Our Think Tank group has been working towards trying to solve our wicked problem, the achievement gap. However, we have to remember that a wicked problem doesn’t have the perfect solution, so instead we are trying to find the “best, bad solution” to our problem. The achievement gap has been an issue in the educational world for a couple decades. So many different groups of people are affected and, as the years go on, the gap seems to be widening.
For the past couple of weeks my group has been defining, researching, exploring contributing factors, and coming up with “Why” questions in order to help solve this problem. Berger explains that in order to ask powerful “Why” questions we must, “…step back, notice what others miss, challenge assumptions (including our own), gain a deeper understanding of the situation or problem at hand, through contextual inquiry, question the questions we’re asking, take ownership of a particular question” (Berger, 2014, p.75). Since exploring the “Why” questions, it has helped us create four guiding questions in order for us to better understand why the achievement gap is so wicked and further lead us to solutions that can help lessen the gap.
Using our guiding questions, we created a survey to help us dig deeper into our wicked problem. Gaining input and different perspectives allows our group to gain a better understanding of what factors need to be addressed in order to “solve” the achievement gap. Please consider answering this short survey about the wicked problem of the Achievement Gap in K-12. There are 27 questions and it should take you about five minutes to answer them. Our group will then analyze the data that is collected, which will hopefully lead us to possible solutions in regard to the achievement gap.
Here is a link to the survey if it doesn’t open.
Thank you for your consideration and time! We are excited to see how the results will help guide us in solving this wicked problem.
References:
Berger, W. (2014). A more beautiful question: the power of inquiry to spark breakthrough ideas. New York: Bloomsbury
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