Yesterday, grade 11 students at The Olympia Schools, during their field trip visit to HCMC, got engaged in an interactive Design Thinking Introduction session with Doodle Design/Doodle A, delivered by founder Nhu Vo. This year is the 4th year that Doodle Design offered their time to help build real world knowledge to these young learners.
During less than 2 hours, these young learners got their first hands experience and experiments on Design Thinking concepts and key innovators’ behaviors. What do young learners think about our VUCA world? What is changing around them? Do they own the mindsets and behaviors that today’s world requires? In a collected floor discussion, these young learners shared their observations on the world around them, answering these burning questions.
“Ourselves are changing. Our minds and perceptions are changing”.
“Our access to information and technology is changing”.
“Climate change is changing our world forever”.
Further putting their ‘innovation power’ to test, each team was asked to design the future experience of the flowers in 2050. The young learners have shown to us what true “innovators” they are with a full tank of empathy and imagination.
“Our team wants to make the flowers easy and enjoyable for those who can’t see, smell, or touch”, shared Khanh, one of the students.
Through the process of imagining these flower experiences, these learners have experienced 6 key behaviors of an innovator, which are ‘visual, imaginative, collaborative, empathetic, iterative and questioning’ and what it feels like to work and study in a Design Thinking led way.
As a challenge, the groups were asked to bring their ‘observations’ power into practice by having a reflection on how to apply Design Thinking into their school study. Perhaps, how to reduce canteen traffic during rush hours. Or how to make examinations more fun.
As a wrap up farewell message, Nhu Vo shared that she was truly inspired by the questions and the curiosity of the groups and that she is confident that these young learners can echo and relate to the concept of Design Thinking.
Whatever they come up with their take-aways, rest assured, these 2 hours may make an impact on the new areas that hopefully inspire these students’ future choice of universities and the career they will embark on.
“I wish you all the best of luck and that you will follow your dreams and change the world.” said Nhu Vo
