Thesis Proposal Round 2

Disclaimer: Please note that we have not yet chosen the particular thesis format for this project. Possible options include: business plan (program or consultancy), research with recommendations or walk-about.

Group:
Maren Maier, Ben Knight, Tiffany Feeney, Danielle Penn, Maya Schindler

Vision:
To develop students as change agents in high schools and colleges who will help the United States transition and lead through the new global challenges of the 21st Century.

Mission:
To create a holistic and incentive based program that uses existing sustainability education and measurement vehicles to apply sustainable education practices to help foster innovation and entrepreneurship at the secondary and post secondary levels.

List of specific objectives:
To democratize invention and show that everyone has the capacity to create change
To broaden the definition and understanding of design in the new economy
To broaden the definition and understanding of sustainability and draw attention to the UN Millennium Goals
To facilitate an implicit understanding that everyone is a designer
To blur the boundaries between design, science, technology, and humanities
To create strong partnerships between high schools, universities, and corporations
To provide support, infrastructure, and confidence in young inventors

Troubling Trends:
•Slipping educational performance in international rankings, particularly in reading, math, and science
•Below average performance in public school system, particularly in low-income areas
•Increased fixation on performance testing and measurement
•Lack of sustainability education and operations within school systems
•Decreased numbers of foreign students studying at American higher education institutions
•Preparing students for the challenges that the new economy will provide
•11th Hour bombed at the box office proving that most of America does not care enough about Global Warming to do something about it.
Therefore, as Bruce Mau stated in the movie, it will be the responsibility of designers to bring sustainable development to the people.
•Lack of sustainability education and operations within the school systems
•Students lacking guidance in transition to employment
•Students lacking support for incubating and realizing ideas
•Rising costs associated with post-secondary enrollment
•Privatization in of the student loan industry

Opportunities and Trends:
•Charter Schools
•Increased interest in Sustainability Education
•Increased acknowledgement for education policy reform and higher national performance
•Democratization of the web and increased connectivity
•Increased need for innovative and creative thinking in American corporations and the knowledge economy
•Increased interest from corporation in start-ups and university R & D partnerships
•DM mentorship program

The "program" teaches students about sustainability, responsibility, and personal accountability: Addressing the collegiate level, the program will set appropriate curriculum and incentives to motivate the educational sector and businesses and continue to encourage partnerships between the two. Preliminary models consist of contests, national ranking, sustainability certification for education, and student mentorship programs that extend beyond parent, teacher, and community boundaries.

The most significant incentive for students in this program is the opportunity to help offset college tuition costs with the funding the program will generate as well as inspire creative problem solving based on today's needs and challenges. Incentives for participants schools can include reputation building, increased funding, tax breaks, recognition as sustainable entity's, and credit toward the creation of/invention of products, services or new programs. The key incentive for corporations/government include building a stronger and more prepared work force to face the new design economy.

Design and Methodology or Research Plan:
EXPLORATORY RESEARCH PHASE:
*Talk to people in education, business (expert interviews – head of board of education in NYC, principal of charter school in Harlem, Dalton school staff)
*Interview parents, teachers, and kids (focus group)
*One-on-one interview
*Experience surveys
*Secondary research, online search engines, case studies

DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH PHASE:
*surveys, diaries, panels, self-administered research, tracking studies, concept testing

Start with exploratory phase, then go into descriptive phase and at the end of that phase identify the quantitative and qualitative research methods.

QUANTITATIVE/QUALITATIVE RESEARCH PHASE:
-Focus panels
-Pilot test (usage test)
-Play sessions
-Idea generation
-Motivations/preferences/habits (qualitative)
-Measurement, progress tracking (quantitative)
(*needs to be done within first 6 months)