Design Thinking in education: developing essential skills for the future
Discover how this approach can shape tomorrow's leaders, ready to face an increasingly complex and technological future.
What is Design Thinking?
Design Thinking, more than just a problem-solving methodology, is a real tool to train future creative leaders. In an era of increasing automation and artificial intelligence (AI), teaching children these skills prepares them to successfully navigate an ever-changing working world.
- Analytical thinking and innovation
- Active learning and learning strategies
- Ability to solve complex problems
- Critical thinking and analysis
- Creativity, originality and initiative
- Leadership and social influence
- Use of technology, monitoring and control
- Technology design and programming
- Resilience, stress tolerance and flexibility
- Reasoning, problem-solving and ideation
- Emotional intelligence
- Problem-solving skills
- Service orientation
- Systems analysis and evaluation Innovation and change management
The skills of the future
- Creativity: Essential for the world of work, especially in areas where AI cannot compete, such as innovation and design.
- Complex Problem Solving: The heart of Design Thinking is solving problems in new and more effective ways. In a world where problems are increasingly intricate and globalised, the ability to see challenges as opportunities is a key asset.
- Collaboration: ‘People cannot do everything themselves, not even machines,’ explains Daniel Susskind, author of A World Without Work. Collaboration between humans will become increasingly valuable, especially for creating and innovating.
- Empathy and emotional intelligence: In a technology-driven future, human empathy will become a competitive advantage. Design Thinking teaches children to understand the needs of others, to build solutions that have a positive impact and to work well in teams, developing deep emotional intelligence.
How Design Thinking meets the Skills of the Future
Preparing for the Future with Design Thinking
Design Thinking is not just a methodology for solving problems, but a training ground for developing skills that children can apply in every area of their lives. They learn to think critically, deal with uncertainty and handle complex problems with creativity and collaboration. These skills, as indicated by World Economic Forum research, will be essential to thrive in the future world of work.
The Design Thinking course follows five key stages: Empathising, Defining, Ideating, Prototyping and Testing. These stages not only help children structure their creative thinking, but also prepare them to become versatile problem solvers. If you want to learn more about the process, read our dedicated article: juniordesign.org/discovering-design-thinking/
Developing future skills through Design Thinking is a valuable investment for our children. Teaching them to think creatively, work in teams and solve complex problems not only prepares them for a successful future, but also makes them more aware of the world around them.
As educator and philosopher John Dewey said, ‘education is not preparation for life; it is life itself’. Teaching Design Thinking to children means helping them to live life to the full, preparing them to seize the challenges and opportunities of a rapidly changing world.
