconomics)aroundwhichdesignactivitiesaredeveloped.

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InbothexamplesthecontributionoftheServiceDesignThinkingmethodliesin:

• thecreationofagameoraplot,thenarrativeofwhichenhancesthelearningexperienceandthebehaviouralchangeandthecollaborationamongchildren(storytelling)

• theactivitiesandthetoolsdesignedinordertopromoteactiveandenthusiasticparticipationandfacilitatethedevelopmentoftheirdesignskillsandstrategicthinking.

• thetranspositionofcomplexconceptsintosimplefactsthatcanbeusedtodesignorrefineideas(whichcanhelpteacherstoreplicatethesamedidacticapproachlateron).

• thedefinitionofa“userjourney”ofthelearningexperience,whichtakesalloftheactorsintoaccount.

5.ConclusionsAlthoughtheseexperiencesrepresentthefirststepstowardsamoreconsolidatedmethodology,theyalreadyshowsomeadvantagesofaproject-basedapproachtolearning.

Apartfromthenaturalenthusiasmshownbythepupilsallalongthedesignsessions-verylikelyalsocausedbythenoveltyoftheexperienceandthepossibilitytoworkwithaverycleargoalbutverylittleconstraints–otherbenefitsofthismethodologyhavebeenobserved.

Overall,theseactivitieshavefacilitatedadeepunderstandingoftopics:attheendofasessionorduringmomentsofshare-outchildrenwerecapableofrecallingwhattheyhadlearnedandwheretheinsightscamefrom,referringtofeedbackreceivedduringinterviewsortheirdirectexperienceduringthesession.Thishasoftenbeenmatchedbyhigh-qualityoutcomesthatstoodoutintermsofconceptualcomplexityandcompleteness:mock-upsandacting-outactivitiesoftenshowedacompleteunderstandingoftheentireuserexperienceandofallitsdifferentaspects.ThishasbeenthecaseevenduringDesignJam,theshortestformat,inwhichmanygroupssucceededinquicklydevelopingsolutions,mainlyaccordingtotwopatterns:bysurfacingtheentireuserjourneyandgivingahintoftheexperienceorbydeep-divingintoafewselectedaspects.

Availabilityoftimeinfluencesdepth,especiallyduringtheimmersionphase,whileitseemstobelessinfluentialonprototypesquality,probablyreflectingchildren’snaturalinclinationtowardsmanualactivities.Longerprograms,therefore,deliverbetteronbuildingaconceptualstructure.

Childrenapproachtheactivitiesindifferentways,dependingontheirattitudesandnaturalinclinations:shortformatshaveprovenlesseffectiveinallowingfacilitatorstofruitfullyexploitthisdiversityandhelpchildrentoexercisedifferentintelligences(visual,verbal,…),whilstlongerformatsallowedenoughtimetowitnessanevolutionoftheirskills.

ProvidingDesigntoolswithminimalinstructionsgraduallyshowedincreasedautonomy:thishelpedthemtoorganizetheiractivitiesbothintheexploratoryandthegenerativephases.

Thismethodologyalsoseemstoreinforcepermanenceofknowledge:afewmonthsaftertheendofthefoodeducationprogram,afollow-upwiththeschoolhasshownthatchildren’sbehaviorsand

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choiceswerestillinformedbythenotionstheyhadacquiredduringtheworkshopandthatconsumptionoffruitsandvegetableswasstillhigherthanbefore.

Fromarelationalpointofview,aproject-basedapproachimpliesalotmoreemphasisoncollaborationandempathythanatraditionallectureset-up.However,theverysameactivitiesyielddifferentoutcomeswhenembeddeddifferentformats,aschildren’sreactionstothemaredifferent.Forinstance,usingthemetaphorof‘heroes’andencouragingchildrentousetheirsuperpowersoffersanimmediatehooktogetstartedduringDesignJams,inwhichtimeisascarceresourceandimprovisationiswelcome,whilst,ifusedinlongerprograms,itpushesparticipantstocomebacktotheirindividualresourcesandactmoreindependently,notnecessarilyfacilitatingcooperation.

Ingeneral,itcanbeconcludedthatDesignJamsproveeffectiveinmakingchildrenandparentsmorefamiliarwithanewmethodologythathelpsthemtotackleunexpectedchallenges,gobeyondtheirpersonalopinionsandbiases,createsolutionscollaborativelyandpresenttheirideasinfrontofanaudience.Ontheotherhand,morecomplexformatsallowthegenerationoflong-lastingoutcomesbothforkidsandforteachersandeducators.

However,itistooearlytomeasuretheimpactofthismethodologyinthelongrun.Theexperiencesdiscussedinthispaperhavealreadyshownthepotentialofthedesignthinkingapproachinchangingthewaychildrenlearnandretainknowledge,butfurtherinvestigationisneededtoproveitsbenefits.Duringarecentworkshop,somepreliminaryworkhasbeendoneontheapplicationofthesemethodologiestotheSTEMsubjects:thesedisciplinesareaparticularlyinterestingtestinggroundastheyoffernumerouspossibilitiesforthekidstoproduceprototypesandconductexperiments.However,itwillbeessentialtocollaboratewithschoolstointegrateServiceDesignThinkingintotheirtraditionalcurricularactivities.

Thiscaneventuallyhelpkidstolearnfromtheirexperiences(learningbydoing),toexpresstheirpotentialwithoutfears,toseeeducatorsasfacilitatorsandenhancersoftheirlearningexperienceandtofinallygrowaresponsiblewayofthinkingthatcanbetterpreparethemforbeingcitizensofthisworld.

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AbouttheAuthors:

FabrizioPierandreiaddanauthorbiothatdescribesresearchinterestsandmainachievementsinamaximumof40words.

ElenaMarengoniisamemberofthePACOcommunityandaprofessionaldesignresearcherandservicedesigneratfrog,interestedindesignthinking,collaborativeandparticipatorydesignasmethodologiestogrownewskillsbothintheeducationalandbusinesscontext.

Acknowledgements:WewishtoexpressourdeepestgratitudetoallthemembersofthePACOcommunity,fortheexperiencesdescribedinthispaperwouldnothavehappenedorbeenpossiblewithouttheircontributionandcommitment.