Bridge
Addressing socio-economic differences in distance learning for students during a pandemic
Team
Michelle Ammirati
Erin Lee Carman
Shivani Kaka
Elizabeth Huebsch
Research Methods
Personas
Journey mapping
Case study
Brief interviews
Role
Design Researcher
Strategist
Storyteller
Initial Challenge
How might we address the socio-economic differences in distance learning for students?
Context
This is a project designed in 48 hours for a hackathon-style event called Design Caucus hosted by the School of Design Strategies at Parsons School of Design in New York City. Our team, DISCORD, is made up of four second year students in the Masters Strategic Design and Management program.
Research & Ideation
We mapped stakeholders in the education system to understand the relationships between students, faculty, parents, government and so on. We also spoke with several educators and gathered insights about teachers, students and resources in order to better understand the context of the challenge. These educators varied in geography and in the grades they teach. We also examined one school district on Long Island in detail, using it as a case study, as that district and the larger community had been hit hard by COVID-19 and were dealing with traumatic events, stress, financial burdens and a loss of community all at once.
After mapping the system we created a persona of a child and identified their behaviors, actions, demographics and psychographics, and needs and pain points. Using this information, we created a journey map to identify key leverage points where we might intervene.
From our journey map we highlighted the following potential leverage points:
Absence of electronic devices
Feeling demotivated to study
Lack of supervision and accountability from parents and teachers
Meal preparation
Lack of peer connection
Online bullying
Unsafe home environments
Using each of the leverage points, we ideated possible solutions using brainwriting to address the challenge question.
Solution
While we ideated around the issues arising from distance learning for elementary school students, we thought about the larger education system issues that arise from distance learning. We realized that college students with Federal Work Study (FWS) may not be able to fulfill this element of their financial support because campuses were closed. Thinking about this group of students, we realized that we could create a program that could be subsidized with FWS grants to pay students to mentor elementary students. This would not only help the FWS students, but it would provide a mentor to help elementary students address their needs and keep the program free for elementary school student’s families.
Bridge connect students in need, with students who can support, to bridge the emerging gaps in online education so both parties can continue their education through a mutually beneficial partnership.
How it works: A parent or guardian of the elementary school student opts into the Bridge program through their school. Bridge will then reach out to evaluate the needs of the family, and set up a remote interview for the family to approve a potential mentor - they’ll repeat this process until they find the right fit. On the university side, the student who has been offered federal work study but whose classes are now online applies for the Bridge program and is vetted through a remote interview. Then, they receive remote localized training. Once the mentor and the family are matched, Bridge regularly checks in to ensure both parties’ needs are met, and can supply a replacement mentor if necessary.
Please watch our pitch video to hear the detailed stories of Jordan and Cameron, two students who could be matched to help each other during the pandemic using Bridge. Bridge was the final solution proposed for the 2020 Summer Design Caucus.