Designing with Biomimicry: Branching as Personalized Learning
The seasons wheel is now spinning into autumn where trees and plants slow their growth, the sun sinks lower into the sky, the air begins to cool and crisp, and we harvest what we have planted. This can be a time for stillness as we compost old ideas, offer gratitude for how we’ve grown and the wisdom we’ve gained, and prepare a space for new fertile visions, ideas, or creations to take root. Fall is also the time of year for starting and going back to school. Over the summer, I worked on a course in a humanitarian Masters program that will be launched this fall. In this course on data visualization and analytics, we used biomimicry, (as I’ve explored previously using spirals and making waves) specifically a tree as a visual metaphor, to explain the structure and meaning of the course, emphasizing enduring knowledge and skills that are core to the humanitarian field.
Before I dive into the details of how the course was designed, I first got into a headspace for biomimicry by listening to the Branches podcast episode from Grounded Teaching. The first thing she recommends is simply observing the branching patterns of trees you see and appreciating them. She always cautions against the urge to “do something” with it and instead just sit with it for a while. I’m currently reading the book, The Wisdom of Not Knowing: Discovering a Life of Wonder by Embracing Uncertainty by Estelle Frankel. In her chapter on Darkness (Encounters with the Divine), she recommends “spending some time in the wilderness” especially the night sky and taking it all in.
Watch for shooting stars and listen to the sounds of the night as you contemplate the awe-inspiring, mysterious universe we live in. Take in the possibility that this universe is infinitely expanding, time and space entwined as one, ceaselessly unfolding. This infinitude is your own true nature. Let this experience of awe help you find your true place in the greater scheme of things: at the same time that you are so small and insignificant, you belong and are connected to all that is (p. 73–74).
In other words, the goal is not really to have a goal. Just to be. Destination: unknown. And in that, you may notice a shift in your perspective, as you experience the feeling of awe for nature, which helps you connect with the source of life. That is what I want students to experience whose courses I design and teach, regardless of the topic or subject matter. I want them to feel that connection to nature so they can feel grounded to the Earth like they truly belong. I encourage students to go outside, and observe nature. In the case of this course, what I want them to observe are trees. Here are the instructions I developed for this humanitarian course, inspired by trees.
The Giving Tree: A Way To Think About the Content, Structure, and Meaning of This Course
As human beings, we are visual storytellers. This is how we communicate meaning from disparate pieces of data and information. In this course on Data Analysis and Visualization, I wanted to come up with a way to structure the course that visually communicates how the content is situated, how your work will be organized, and how to approach your learning. After spending some time in nature, I began to think about a tree as being a fitting visual representation and metaphor for this course because ecological sustainability and responding to natural disasters are recurring themes in the humanitarian field.
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Recognizing patterns in nature can reveal to us novel insights and ideas that can inspire innovations and new ways of thinking. George de Menstral invented velcro after observing burrs sticking to his dog’s fur. Wind turbine propellers were modeled after the shape of humpback whale fins to improve aerodynamic efficiency. There are numerous examples in product design, technology, agriculture, medicine, architecture, and transportation that have been inspired from looking closely at nature. This is called biomimicry- the design and production of materials, structures, systems, and solutions inspired by nature. So next time you are stuck on a problem, try looking to nature for inspiration using all your senses. And for more ideas, check out Asknature.org- an online database of biological strategies and innovations inspired by nature, created by the Biomimicry Institute, whose mission is to take action to solve the challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss through solutions guided by the genius of nature. This course has been designed using biomimicry (using a tree as a metaphor) to guide our inquiry.
Trees also symbolize growth and renewal and represent the source of life, the connections between all life, and holds spiritual meaning (i.e., The Tree of life). Even the act of planting a tree as a symbol of peace dates back to ancient times as a way of creating a legacy that benefits future generations. The Giving Tree (1964) is the title of a children’s book by Shel Silverstein (maybe you read this as a kid) that explores themes of unconditional love and selflessness which underpin the values of the humanitarian field. As you explore and synthesize concepts, ideas, themes, and questions in this course as seeds that germinate, see how you can connect what you are learning to the metaphor of a tree. As the first step in your journey and throughout this course, you are highly encouraged to go outside and notice the branching patterns in a tree. Resist the urge to “do something” and instead simply observe the intricate patterns and appreciate the beauty, wonder, and resiliency of the trees you encounter.
