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The world, technology and society are changing fast. Using the design thinking method, this course shows how to generate new ideas, test them and lead change in a group or organisation with as little resistance as possible.
Course page on the learning platform
Course details
| Level | Intermediate to advanced |
| Estimated duration | 10 hours of study and practice |
| Prerequisite | Preferably the “Foundations of Leadership” course |
| Language of instruction | Farsi-e-Dari (with key English terms) |
| Cost | Free |
| Assessment | A quiz after each section and a final exam; pass mark 70%; certificate issued after approval by the Academy |
After this course you will be able to
- Apply the stages of design thinking (empathise, define, ideate, prototype, test)
- Generate many creative ideas using simple methods
- Test an idea with a low-cost prototype
- Understand the reasons for resistance to change
- Write a simple plan for implementing change in a group
Course outline
- Small and large innovation
- Social innovation
- Real examples
- Empathising with the user
- Defining the problem
- Ideation
- Prototype
- Getting feedback
- Improvement
- Why people resist change
- Change management models
- Communicating change
- A local problem
- Idea and prototype
- Implementation plan
Week-by-week learning path
With about 30 to 45 minutes of study and practice a day, you will complete this course in 6 weeks:
| Week | Topic | Output of the week |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | What is innovation? | Lessons, practical exercise and short section quiz |
| Week 2 | Design thinking | Lessons, practical exercise and short section quiz |
| Week 3 | Testing ideas | Lessons, practical exercise and short section quiz |
| Week 4 | Change | Lessons, practical exercise and short section quiz |
| Week 5 | Project | Lessons, practical exercise and short section quiz |
| Week 6 | Final project and final exam | Completed project and a score of 70% or higher |
Final project
Solving a local problem with design thinking: interviews with at least three people, a problem definition, 20 ideas, a low-cost prototype (paper or digital), user testing and an implementation plan.
Project assessment criteria:
- Genuine empathy with users
- A precise problem definition
- Creativity and number of ideas
- Testing and improvement based on feedback
Key terms in this course
Innovation
Design thinking
Empathy
Ideation
Prototype
User testing
Resistance to change
Social innovation
Assessment and certificate
- After each section: a short quiz (70% is recommended before moving on)
- Practical exercises in every lesson are for learning; send your questions via the Questions section.
- End of course: final exam (pass mark 70%) and submission of the final project
- Digital certificate after review and approval by the Academy: Request a certificate
Teaching approach
Each lesson includes learning objectives, explanations with real examples and images, key terms in Farsi-e-Dari and English, common mistakes, a practical exercise, a self-test and a summary. In every lesson you can ask the instructor questions using the Questions button. The courses are impartial, free and open to all young people.
Get ready now
- Write down three everyday problems around you whose solution would make life easier
- Talk to two people about one of those problems
- The “Strategic Thinking” course will also help
Free, reliable resources
These resources were selected by the Academy team. Most are in English; the Translate option in Google Chrome can help if needed. Large files (books, exercise files, videos) will be placed in the Academy’s official Google Drive folder when the course goes live and linked from this page.
- OpenLearn – The Open University, hundreds of free short courses with a certificate of participation
- Coursera, courses from leading universities worldwide; most can be viewed for free (Audit)
- MIT OpenCourseWare, free course materials from MIT
- edX, free courses from universities such as Harvard and MIT
Help and questions
Questions about this course: [email protected] · All courses: Online Learning Centre · Active course: Computer & Internet Basics
Women’s Academy, Afghanistan Youth Parliament · Free and open to all young people