Statewide School Redesign: Integrating Design Thinking and the Four Disciplines of Execution as a Continuous School Improvement Process

Abstract

Sixty-six school districts and more than 150 schools in the state of Kansas are participating in the Kansans Can Redesign Project. In this article, we present a case study of using Design Thinking as a systemic process to structure continuous school improvement. The collage of real-life scenarios presented in our case shows the integration of Design Thinking and the Four Disciplines of Execution and highlights the nuances and delicacies involved in the process as the major change agents work together and engage theory-to-practice applications of design thinking for change. Also illustrated in the case are the struggles and successes experienced by schools as they venture into the unfamiliar terrains of the design thinking process and enact on the integrated principles to school redesign.