In this introductory post for the Classroom of the Future Blog Series, we’ll dive into how the team conducted a design-thinking-inspired discovery process with the goal of uncovering the MIT Sloan community’s unique teaching and learning needs.
At MIT Sloan, we know that learning happens everywhere – not just within four walls. That’s why we’re thrilled to share the story behind our ongoing Classroom of the Future (CoF) Initiative. This project is our opportunity to better understand and improve the school’s entire learning ecosystem. We’re reimagining physical classroom spaces, teaching and learning technologies, and resources across campus. By working together with the MIT Sloan community, we‘ll create more inspiring and effective learning experiences for our students.
The Classroom of the Future Initiative will have three phases:
- Discovery: Learn from the MIT Sloan community
- Experimentation: Collaborate to prototype and test enhancements
- Implementation: Deploy the most promising solutions across campus
We just completed the Discovery phase, a critical foundation for next steps. Both the initiative’s three-part structure and the specific steps in Discovery were inspired by IDEO’s Design Thinking Process, the Voice of the Customer Process, and the LUMA Institute’s Human-Centered Design methods, among others.
Discovery was a collaborative effort between Dean Dave Schmittlein, the Teaching and Learning Team, and the STS Teaching & Learning Technologies Team. Also, we couldn’t have completed this project without the MIT Sloan community members who enthusiastically participated in listening sessions, workshops, surveys, and more. Thank you to everyone who helped make Discovery a success!
The coming blog posts dive into the five steps in Discovery:
- Identifying Needs: Conducting listening sessions and reviewing class recordings
- Organizing Insights: Using collaborative design thinking methods to invite the community into the process of analyzing results
- Determining Priorities: Conducting a survey to learn how community members perceive the expressed needs’ importance and the school’s performance in meeting those needs
- Envisioning the Future: Collaborating with the community to explore possible solutions
- Looking Forward: Forming a steering team to carry forward what we’ve learned
This series explores what the CoF Team has already learned and achieved together with the MIT Sloan community. Keep an eye out for more opportunities to help shape the future of education here on campus and beyond!
