This document outlines an ideation exercise for solving the problem of high school seniors needing help evaluating their post-graduation options. It provides the original problem statement, responses to 6 prompts to generate ideas, and selects 3 potential solutions. The prompts explore obvious solutions, modifications to initial ideas, how a 5-year-old might approach it, and how it could be solved with an unlimited budget. The selected solutions focus on revised guidance counselor training, requiring students to explore one option they'd dismiss, and creating a new messaging campaign.

1. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Assignment:
Ideate
Team:
NextStep
Submi<ed
by
Gail
Richards

2. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Overview
of
Assignment
• Original
Problem
Statement
• Responses
to
6
Prompts
• 3
Select
Solu<ons
• (which
are
highlighted
on
preceding
slides)

3. Problem Statement:
High
school
seniors
deciding
what
path
to
take
aCer
gradua<on
need
a
way
to
evaluate
numerous
op<ons
when
determining
which
path
is
best
for
them
because
society,
and
high
schools,
communicate
overtly
and
implicitly
that
aHending
a
four-­‐year
college
as
being
the
best
op<on
for
all
students,
leaving
many
students
underserved,
confused
and
lost.

4. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Prompt
#1:
What
are
the
most
obvious
solu<ons
for
this
problem?
(even
things
that
you
know
already
exist)
1. Revised
training
for
high
school
guidance
counselors.
2. High
school
classes
for
credit
in
planning
life
aCer
gradua<on.
3. Shadow
days
for
a
variety
of
professions.
4. Sharing
ALL
types
of
choices
with
ALL
students.
5. Career/college
planning
as
an
ongoing
ac<vity.
6. Exploring
careers
versus
paths
to
careers.
7. Career
mentor
programs
star<ng
sophomore
year.
8. Educa<ng
parents
on
an
array
of
op<ons.
9. Giving
equal
validity
to
all
op-ons.
10. Using
language
and
messaging
that
establishes
new
paradigm.
Which
lead
to
these
spin
off
ideas…

5. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Prompt
#2:
What
can
you
add,
remove
or
modify
from
those
ini<al
solu<ons?
1. Revised
training
for
high
school
guidance
counselors
with
cer<fica<on.
2. High
school
classes
for
credit
in
planning
life
aCer
gradua<on.
3. Shadow
days
or
weeks
for
a
variety
of
professions
at
companies,
at
different
training
loca<ons
or
educa<onal
ins<tu<ons.
4. Sharing
ALL
types
of
choices
with
ALL
students.
Requiring
students
to
evaluate
pros
and
cons
with
respect
to
their
own
goals.
5. Career/college
planning
as
an
ongoing
ac<vity
for
credit.
6. Exploring
careers
versus
paths
to
careers,
directed
by
tes<ng.
7. Career
mentor
programs
star<ng
sophomore
year
supported
by
small
group
discussion
op<ons
between
students..
8. Educa<ng
parents
on
an
array
of
op<ons.
Counseling
them
to
not
make
assump<ons.
9. Giving
equal
validity
to
all
op<ons.
Requiring
students
to
explore
one
op<on
that
they
would
otherwise
immediately
dismiss.
10. Create
a
communica<on
campaign
using
language
and
messaging
that
establishes
new
paradigm.

6. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Prompt
#3:
How
would
a
5
year
old
solve
the
problem?
1. Play
<me
trying
out
different
things
you
want
to
be
when
you
grow
up.
2. Decide
to
do
what
looks
like
the
most
fun
and
worry
about
the
details
later.
3. Ask
gramma
or
grampa
what
to
do.
4. Sit
under
a
thinking
tree
and
wait
for
the
answer.
5. Write
a
leHer
to
someone
who
works
in
a
profession
of
interest.
6. Be
something
different
every
day
un<l
something
s<cks.
7. Only
do
things
that
are
fun.
8. Make
a
wish
on
birthday
candles.
9. Play
with
dolls
/
toys
and
see
what
they
like
to
do
best.
10. Pick
a
job
you
don’t
need
training
for,
like
princess
or
prince.

7. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Prompt
#4:
How
would
you
solve
the
problem
if
you
had
an
unlimited
budget?
1. Require
all
high
school
students
to
take
a
year
off
between
high
school
and
“whatever
is
next”
to
completely
focus
on
exploring
op<ons.
Give
them
a
s<pend
to
do
so.
2. Add
a
year
onto
high
school
that
is
focused
only
on
life
skills
and
life
planning.
3. Require
each
high
school
student
to
complete
three
significantly
different
three-­‐month
internships
the
year
aCer
high
school,
all
expenses
paid.
4. Make
the
first
year
of
college
or
training
free
of
charge.
5. Build
a
na-onwide,
accredited
curriculum
for
high
school
students
to
step
through
over
the
course
of
four
years
that
addresses
career
planning.
6. Establish
career
research
and
resource
centers
in
every
school
district
or
area,
for
use
by
all
students.
7. Administer
strength
and
weakness
tests,
require
each
student
to
shadow
someone
in
a
profession
they
show
an
affinity
for
and
shadow
someone
(a
mentor)
who
does
something
the
student
is
not
at
all
a
match
for.
Pay
the
mentors
to
ensure
commitment.
8. Establish
a
program
where
all
students
must
try
a
collec<on
of
different
types
of
jobs-­‐-­‐-­‐not
a
specific
job
but
a
type:
manual
labor,
customer
service,
fast
food,
office
job,
outdoor
job,
health
care
etc.
Pay
commensurate
wages.
9. Subsidize
mentors,
or
give
them
a
huge
tax
credit.
10. Make
all
college
and
career
training
free
of
charge.
Level
the
monetary
playing
field.

8. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Prompt
4:
How
would
you
solve
the
problem
without
spending
any
money?
1. Lobby
colleges
and
universi<es
to
include
“major”
related
classes
as
early
as
freshman
year
to
support
those
students
who
may
not
be
sure
of
their
path.
2. Create
peer
groups
in
high
schools
to
discuss
choices
and
fears.
3. Engage
parents
in
explora<on
of
more
op<ons
through
school
ac<vi<es.
4. Set
up
non-­‐academic
focused
career
fairs
that
allow
students
and
parents
to
explore
everything
outside
of
academics.
5. Bring
community
members
from
a
variety
of
professions
into
schools
for
more
than
just
a
quick
presenta<on;
use
them
as
mentors
over
<me.
6. Elevate
the
idea
that
the
path
from
high
school
to
a
career
is
rarely
a
straight
line
and
that
that
is
OK.
7. Form
groups
at
high
schools
for
kids
to
address
their
fears,
confusion,
and
lack
of
info
head
on.
Allow
them
to
the
diffuse
the
anxiety
around
the
situa<on
so
that
they
can
approach
it
more
meaningfully.
8. Implement
a
personal
project
component
to
Junior
year
that
involves
being
embedded
in
a
poten<al
career.
Evalua<ng
if
it
is
a
fit
and
if
the
path
is
viable
for
that
individual.
Presen<ng
to
all
for
further
educa<on.,
in
par<cular
the
evalua<on
element
and
outcome.
9. Have
students
interview
or
research
at
least
five
professionals
in
the
field
they
are
most
interested
in
with
the
purpose
of
learning
what
different
paths
they
took
to
get
where
they
are
today.
10. Connect
high
school
students
with
college
students,
or,
appren<ces,
in
their
chosen
field
who
are
in
the
process
but
have
not
yet
built
a
career.

9. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Prompt
5:
How
would
you
solve
this
problem
if
you
had
control
over
the
laws
of
nature
(think
invisibility,
teleporta<on,
etc.)?
1. Use
a
<me
machine
to
show
each
student
where
she
will
be
ten
years
from
now
on
any
given
path
chosen
today.
2. Each
student
can
follow
people
in
different
careers
invisibly
to
see
a
typical
day.
3. Students
can
teleport
in
and
out
of
different
professional
selngs
or
learning
environments.
4. Students
can
use
<me
machine
to
watch
several
different
paths
to
the
same
career
goal.
5. Stop
<me
un<l
the
student
has
a
handle
on
the
best
op<on.
6. Students
visit
parallel
universes
in
which
they
have
chosen
different
careers.
7. Students
are
embedded
with
a
“spider
sense”
that
tells
them
if
they
are
on
the
right
track
so
they
can
adjust
their
approach
in
response.
8. Each
student
consults
a
fortune
teller
who
is
never
wrong.
9. Students
are
given
access
to
a
<me
portal
that
allows
then
to
try
different
approaches
to
the
same
career
goal.
10. Students
are
granted
five
years
aCer
gradua<on
during
which
they
are
magically
immune
to
failure.

10. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Select
Idea
#1:
Giving
equal
validity
to
all
op-ons.
Giving
more
emphasis
or
value
to
college
over
other
choices
invalidates
the
choices
that
may
be
beHer
for
a
significant
popula<on
of
students.
By
giving
equal
validity
to
all
op<ons,
the
focus
shiCs
to
the
best
path
for
each
student
versus
the
rela<ve
superiority
of
one
path
over
an
other.
Result:
Affirmed
students
who
go
out
into
the
world
with
confidence.

11. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Select
Idea
#2:
Build
a
na-onwide,
accredited
curriculum
for
high
school
students
to
step
through
over
the
course
of
four
years
that
addresses
career
planning.
Building
career
and
educa<onal
planning
into
the
process
over
<me
will
likely
dissipate
anxiety
and
pressure
on
the
student.
Making
future
planning
“business
as
usual”
in
the
scheme
of
high
school
allows
students
to
approach
the
transi<on
gradually,
from
a
non-­‐threatening
posi<on
of
comfort
and
familiarity
versus
at
the
last
minute,
with
no
context
and
feeling
like
everything
rides
on
the
decision.
Result:
Affirmed
students
who
go
out
into
the
world
with
confidence.

12. Design
Thinking
Ac-on
Lab:
Ideate
Select
Idea
#3:
Require
students
to
interview
or
research
at
least
five
professionals
in
the
field
they
are
most
interested
in
with
the
purpose
of
learning
what
different
paths
they
took
to
get
where
they
are
today.
There
is
no
right
or
wrong
path
or
straight
line
to
success
in
most
cases.
By
connec<ng
with
real
people
and
understanding
the
twists
and
turns
of
various
journeys
to
success,
students
are
more
likely
to
be
open
and
feel
confident
in
selng
out
in
the
general
direc<on
of
a
career.
Result:
Affirmed
students
who
go
out
into
the
world
with
confidence.