Case Study Lesson: Brainstorming

Lesson Content

• Lesson Plan Template:

  CTE Lesson Plan

• CTE Course Info and Benchmark Notes

  
  

  Course: Business and Entrepreneurial Principles - 8215120

  CTE Standards or Benchmarks:

  16.03 Present information formally and informally for specific purposes and audiences.

  17.05 Function as a team member and participate in group discussions to identify and resolve problems.

  17.07 Organize and lead discussions.

  17.09 Answer questions in formal and information situations.

  18.06 Analyze and synthesize information obtained from print and electronic resources for group discussions and team building activities.

  ELA Benchmarks:

  ELA.10.C.2.1 Present information orally, with a logical organization and coherent focus, with credible evidence, creating a clear perspective.

  ELA.11.C.2.1 Present information orally, with a logical organization, coherent focus, and credible evidence, while employing effective rhetorical devices where appropriate.

• Unit Outline

  
  

  This lesson is designed to be used with the case study, “Brainstorming - Go Broad to Go Narrow.” See CPALMS resource ID# 214575.

• Career Connection

  
  

  Brainstorming sessions are commonly used in business environments for idea generating.

  Students will work cooperatively with classmates, which will build collaboration and teamwork skills, which are important for the workplace.

• Learning Objectives

  
  

  By the end of this lesson, students will be able to:

  • Work in cooperative groups to brainstorm product ideas.
  • Practice active listening skills while participating in group discussions to resolve problems.
  • Obtain key information from multiple speakers in a group.
  • Identify relevant information in oral communication.

• Prior Knowledge

  
  

  Students should be familiar with/able to:

  • Work cooperatively in a small group setting (about 4 students per group)
  • Speak in front of classmates.
  • Participate in class discussions with varying opinions.

• Guiding Questions

  
  

  How do you conduct an effective brainstorming session to narrow down ideas to those with the biggest impact on customer satisfaction?

• Procedure

  
  

  Introduction:

  • Review Case Study: "Brainstorming - Go Broad to Go Narrow" (Resource ID#: 214575).
  • Have students read and discuss the case study and read the supporting document that summarizes the market research.
  • Review the background information about brainstorming included in the case study, including focus on quantity over quality, deferring judgement, and writing 1 idea per sticky note.

  Discussion:

  • Ask students why they think it’s important to go broad to go narrow. Why focus on divergence (quantity of ideas) and then convergence (choosing best quality ideas)?
  • How should Amelia, Emma, and Liam use the information from the market research when deciding how they should create the personal finance mobile app?

  Integrated activity:

  • Students will put themselves in the shoes of Amelia, Emma, and Liam from the case study and conduct a brainstorm session for creating a personal finance mobile app.
  • Have sticky notes and pens available.
  • Students will write 1 idea on a sticky note and focus on generating as many ideas as they can.
  • Then, have students work in teams to organize the sticky notes into categories and determine which ideas they’d move forward with, if they were Amelia, Emma, and Liam.
  • The goal for student groups is to cluster similar ideas into categories and then use convergence to narrow down ideas.
  • It's important for students to work cooperatively, with each member of the group speaking, actively listening to the other team members, and working together.
  • Student groups will present their mobile app ideas to the class, discussing how the brainstorming session went, how they narrowed down their ideas, and their final app design/priorities.
  • Students will use the attachment "Brainstorming Notes for Students" as a note catcher to take notes while groups present. Students should focus their notes on how ideas from other groups align with market research information.

  Closure:

  • Students will summarize how the brainstorming session went, what went well, and what they would do differently in future brainstorming.
  • Have a classroom discussion about students' experience with this brainstorming session. Questions to ask include:
    • How would this apply to your future career?
    • How could you use convergence and divergence outside of brainstorming sessions?
    • What did you learn about communicating in small groups?

• Teacher Notes

  
  

  This can be a low-tech activity with sticky notes and pens or high-tech with computers.

  For accommodations:

  • Students can have extended time to brainstorm.
  • Teachers can read the case study to students.

• Optional

  
  
  • As an extension, once students have the background on the guidelines of brainstorming and have completed this brainstorming case study and activity, teachers can do future brainstorming sessions in class with new topics relevant to the curriculum.