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Systems Thinking 101 | Anna Justice | TEDxFurmanU

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Systems Thinking 101 | Anna Justice | TEDxFurmanU

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In the talk, Justice appears to have broken down the key principles of systems thinking, such as understanding the interconnected nature of global systems and the relationships between inputs and outputs. She likely used clear, accessible language and relevant examples from areas like fast fashion and industrial agriculture to help the audience grasp the relevance of systems thinking beyond just academic contexts.

The positive reception of the talk, as evidenced by it being featured on the Class E Podcast, suggests that Justice was successful in conveying the importance of systems thinking and making the topic engaging and informative for the audience. Overall, the talk seems to have been an effective way to promote systems thinking as a valuable tool for understanding and addressing complex challenges.

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Systems Thinking 101 | Anna Justice | TEDxFurmanU

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Systems Thinking: A Defining Skill for Leadership | Willy Donaldson | TEDxCNU

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Systems Thinking: A Defining Skill for Leadership | Willy Donaldson | TEDxCNU

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Donaldson argues that to address complex, interconnected challenges, leaders must adopt a systems thinking approach. This involves understanding the dynamic relationships and feedback loops within systems, rather than focusing solely on individual components or events.The speaker likely provides examples and insights to demonstrate how systems thinking can help leaders make more informed, holistic decisions that account for the broader context and long-term consequences. This systems-based perspective is presented as a defining skill for navigating the complexity of modern leadership roles.

Overall, the talk appears to make a compelling case for the value of systems thinking in effective leadership, underscoring its relevance in a world characterized by interconnected, dynamic systems.

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Systems Thinking: A Defining Skill for Leadership  | Willy Donaldson | TEDxCNU

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The article provides a clear and concise overview of the Iceberg model, a key framework in systems thinking. It explains how the Iceberg model encourages a deeper, more holistic approach to problem-solving, rather than just reacting to surface-level issues.

The article gives a helpful breakdown of the four levels of the Iceberg model:

Events - the visible occurrences or problems

Patterns - the trends and behaviors that emerge over time

Structures - the policies, rules, and systems that shape the patterns

Mental Models - the beliefs, values, and assumptions that underlie the structures

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As designers our approach to solving problems matters as much as the problem is solved, a lot of the time we tend to approach these…

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Systems Thinking: A Group Demonstration

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Systems Thinking: A Group Demonstration

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The video appears to be a recording of a group demonstration on systems thinking, led by Edgar Schein. In the video, Schein guides a group of participants through an interactive exercise to illustrate the principles of systems thinking.From the transcript, it seems Schein starts by asking the group to form a loose, informal group and then proceeds to lead them through a series of activities and discussions. The goal seems to be to help the participants experience and understand the interconnected nature of systems, rather than just explaining the concepts theoretically.

The video likely provides a practical, hands-on demonstration of how systems thinking can be applied in a group setting. By actively engaging the participants, Schein likely aims to make the abstract ideas of systems thinking more tangible and accessible.

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Systems Thinking:  A Group Demonstration

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Teaching Students About Systems Thinking

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Teaching Students About Systems Thinking

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The author defines a system as "a group of interconnected elements that are organized for a function or a purpose." She emphasizes that the parts of a system are interdependent, meaning that a change in one element can produce changes throughout the entire system. This nonlinear nature of systems is a key concept that the article suggests students should understand.The article highlights how systems thinking can enable students to organize their learning both inside and outside of the classroom. By recognizing the interconnectedness of different elements, students can better comprehend the broader context and long-term consequences of issues, rather than just focusing on isolated problems or short-term solutions.

The author also suggests that teachers, curriculum coordinators, and school leaders can use systems thinking tools, such as the "Mapping Systems" protocol, to better understand the complex dynamics within the educational system itself. This can help identify patterns and leverage points for positive change.

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These strategies guide students to explore the interconnected parts of complex systems like the human body, governments, and ecosystems.

Otto Steininger / Ikon Images

Our world is interconnected and complex. As a result, our students need to move beyond fragmented ways of thinking, which look at problems in isolation or focus on short-term solutions. By developing our students to be systems thinkers, we can enable them to see patterns and organize their learning both inside and outside of school.

Let's break this idea down by first describing what we mean by a system. Generally speaking, a system is a group of interconnected elements that are organized for a function or a purpose. System elements, or parts, may be physical or intangible things.

Importantly, system parts are interdependent. A change in one element can produce change within the entire system. This means systems are nonlinear. When consequences occur, they're not isolated. They ripple through a system. Systems we encounter daily include the human body, cities, governments, social networks, and the Earth's climate.

