What we learn deeply depends greatly on our personal passions, interests, talents, and aspirations. How we learn depends on our strengths and challenges as learners: how we ACCESS learning, ENGAGE in learning, and EXPRESS learning. In iLab, students are first and foremost, learners. For each student to identify themselves as learners and explore WHY and HOW they learn, students must jump into learning, document their experience, reflect on, and evaluate that experience, and then lay out a plan for future learning.
Our work in iLab depends heavily on the use of the 4 Cs: Communication, Collaboration, Critical Thinking and Creativity. Students work specifically to improve these skills in every aspect of their work in iLab and in all of their classes at MRMS. Students will have the opportunity to work with peers, community members and experts and will continually evaluate their use of these 4 key skills.
In iLab, students deepen their understanding of themselves, their community and the world by attempting to address a variety of issues and develop solutions that can address a variety of problems. They develop greater self-awareness as well as community and global awareness. iLab challenges students to be more resilient and persistent, be aware and empathetic, and to develop skills in the areas of financial literacy, global awareness, and health. Additionally, students are encouraged to use a wide range of 21st Century tools to support their work and the use of the 4 Cs.
Design Thinking is a method for finding a solution to a problem by using a system of thinking. It is the goal that students will develop their capacity for developing appropriate systems for solving a problem. In iLab, we use a hybrid system based largely on the Stanford D-School methodology and incorporating components from the fields of engineering, industrial design, and social entrepreneurialism. The goal is to provide students with the confidence to work through problems and to be the change in the world that they wish to see. The Design Thinking Process is Discovery, Interpretation, Ideation, Experimentation and Evolution.