Design Thinking for School Leaders: Five Roles and Mindsets That Ignite Positive Change

Alyssa Gallagher · Kami Thordarson

May 2018 · ASCD

About this ebook

"Design is the rendering of intent." What if education leaders approached their work with the perspective of a designer? This new perspective of seeing the world differently is desperately needed in schools and begins with school leadership. Alyssa Gallagher and Kami Thordarson, widely recognized experts on Design Thinking, educational leadership, and innovative strategies, call this new perspective design-inspired leadership—one of the most powerful ways to ignite positive change and address education challenges using the same design and innovation principles that have been so successful in private industry. Design Thinking for School Leaders explores the changing landscape of leadership and offers practical ways to reframe the role of school leader using Design Thinking, one step at a time. Leaders can shift from "accidental designers" to "design-inspired leaders," acting with greater intention and achieving greater impact. You'll learn how viewing the world through a more empathetic lens—a critical first step on the path to becoming a design-inspired leader—can raise your awareness of the uniqueness of your teachers and students and prompt you to question the ways in which they experience your school. Gallagher and Thordarson detail five specific roles to help you identify opportunities for positively impacting students, teachers, districts, parents, and the community:

• Opportunity Seeker. Shifts from problem solving to problem finding.
• Experience Architect. Designs and curates learning experiences.
• Rule Breaker. Challenges the way things are "always" done.
• Producer. Gets things done and creates rapid learning cycles for teams.
• Storyteller. Captures the hearts and minds of a community.

Full of examples of Design Thinking in action in schools across the country, Design Thinking for School Leaders can help you guide your school to the forefront of the new design + education movement, one that will move traditional education into the modern world and drive the future of learning.

About the author

Alyssa Gallagher is an experienced public school educator, school and district administrator, facilitator, and educational consultant. She has successfully led districtwide blended learning initiatives, helped schools create integrated STEM programs, and launched strategic plans using Design Thinking. Having worked in a variety of roles—from school principal to assistant superintendent of schools—Gallagher understands firsthand the complexity of educational leadership and is passionate about improving the learning experiences created in schools. She is constantly exploring "What if... ?" with school leaders and works to support radical change in education.

Kami Thordarson has worked in many roles as a public educator—from classroom teacher to professional development and curriculum designer. She enjoys engaging students and teachers with learning experiences that focus on authenticity and relevance. Thordarson is involved with the design thinking movement in K12 education and, in her current role as an administrator, works to lead a district in integrating technology into learning and innovating practices that fully move students into more personalized experiences. She values the challenge of helping school leaders develop real-world classrooms where teachers facilitate and lead students through work that empowers them to make an impact on the world.