What if you were to use this period of “social distancing” brought on by COVID-19 to design for edge effects?

For some, this is a storm to ride out: Survive, don’t overcomplicate things, wait to get back to normal.

For others, this is a threshold moment: Survive, experiment [1], envision—and co-create—a new normal.

We will probably have two or three months [2] to practice for a new normal. Will yours include the edge effect?

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[1] To be clear, these people will not be throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks. They will articulate a hypothesis (eg, “Students will demonstrate their learning more effectively if we shift from traditional assessment to project based learning”), test the approach, then analyze results.

[2] Assuming closures lasting at least 8 weeks, schools can run multiple small experiments or 1-2 big experiments. Consider recruiting a team of motivated teachers to be the tip of that spear. Reward them for their efforts. The faster their build-test-learn loops, the better the eventual outcome.

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Each Wednesday we share a “what if” scenario. Consider it a provocation rather than a suggestion.

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