Grammar Gazette- Issue 2, 2014

and al1 possibilities before highlighting a few key ideas a"nd using a convergent model to understand and place importance on those ideas Students were asked to approach their designs both objectiveiy (looking at the idea) and subjectively (from within their idea). The workshop was high energy and overwhelmingly positive The design experts offered challenging perspectives which encouraged the girls to empathise, understand and reflne their ideas to remain true to the task.

Students discovered creative thinking is certainly hard work. They discovered to remain tenacious and determined they need to be invested in their ideas Bad ideas are never considered failures, just something that doesn't work rn that instance They also reaiised that to have valuable input in the creative problem solving process they need a grounding in the subject matter, reflecting the importance of inclusive thought practices in their education

oLD GIRL ELOTSE KrNG-SMTTH (2005) REFLECTS ON HOW AN TNTRODUCTTON TO DESTGN THINKtNG AT GTRLS GRAMMAR HAS INFLUENCED HER LIFE BEYOND SCHOOL.

The day i chose my senior subjects at Girls Grammar, I made a decision that changed my life. Biology wasn't for me, I thought; why not give Design and Technology Studies a go? The subject (now superseded) taught girls a little bit about working with timber, steel, glass and plastic, as well as report writing, CAD (Computer-Aided Design) and creative problem-solving. Now, I recognise those skills we learnt as design thinking, and I absolutely LOVED it. Whiie difficult to pin down, design thinking has been defined as 'an analytic and creative process that engages a person in opportunities to experiment, create and prototype models, gather feedback, and redesign' (Razzouk & Shute,201.3) I can allow my creative brain to jump all over the place, but within a guided process. I have to use my brain and my hands to question my assumptions, probe opportunities and rationalise my decisions in a scientiflc way. I test out inspired thoughts, get it not quite right and try agarn, until it j.s as perfect as I can make it. Dieter Rams, Don Norman, and Ray and Charles Eames spent their lives trying to represent it. The reason good design appears so 'obvious' is because errors of judgement are caught, evaiuated and corrected within the thinking process, making the end result incredibly satisfying While it was always my plan to involve design thinking in my career, I studied

philosophy first - to think deepiy whiie thinking widely. Graduating from The University of Oueensland tn 201,1 with a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Literary Studies and a Bachelor of Law, I commenced a Bachelor of Design at the Oueensland university of Technology, majoring in Industrial Design in 201,2. As I contemplate thesis topics for my final year in 201,5,I find myself trying to define why design thinking is so important to me. I have skills that make me more ready to face problems on a system level, think outside the box and produce innovative solutions. I know there are more gratifying rewards for persistence and there are times when it's safe to get it wrong. These are skills the best scientists and engineers intuitively apply and that business people are increasingly recognising as essential. In an age where the globe is becoming increasingly concerned with conspicuous consumption and sustainability, and where innovation will become critical to maintaining Australia's economic standing, I am excited at the prospect of the challenge I am rising to meet.

REFERENCES

Razzouk, R & Shute, V. (2012). What Is Design Thinking and Why Is It Important? Review of Educational Research, B2(3),330-348. dor:DOI: 10 3102/ 00346543 1 2457 429