I-Think partnership provides new problem-solving toolbox

Traditional problem-solving can involve choosing from several options, all with pros and cons. However, rather than finding the best solution, oftentimes it feels like settling for the least-bad option. Integrative thinking, or I-Think, looks at problem-solving in a different way, and both students and teachers at Pickering College are reaping its benefits.

I-Think was conceived by Roger Martin, former Dean of the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, while writing his book The Opposable Mind. He interviewed leaders from a variety of fields, asking them how they approached problem-solving, and found they all had the ability to look at two or more opposing ideas, take the best aspects of each, and create a new and better solution.

Martin dubbed this approach “integrative thinking” and developed a set of tools to cultivate curiosity and improve problem-solving, including the ladder of inference, the pro-pro chart, causal modelling, and prototyping. These tools encourage students to work together, slow down, take a step back from the problem, look at causes and effects, and not jump to conclusions.

The I-Think team at Rotman trains educators to use the tools in the classroom. They were aware that teachers at PC had been informally using I-Think for years, so at the start of the 2017-2018 school year, Rotman proposed a formal partnership, inviting a small group of teachers to participate in an intensive one-year practicum to help them apply I-Think tools in their classrooms more comprehensively.

Senior School teacher Lindsey Rife has already seen positive change in the classroom. The first time she used the pro-pro chart, she found that several of her students who don’t usually participate in class discussions spontaneously spoke up.

Lindsey Rife, who teaches Grade 9 and 10 math and science, took part in the practicum. She says I-Think has helped her reconsider how she approaches a topic with her students. “I teach science, and you can get very clear-cut answers. Finding ways to open up those conversations and actually have discussions can be very helpful.”

She’s already seen positive change in the classroom. The first time she used the pro-pro chart, she found that several of her students who don’t usually participate in class discussions spontaneously spoke up. “We always encourage participation, but I have to call on people, or get them involved in the conversation. But I found that with the pro-pro chart they naturally, on their own, participated and were engaged because they felt like there was an entry point for them,” Rife says.

Grade 8 history and language arts teacher Ethan Bishop also participated in the practicum. He, too, saw quick results, while working with fellow teacher Chris Coyne to lead a project where students had to figure out why a hypothetical company wasn’t successful.

“They were looking at the different stakeholders involved: the customers, the owners, and the wider community. It was really neat to see them think about how these different stakeholders looked at an issue. That was markedly different from the way Grade 8s typically look at something where they just think ‘OK, how does it affect me?’” Bishop says.

I-Think tools make students’ learning and thinking more visible, which is very helpful for teachers, says Kimberly Bartlett, PC’s Director of Teaching and Learning, who teaches Grade 10 & 12 history and Grade 12 political science. “All they need sometimes is a whiteboard or a sheet of paper to work on the tools, and I can see where their thinking is going. Then I know how to help them, give them suggestions, guide them, or maybe just ask a question like ‘that’s really interesting, where are you planning on going with that or what can you explore?’”

I-Think also builds students’ communication skills, which will serve them well as future leaders. “Because [at PC] we challenge them to take action and make change, this process helps them to refine their thinking and actually develop a viable solution, not an idealist solution,” Bartlett says.

Bishop and Rife say they feel comfortable with I-Think because it meshes with PC’s ideals and goals. “It really works well with studentcentred teaching, and a lot of the work that we do is about trying to get students’ ideas to the forefront of our classrooms. Both of us are really proud that we’re in a program that allows us to do that,” Bishop says.

Rife also appreciates the support offered by the partnership with Rotman. “We can e-mail and talk to the I-Think team whenever we want to, which is a great resource, and they have lots of teachers who have been doing this and working with other schools and school boards, so there’s a network being developed.”

PC is an integral part of that network already, and in August will host a two-day institute to help teachers from other schools learn to work with I-Think. Bartlett cites the opportunity to develop a Grade 12 international business course for PC with Rotman’s input and assistance as one of the many other benefits of the partnership. “Our students will receive some of the training that students at the Rotman School of Management (at the University of Toronto) experience,” she says.

I-Think tools make students' learning and thinking more visible, which is very helpful for teachers.

The flexibility of the I-Think tools is paramount to their usefulness. “I’ve seen them used in a Kindergarten class all the way to Grade 12. It’s perfect for us, because we can insert tools at different ages and stages,” Bartlett says, adding that introducing students to I-Think from a young age helps them grow up to become better thinkers.

“I can only imagine what I’ll be able to do when I get a student in Grade 12 who has had all this training. How far will they reach? We don’t even know.”

STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS SUPPORT GLOBAL LEADERSHIP PROGRAM

In addition to I-Think, Pickering College is involved in two other strategic partnerships that support the school’s Global Leadership Program and enrich the learning of PC students:

UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) established the Associated Schools Project Network, or ASPNet, in 1953, to encourage schools to teach students about intercultural learning, peace and human rights, sustainable development, and other UN priorities. PC has just completed its first year of candidacy and will become a full member of ASPNet in 2019. Students at UNESCO schools participate in international projects and connect with schools across Canada and around the world. Canada’s designated UNESCO theme for next year is truth and reconciliation, so students will be exposed to First Nations issues through project work. Sustainability is also an ongoing UNESCO theme, including climate change.

PC is also the only Canadian school to partner with Facing History and Ourselves, a U.S-based international organization whose motto is “People make choices, and choices make history.” The program uses history, literature, ethical decision-making, and unique teaching strategies to help teachers and students explore difficult topics like genocide or the Holocaust. Students are challenged to reflect on their choices, question why we treat people a certain way, examine racism and prejudice, and become thoughtful and responsible citizens of the world. Facing History and Ourselves has also partnered with the I-Think team at Rotman on a project that invites students to find ways to increase democracy in our society.