In our course, the roots of the tree represent enduring foundational knowledge and skills that will keep you grounded in your career as a humanitarian practitioner. These include: Critical Thinking, Teamwork, Communication, Strategic Thinking, and Adaptability. Some of these foundational areas like Strategic Thinking and Communication are consistently integrated into the assignment rubrics. You will also have the opportunity to practice Teamwork, Communication, and Critical Thinking in your discussion groups (Intentional Learning Community). The trunk of the tree represents the core knowledge of data analysis and visualization, which is also enduring to the field and is integrated throughout this course. The branches represent different topics of the field which are the module themes of this course: The Data Ecosystem, Design Principles, Data Collecting, Risk Analysis, Emergencies, and Disasters. In this course, you will have the opportunity to branch off and choose a track for your final project: Analysis or Design. You will also have the opportunity to branch off and explore topics, ideas, and questions in your small group discussions called Intentional Learning Community. Finally, the leaves on the tree represent new tools, technology, or ideas that change frequently, maybe not quite as seasonal as leaves on a tree. But they are not as durable as the trunk or the roots.
My advice for how you approach this course also takes inspiration from a tree. Stay rooted in learning and developing the foundational skills and knowledge that are durable to the humanitarian field which are acquired through rigorous practice and effort, sitting with uncertainty, trial and error, and having the discipline to refrain from seeking easy or quick answers to complex multi-faceted problems, tasks, or questions. Explore and branch off to learn about topics, ideas, or questions you are curious about in community with your peers. Remember that growth in this field takes time, care, and the ability to adapt to your environment. Just as leaves position themselves to receive the right amount of sunlight, your mindset and motivation will guide the way you nurture your own building of your expertise. Be the Giving Tree and feed your mind with nutrients that help your growth over the long-term so you can make a lasting impact both in the communities you serve and in your own intellectual, professional, and humanistic formation and resiliency.
Branching Patterns as Personalized Learning
We used the branching patterns to structure the course so that students can have choice and agency in exploring topics, ideas, questions, or issues that they find personally meaningful in community with their peers (which we call Intentional Learning Community). Students also had the choice of two tracks for their final project: analysis or design. This idea of “personalized learning” may be different than the way this term is used with adaptive learning platforms or AI tutoring systems in that it is a more organic way for students to explore what they find meaningful and share it with others rather than using a technology that is pre-populated with information and involves a series of responses or knowledge checks. Instructional designers often use branching scenarios (another form of personalized learning) to design interactive lessons where a student makes a series of choices and receives an automated response. These can be very useful for students who need practical guidance to solving contextual problems, and often have clear-cut answers. The difference with this kind of “personalized learning” and the one we used in this course is that we do not know in advance what a student will choose or where a conversation may go since it is all open-ended. While this may open up the possibility that a student may get off track or go down a “rabbit hole” that we would not necessarily choose if we made all the design decisions, it also opens up the possibility of emergent learning, spontaneity, and learner-directed tangents or meandering that may result in epiphanies or deeper understanding. In other words, it gives time and space for personalization that students make themselves, that interconnects with their peers, who may also find themselves along for the ride and discover something that they otherwise would not have in a more mechanically designed system.
This branching system of personalizing learning is similarly structured as individual trees who have their own autonomy but are also connected at the root level to other trees through a shared network of fungi. This all works together as a living system along with the soil (metaphorically, the learning environment) to cultivate the conditions for meaning-making among students, and authentic community-building. Using patterns from living systems (nature) can help us create learning experiences that function like an ecosystem, not an industry. This is an important distinction if we want education to be sustainable, regenerative, and life-affirming. Rather than expecting humans to function like machines to “succeed,” perhaps we design education using nature as the guiding wisdom. Who knows where this will lead? I don’t know but I’d be curious to find out.
