Guest blog by Seiji Isotani, IPP ’23
A summary of the activities carried out at UNIVESP – Virtual University of the State of Sao Paulo. UNIVESP is the largest online university in Brazil and it is responsible for graduating more than 10,000 teachers every year.
We ran several workshops with at least 10 people each where we discussed the challenges of training teachers in Brazil and in UNIVESP. With particular attention to potential problems and their causes.
Constructing the problem
With only 5% of students completing formal k-12 education with adequate knowledge and skills, Brazil, South America’s largest economy, currently faces the challenge of meeting the needs of producing skilled professionals who can effectively work in a growing digital economy. The limited number of well-qualified teachers able to engage, motivate, and train students adequately has become a significant barrier to the country’s economic development and improvement of services.
Deconstructing the problem
- Workshops to create individual Ishikawa diagrams
- Workshops to discuss and integrate Ishikawa diagrams
- Ishikawa diagrams are presented to the President of UNIVESP
We carried out stakeholder analysis (supporters vs detractors with high or low influence) considering several institutions, people in key positions and groups of people that could be affected or influenced by our work.
Using the Triple-A analysis
- Analyzing and building authority to engage with the President of UNIVESP and the State Secretary of Education
- Analyzing and Building acceptance for change in UNIVESP
- Analyzing and developing abilities for implementing change using evidence-based practices
Working on the pilot solution
Possible solutions
- Identifying existing and latent practices in UNIVESP
- Studying external best practices: Japan, UK, Sobral(Brazil), etc.
- Highlighted positive deviances of successful practices related to training teachers in hybrid format (online and in-person)
Designing iterations/pilots
- Planning different pilots to learn fast
- Building the culture of piloting (testing, failing, learning, iterating)
- Developing changes on the curriculum and learning experiences of students in UNIVESP
Based on the insights gained from the entry points analysis of PDIA, we have initiated the development of potential solutions. Our approach is to design concise, rapid-cycle pilots. There is some hesitancy among UNIVESP stakeholders regarding the implementation of these pilots without a well-articulated theory of change, a robust rationale, and solid metrics to support the initiatives.
For our inaugural pilot, we are focusing on a new curriculum that includes the development of instructional materials aimed at computational thinking.
Concurrently, we are designing innovative learning experiences that are intended to more effectively equip teachers with the skills to integrate computational thinking into their pedagogical methods.
Photo: Last meeting on November 9, 2023 with the President of UNIVESP, Seiji Isotani (me – online), and other people interested in this initiative.
Key learnings from IPP
“Design is about ideas, implementation is about people” summarizes the importance of this work and its applicability in real life to make real change and impact.
The use of Ishikawa diagram to break down the problem and then applying the triple A approach to identify key points of intervention are also two of the main takeaways of the course.
Implementation challenge
The implementation challenge that I worked on in this course was the design and implementation of a policy for teaching training in one of the largest higher-education institutions in Brazil that delivers its content in a hybrid format.
How IPP approach changes the way you tackle problems
Learn fast and iterate to keep learning is one of the main elements of the IPP approach that have changed my way of thinking and tackling policy problems. Furthermore, tools and strategies to keep people engaged at the same time that we build authority and acceptance has been fundamental in my day-to-day practices. I will definitely continue to use what I have learned in this course in other projects.
Words of wisdom to share with fellow PDIA practitioners
Just remember that effective public policy is less about the design of a grand plan and more about the resilience of its execution and the people it impacts. It’s an iterative and long journey, not a sprint. And each iteration should bring us closer to the lived realities of those we serve.
This is a blog series written by the alumni of the Implementing Public Policy Executive Education Program at the Harvard Kennedy School. 47 Participants successfully completed this 7-month hybrid program in December 2023. These are their learning journey stories.