Abstract

In this study, systems thinking and codesign principles are applied together to develop a process framework to identify leverage points for an intervention in a new Montessori school. We show how a series of codesign workshops with children, parents, teachers, and management generated insights into the importance of collaboratively codesigning with stakeholders while applying Soft Systems Methodology (SSM). This approach demonstrates the advantages of incorporating diverse perspectives and fostering group coaction. These findings add to the limited literature on the practical applications of process-focused SSM, as they have informed the development of a step-by-step plan for forthcoming data collection sessions at the school, which will be organized as a Summer Research Camp. The future Summer Research Camp project will focus on continuing to work with the stakeholders to codesign interventions in the system, by following the SSM cycle aimed at gaining an understanding of the systemic factors affecting the school.

Keywords

school community; emic perspective; soft systems methodology; codesign

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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A systems thinking approach to codesign at a Montessori School

In this study, systems thinking and codesign principles are applied together to develop a process framework to identify leverage points for an intervention in a new Montessori school. We show how a series of codesign workshops with children, parents, teachers, and management generated insights into the importance of collaboratively codesigning with stakeholders while applying Soft Systems Methodology (SSM). This approach demonstrates the advantages of incorporating diverse perspectives and fostering group coaction. These findings add to the limited literature on the practical applications of process-focused SSM, as they have informed the development of a step-by-step plan for forthcoming data collection sessions at the school, which will be organized as a Summer Research Camp. The future Summer Research Camp project will focus on continuing to work with the stakeholders to codesign interventions in the system, by following the SSM cycle aimed at gaining an understanding of the systemic factors affecting the school.

 

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