Box3Education ยท Week 1 Guide
What is Design Thinking?
Design thinking is a practical method for solving real problems. It stops you from jumping straight to a product, logo, room, app, or building before you understand who needs help and why.
The Five Stages
- Empathise. Understand the person or group affected by the problem. Observe, listen, and collect evidence before judging.
- Define. Turn what you learned into a clear problem statement. A good definition gives direction without deciding the answer too early.
- Ideate. Generate many possible responses. At this stage quantity matters because the first idea is rarely the strongest.
- Prototype. Make a quick version of the idea so it can be seen, handled, tested, or discussed.
- Test. Put the prototype in front of people and learn what works, what fails, and what needs to change.
What Makes This Real Design Work?
Real design work is not decoration first. It is evidence, decisions, and outcomes. A designer should be able to explain who the work serves, what problem it responds to, what constraints shaped it, and how it improved through testing.
Key rule: if your starting point is already a solution, step back and ask what problem that solution is meant to solve.
Problem Framing Method
- Name the person or group affected. Avoid vague users such as "everyone".
- Describe the situation. What is happening now? Where does it happen?
- Identify the difficulty. What causes friction, delay, discomfort, waste, confusion, or exclusion?
- Explain why it matters. What does the problem stop people from doing well?
- Write a How Might We question. Keep it open enough for several possible solutions.
- List assumptions. Write down what you are guessing so you can test it later.
Weak And Strong Examples
| Weak | Why it is weak | Stronger |
|---|---|---|
| I want to design a better chair. | This starts with an object and gives no user, context, or reason. | A learner working for long periods at a small desk needs a seating and storage setup that supports posture, focus, and quick access to tools. |
| We need an app for students. | This is already a solution and the user group is too broad. | Adult learners studying around work need a clearer way to track weekly tasks because missed deadlines reduce confidence and progress. |
This Week's Task
- Choose one real problem from your life, work, home, community, or learning environment.
- Complete the Problem Framing Sheet.
- Write one How Might We question.
- List at least five assumptions you are making.
- Upload the completed sheet or a clear photo of your written notes.
Pass Criteria
- The problem is real and observable.
- The user or affected group is specific.
- The statement does not jump straight to a solution.
- The impact of the problem is explained.
- At least five assumptions are listed.