The use of a human centred design approach in the classroom is a practical endeavour whereby students use hands-on prototyping and information-gathering techniques to generate ideas and solutions for authentic problems. The focus of this study was to better understand the relationship between a human centred design pedagogical approach (DeP) and the pedagogy of a group of upper primary school teachers. This qualitative Participatory Action Research (PAR) explored the use of a DeP through a design thinking scaffold (DeS) to address the challenge of teaching the Australian Technologies subject: Design and Technologies, of which design thinking is a core component. Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) was the primary lens used in framing the study. TPACK is a technology integration framework used to help educators identify the three types of knowledge (technological, pedagogical and content) that enable effective teaching in a classroom that includes technologies. Four teachers from a school in Canberra, Australia worked with the researcher to implement a DeS series of lessons, using a cycled approach of Imagine, Empathise, Ideate, and Prototype/Launch with their Year Five and Year Six students (ages 10-12 approximately). Semi-structured interviews were conducted at the end of each stage. The thematic analysis of these interviews in conjunction with lesson observations, site documents, and a researcher journal produced seven key findings. Three of these findings were highlighted as overarching as they were connected to the study design (the use of personas across the research) or the existing context (the role of digital technologies in the process and using a DeP across the wider curriculum). The other key findings that emerged were how a DeP enabled teachers to explore inquiry, creativity, empathy and connection to future technologies. These findings produced specific knowledge claims relevant to the participants, the research site, and the wider profession. The study found that a DeP was an effective way to teach the Technologies: Design and Technologies curriculum, as it was engaging for the students, did not require any specific equipment or resources, and was flexible in delivery. The research also showed how design thinking could be used to teach several 21st century learning skills (exhibited in Australia through the general capabilities) and was useful as an assessment tool. The study contributed a framework to support design thinking lesson design, which formed the basis for recommending the use of design thinking in the Australian educational context.
Technologies by design: using a design thinking approach to connect the pedagogy of upper primary school teachers to the Australian curriculum
Thomson, I. (Author). 2023
Student thesis: Professional Doctorate