Abstract

The coronavirus pandemic poses an existential challenge to many aspects of society. Responding effectively to the systemic challenges of the coronavirus requires more than merely girding one’s loins. In the short-term, it has required swift action to manage the immediate force of the pandemic. In the long-term, for many sectors of society, adapting to the pandemic may require nothing less than reflecting upon and reinventing longstanding assumptions, systems and practices. We propose a model of transformative problem-solving to support the dynamic adaptation of communities, organizations and individuals in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. The model calls for reflexivity about basic assumptions, goals, values and practices that structure teaching and learning in the academy, and proposes ways to evaluate and transform complex and entrenched institutional systems in a time of extended crisis. We illustrate the approach with examples of innovative organizational adaptations that have emerged as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

摘要

冠状病毒大流行对社会的许多方面构成了生存挑战。有效应对冠状病毒的系统性挑战需要的不仅仅是束紧腰带。在短期内，需要迅速采取行动来管理大流行的直接力量。从长远来看，对于社会的许多部门来说，适应大流行可能只需要反思和重塑长期存在的假设、系统和做法。我们提出了一个变革性问题解决模型来支持动态适应面对冠状病毒大流行的社区、组织和个人。该模型要求对构成学院教学和学习的基本假设、目标、价值观和实践进行反思，并提出在长期危机时期评估和改造复杂而根深蒂固的制度体系的方法。我们用因冠状病毒大流行而出现的创新组织适应的例子来说明这种方法。