Systems Map Assignment
Low income K-12 students have underdeveloped communication skills, a problem which is exacerbated by COVID-19.
Our team took a deep dive into our problem space in the past few weeks. As we worked on our systems map, we refined our problem statement and gained insights through stakeholder interviews and extensive research.
We chose to target the low-income K-12 student demographic, a group particularly disadvantaged now due to do COVID-19. With the goal of helping this demographic escape the often-cyclical effect of poverty, we will focus on their undeveloped communication ability — a skill 90% of adults in a Pew Research poll said was the most important for success later in life.
By mapping our problem, starting with the five core nodes, we’ve begun to see patterns emerge as certain nodes seem to emerge from others. In particular, Quality of Remote Learning during COVID-19, Student Engagement, and Parental Involvement seem to be 3 key nodes we’ve been able to break down into very specific influences that we will likely be able to find data for. This will help us identify feedback loops — a first step towards finding an entry point for our team.
