EduCon 2018

Garreth Heidt has taught middle and high school students via a unique instructional approach to creativity and design thinking for more than 30 years. His curricula seek to develop skills in critical viewing, question formation, civil discussion, problem finding, and problem solving. The learning process is driven by design-minded means to a unique educational end for his students, and is focused around two simple questions: “Why are things the way they are? How can we make them better?” He currently teaches a 10th grade Gifted Humanities, and is the Lead Learner and co-designer of his high school’s innovation and social entrepreneurship space, NOVA Lab.

The past 7 years I’ve spent developing a gifted English class. My work there informed the creation (in 2019) of a new class, “inNOVAtion Lab”—a space for students to explore design-thinking and self-determined learning projects and for teachers to break the script of schooling to develop peak experiences and defining moments for all learners.

I am on the board of directors for the Touchstones Discussion Project (www.touchstones.org) and serve as Director of Learning for the Philadelphia-based Educational Design Consultancy, Form & Faculty.

I blog at bigstyrofoamthings.wordpress.com, and pvhsnovalab.com