To give a narrative example, in Dr. Seuss's well-known book The Lorax, the parts of the system are things like the water, air, Truffula Fruits, Brown Bar-ba-loots, and Humming-Fish, as well as the Once-ler's greed and desire for economic growth above all else. Imagine if the Once-ler had truly understood how his behaviors impacted the Truffula Tree ecosystem, including the sustainability of his own Thneed production. His inability to think holistically led not only to a range of negative environmental consequences, but also to the collapse of his own business.

In a global issue such as plastic pollution, system parts may include crude oil production, plastic manufacturing, companies, consumers, wastewater, and greenhouse gas emissions.

Systems thinking helps students manage complexity

Systems thinking is a mindset as well as a set of tools that enables students to recognize and understand relationships and interconnectedness. It's an ability to toggle between the parts and the whole of a system to understand how interactions produce negative or positive behaviors.

Chart character development in a piece of literature with behavior-over-time graphs

Map nonlinear causes and consequences of historical or political conflicts

Understand the relationships between parts of a cell, as well as between cells, organs, and body systems

Analyze and take action on real-world issues, such as global warming, poverty, or overfishing

Systems thinking supports our students to understand the complexity of the world and manage its uncertainty, especially in a time of increased globalization; it is an essential component of critical thinking that teachers can apply across the curriculum. For example, using systems thinking, students can do the following:

Teachers, curriculum coordinators, and school leaders can also use systems thinking tools, such as Agency by Design's Mapping Systems protocol, to better understand the way parts of our educational system connect to produce positive or negative outcomes for students, such as lower attendance, higher referrals to learning interventions, or increased mental health issues.

Fostering systems thinking as critical thinking

There are a number of ways teachers can facilitate systems thinking in the classroom. By slightly shifting how we interact with students-our questions or thinking prompts-we can promote "thinking in systems."

Question with intention: Knowing we want to move away from "A leads to B" linear thinking, we can intentionally ask questions that encourage students to reflect on multiple parts of a system and how they connect. Instead of asking, "What caused this?" which communicates that there is a single cause, we can instead ask, "What factors contributed to this?" allowing students to search for multiple causes and nonlinear relationships.

Take a helicopter view: Toggling between the details and the big picture is an important systems thinking skill and one of the habits of a systems thinker. When looking at a situation, event, or particular issue, encourage students to discuss systems as a whole. For example, in the classroom we may create a circle, where each student represents a system part and makes connections with a ball of string. Students name how they connect to another system part as they toss the ball of string to one another, with each student retaining some of the string as they pass the ball around. At the end, students can see the interconnectedness of parts by gently tugging on the yarn and seeing who is affected.

Encourage pattern recognition: We want students to see the web of interconnections within systems and recognize how systems connect to other systems. During the Covid-19 pandemic, for instance, we saw how health systems impacted transportation and the economy, leading to certain goods being unavailable. By asking, "What's this got to do with that?" we nudge students to go both deep and wide in an investigation.

Strategies for Teaching systems thinking

Many strategies for systems thinking encourage students to visualize and create "system pictures." Because of the high degree of interaction within systems, many strategies invite students to map connections in nonlinear ways. Here are some concrete strategies we can use in the classroom.

Connected circles: In this strategy, a circle represents a particular system, and the parts of the system are written around the outside. Using a case study such as an article, video, or real-life experience, students chart connections across the parts of the circle, writing the relationship between parts on the connector line. A connected circles template can be modified for any system that students will explore.

Systems models: After researching a system such as a tropical rainforest or coral reef, students create a systems model using divergent physical materials, e.g. Lego, magnetic tiles, wooden blocks, paper, cotton balls, shells, stones, etc. After making representations of the system and its parts, students annotate the model with sticky notes, arrows, etc. to show relationships between them. This may also include inputs and outputs of the system. For example, sunlight and carbon dioxide go into the rainforest (inputs), and oxygen and water vapor come out (outputs).

Games and simulations: Matthew Farber has written extensively about the use of constructionist gaming to promote thinking about complex systems. He shows how making and thinking come together to allow students to play with systems. The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop also writes about the role of digital learning to promote understanding of systemic causes in young children.

By inviting students to play with and explore systems thinking tools, we enable them to see structures and patterns within and across the content areas. Such engagements can empower students to find solutions to local, global, and intercultural issues that may have previously seemed unsolvable.

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Teaching Students About Systems Thinking

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These strategies for teaching k-12 students about systems thinking can help them see how the parts of a system are interconnected.