This template provides design teams with space to clearly define the parameters of a pilot plan (or small test) – including the format, who will interact with the pilot, what messaging and resources are required, and what measures will determine whether your pilot meets its goals. Teams may also document the progress of the pilot and capture reflections.
Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) sought to address a key problem in their district: “How might we provide relevant, standards-aligned feedback to students so that every student reaches mastery?”
In brainstorming solutions, the team identified four categories of solutions:
Mastery Charter Schools interviewed a range of teachers and students to identify opportunities to improve teaching and learning. From those conversations, they identified: the need for students to more actively own their learning (versus relying on a standard teacher-centric classroom), for newly procured technology to be used in a way that would broaden students’ experiences, and for the approach to teaching and learning to more deeply embed their network commitment to anti-racism. After reviewing themes from the interviews, the team summarized a key problem of practice: “How might we build a blended learning model that fosters achievement and independence in our high school students?”
This problem statement challenged the team to find solutions that empower each student and support their development in academics and beyond (including cognitive and social-emotional skills); importantly, it did this with an explicit focus on cultural relevance and anti-racism. This problem statement also required the team to think about how technology – an inherently adaptable tool – could be used to individualize the learning experience.
Phoenix Charter Academy’s redesign sought to support and equip their teachers to implement their unique model, which supports disconnected youth through competency-based learning and significant social-emotional supports. Therefore, the design team focused empathy interviews on teachers, asking for perspectives on how each interviewee defined excellent teaching and learning, what experiences gave staff the feeling they were making an impact in students’ lives, and what their experiences had been with the network’s approach to teacher development and support. As they invited input on teachers’ past experiences, they also sought teachers’ ideas about the future, including what they’d like to see done “bigger, better, or differently.” In doing so, the design team expanded their understanding of the challenges they were facing.
Monterey Peninsula Unified School District’s redesign focused on deepening personal relationships and students’ feelings of connection within the school community. To figure out how to realize this vision, the design team planned group empathy interviews with a diverse array of stakeholders, including students, parents, and teachers, emphasizing inclusion for historically underrepresented groups like Spanish-speaking families.
Additionally, in keeping with their board’s stated goal to listen to and engage with all stakeholders, the cabinet held an “empathy interview board meeting” where they invited students, staff, and teachers to respond to interview questions in a town hall format. This brought important voices and insights to an even broader audience – including powerful decision-makers like board members – and built deeper connections among community members through personal interviews.
Mastery Charter Schools’ redesign sought to integrate blended learning and culturally-responsive teaching. Translating that model into specifics would require input from a variety of stakeholders: students, teachers, and families. The design team carefully considered who to interview, how to ensure that interviewees felt authentically heard, and what questions to ask to get specific input. The team conducted multiple rounds of interviews, intentionally seeking out the voices of disengaged students, in particular.
Cedar Rapids Community School District (CRCSD) knew the data: there were stark academic outcome gaps across demographic groups in the district. To explore the root causes of these gaps, CRCSD conducted interviews with affected students and teachers, designing an interview guide that would evoke stories and emotion from those whom the system was not working well for. These conversations not only helped shed light on the problem but also surfaced ideas about what it would take to close gaps. Given CRCSD’s existing strategic plan and annual focus on standards, assessment, and grading, the team also included targeted questions about students’ and teachers’ experiences with these systems in particular.
When designing change in a district, it is essential that leaders hear directly from students, families, teachers, and classified staff (i.e., those most impacted by teaching and learning). This guide from the Stanford d.school provides in-depth guidance about how to best plan for and conduct empathy interviews, which are powerful ways to elicit student, family, teacher, and classified staff perspectives.
When designing change in a district, it is essential that leaders hear directly from students, families, teachers, and classified staff (i.e., those most impacted by teaching and learning). This guide includes a starting set of questions you can ask to evoke stories and emotions to better understand the experiences of people in your district, and in doing so, understand where to focus redesign work. The template is meant to be used as part of Activity: Conduct Empathy Interviews with Stakeholders.
These discussion questions accompany the Activity: District Self-Assessment strategy.
