Design Thinking
Whakaaro Hoahoa • Human-Centered Problem Solving
Duration
4-6 weeks
Year Level
Years 7-10
Subject
Technology / All Subjects
Focus
Innovation & Empathy
"Mā te rongo, ka mōhio. Mā te mōhio, ka mārama. Mā te mārama, ka mātau. Mā te mātau, ka ora."
Through listening comes knowledge. Through knowledge comes understanding. Through understanding comes wisdom. Through wisdom comes wellbeing.
Design thinking begins with empathy — truly listening to understand the people we're designing for.
📋 Unit Overview
Design Thinking is a human-centered approach to innovation and problem-solving developed at Stanford d.school. It combines creative and analytical thinking to develop solutions that truly meet people's needs.
In this unit, students will learn the Design Thinking process and apply it to solve real challenges in their school or community.
Learning Outcomes
- Develop empathy skills through observation and interviewing
- Define problems from a user-centered perspective
- Generate creative ideas through brainstorming techniques
- Create rapid prototypes to test ideas
- Gather feedback and iterate on designs
- Communicate design decisions effectively
🔄 The Design Thinking Process
😊 Empathize
Understand users
🎯 Define
Frame the problem
💡 Ideate
Generate ideas
🔨 Prototype
Build to learn
🧪 Test
Get feedback
The process is iterative — you may loop back to earlier stages as you learn.
🔍 The Five Phases Explained
😊 Empathize
Put yourself in others' shoes. Observe, interview, and experience what your users experience.
Key Activities: Interviews, observation, immersion, empathy maps
Te Ao Māori: Whakarongo (listening), manaakitanga (care for others)
🎯 Define
Synthesize your research to define the core problem from the user's perspective.
Key Activities: Point-of-view statements, "How Might We" questions
Te Ao Māori: Identifying the kaupapa (purpose)
💡 Ideate
Generate a wide range of creative solutions. Quantity over quality at first!
Key Activities: Brainstorming, mind mapping, sketching
Te Ao Māori: Creative wānanga (collaborative learning)
🔨 Prototype
Build quick, rough versions of your ideas to make them tangible.
Key Activities: Paper prototypes, models, role-playing
Te Ao Māori: Mahi (practical work), trial and learning
🧪 Test
Get feedback from real users. Learn what works and what doesn't.
Key Activities: User testing, feedback sessions, iteration
Te Ao Māori: Arotake (evaluation), continuous improvement
🎯 Design Challenge Ideas
Real-world challenges for students to tackle:
🏫 School Experience
How might we make the first day less stressful for new students?
🌿 Environment
How might we reduce waste in our school cafeteria?
🤝 Community
How might we help elderly neighbors stay connected?
💪 Wellbeing
How might we help students manage stress during exams?
🚶 Accessibility
How might we make our school more accessible for everyone?
🌿 Kaitiakitanga
How might we restore native plants in our local area?
📋 Curriculum Alignment
NZ Curriculum — Technology
- Technological Practice: Planning for practice, Brief development, Outcome development
- Technological Knowledge: Understanding technological modelling
- Nature of Technology: Understanding the characteristics of technology
Key Competencies: Thinking, Relating to Others, Participating and Contributing, Managing Self
Values: Innovation, inquiry, curiosity; Community and participation; Ecological sustainability
Ngā Whāinga Akoranga — Learning Intentions
- Students can apply the five phases of design thinking (Empathise, Define, Ideate, Prototype, Test) to solve a real community problem.
- Students can conduct empathy interviews and synthesise user insights into a clear problem statement.
- Students can generate and evaluate multiple design solutions using divergent and convergent thinking strategies.
- Students can build, test, and iterate a low-fidelity prototype based on user feedback.
- Students can reflect critically on the design process and articulate how their solution serves the community.
Paearu Angitu — Success Criteria
- I can describe the needs of my end-user based on at least two empathy interview findings.
- I can write a "How might we…?" problem statement that is specific, human-centred, and actionable.
- I can generate at least 10 ideas during an ideation sprint and select the most promising using agreed criteria.
- I can build a prototype and conduct at least one round of testing with real feedback from end-users.
- I can explain what I changed after testing and why, using evidence from user feedback.
Teacher Planning Snapshot
Curriculum Alignment
Technology — Te Mataiaho Years 7–10, cross-curricular. Primary strands: Technological Practice (brief development, design, and evaluation), Nature of Technology (purpose and function). The unit is inherently integrative — it can be run through Technology, English, Social Sciences, or Arts depending on the design challenge chosen.
Mātauranga Māori Lens
The whakataukī "Mā te rongo, ka mōhio…" is the unit's philosophical spine — listening (rongo) precedes understanding, which precedes wisdom (mātauranga), which leads to wellbeing (ora). This mirrors the empathy-first design process exactly. Kaitiakitanga frames the ideation phase: students assess design solutions not just for user satisfaction but for ecological and community impact. Whanaungatanga grounds the empathy interviews — designers listen deeply because relationships matter, not merely because data is useful. Māori concepts of mauri (life force) can extend the testing phase: does this design increase or diminish the mauri of the community it serves?
Entry / On-level / Extension
- Entry: Guided design challenge with a pre-defined problem (e.g., "redesign the school library entrance"). Scaffolded empathy interview protocols, visual ideation boards, and pre-made prototype templates. Students work in supported groups.
- On-level: Students select their own design challenge from a teacher-curated list of real community problems. Full five-phase process with structured milestones. Peer critique sessions at each phase transition.
- Extension: Students identify, pitch, and pursue an entirely self-directed design challenge with authentic community stakeholders. Present final prototype and documented process to a panel. Evaluate using a mātauranga Māori framework (mauri, whakapapa of the problem, kaitiakitanga of the solution).