Learning Journey Reflection
As we started to work on this final assignment we had an idea of what we wanted to discuss but throughout the entirety of working on this project we have expanded our understanding drastically. We knew that there was something off with the high school system and have data to support this belief, the real specific factor we have acknowledged is the lack of community and social awareness. This has led to depression and anxiety rates skyrocketing in our modern day unfortunately.
Honesty, Empathy and Community are the pillar stones we decided to hold the philosophical foundation of our product. By instilling these beliefs into our youth we should see a return of well rounded individuals ready to take on the world! It’s a belief we as a team feel is very important to get across to our audience and consumers.
When we were told to create a product the last thing we thought we’d end up with was something that is not physical but rather ideological. It was a conclusion that we did not initially think of as a possibility but through the process of the last five weeks we have been able to develop the idea much farther past what either of us believed possible. Diversity is growing throughout all high schools, giving many students the opportunity to come out of their comfort zone and create meaningful connections between their peers. It is a goal not easily achieved while also being completely possible. There must be a willingness to participate which we have gone into much detail about. The environment we have created allows willingness to prosper because it is heavily encouraged and implied that the students participating will understand. There is a heaviness to this kind of content that can resonate within all students.
As seen through our mindmap and top twenty ideas there was a lot of narrowing down to finally find the idea that resonated with us. It was not a quick process but a necessary process at that. To really find the solution that would best fit our interest it was completely necessary to go through this process. In fact, for a long time we had our hearts set on the production of a communication app between students and teachers. It was an idea we both initially found very resourceful since on paper it would solve many issues regarding student engagement. We then came to the realization that some high school students will never give their full attention to school and an app, although it could help, would never be able to make the impact we were searching for. Maybe it would have been a useful tool for parents to utilize, our goal was the students. We wanted to make a product that these students could hold with them for many years to come and make them more adequately equipped to take on college and everything else in our at times stressful nation. Giving emphasis to the mental health of students then became the clear path and not long after came the idea of The Koinonia Project. It was a process that cannot be overlooked.
The separation of creating two distinct experiences, one for freshman and one for seniors, was an idea that came to us in the late stages. We wanted to incorporate team building along with an emotional foundation. The two do not mix very well, thankfully for us it actually worked out better than we could have ever imagined. Freshman are not nearly mature enough to handle the conversation and seniors would become bored with competition games rather quickly. So the next step was clear. Everything fit perfectly into place and we knew we had a unique and effective solution to help high schools become an overall better experience for everyone involved.
Creative Mindsets Reflection
When looking at our project creatively it is clear that we made decisions to distinguish our piece uniquely through creatively. First and foremost we decided to create an interactive website that our customers could look through to find all necessary information that they would be looking for. We also utilized videos going out of our way to shoot a few creative sequences at multiple shoot sites.
Be Curious
When given the opportunity to solve an issue residing within the high school system, we had to really get thinking. We had a genuine interest in how we could help enhance the high school experience for all students. Together we thought as though we were high school students once again and then began looking at possible solutions through those lenses.
Be Confident
With the route we inevitably ended up taking as The Koinonia Project we had to maintain a high level of confidence in our work. Our idea is not exactly common and to an initial viewer it may seem odd to suggest a spiritual outing for high school students, for that reason we could never allow ourselves to feel that way about our project. We maintained full confidence and belief in ourselves along with our idea to create the outcome you are now looking at. If we did not have confidence coming into this project we would have never been able to create such a unique solution to a problem that discussed far less than it really should. What held us together was that we wanted to create an opportunity for community expansion, we want our participants to leave better than how they came in. It is a simple mindset but it kept us afloat long enough to give us the utmost confidence in our idea and decision making regarding our idea.
Be Resilient
The Koinonia Project was far from our first idea and without rigorous resilience we would have never found our way to it. The Koinonia Project was created off of past failed ideas but taking the aspects of those ideas that were good. We found ourselves with the following; emphasis on community, competition based events and emotionally vulnerable scenarios. If we would have looked at these ideas and thrown our hands in the air (which we could have easily done) and decided they do not connect we never would have reached our end product. Now we looked at the cards we had dealt and created a unique process where we could check off all three of our boxes while still maintaining a certain level of care for each individual aspect. By separating the three and connecting them over an ideological blanket we were able to create a service that makes complete logical sense and in theory should be very effective.