A Lean, (not so) Mean, Teaching Team Design Machine

By:  Kristine Cline, PharmD, MS

Creating value with fewer resources and less waste – sound helpful? But what does it look like to apply Lean methodology within an academic setting?

In the 1950’s, Toyota assembly lines started using the “Toyota Production System”, now characterized as “Lean”.¹ This Lean production process resulted in nearly no rework, errors, or waste. When errors were found, employees completed a root cause analysis. Lean was founded on the principle that every worker adds value, and that information about the system is visible and accessible to all.² This may remind you of the systems approach we talk about with medication safety, but Lean principles can also be applicable in an academic setting.

My course design experiences come from coordinating an integrated pharmacotherapy course that has 9.5 credit hours and over 20 unique instructors in a single semester. The first time I considered applying this idea of a value stream to my work, I thought of all the things we do in our courses that instructors and students may not like, but contribute to learning – so they have value. For example, some instructors may prefer in-person instruction or online recorded content, but a consistent mode of delivery can reduce student cognitive load and thus promote their academic engagement (ie., students experience “value”). While students don’t prefer to take exams, assessments add value by holding individuals accountable for their learning (I’ll save conversations on grading and upgrading for another day). Because Lean principles come to us from the manufacturing sector, they are focused on customer desires. In the academic setting differentiating “learner desires” versus needs and “values” is key to applying Lean methodology. Our goal is to lead a productive and efficient teaching team, being mindful of all of the resources (e.g. faculty development, staff support, etc.) that are needed to both execute and consume an effective learning experience. 

There are 5 principles of Lean Production.³ The table below maps each Lean principle with the original definition and provides examples of how educators may apply Lean principles within a large team-taught course. 

Lean Principle	Intent of Toyota’s Principle	Considerations for Course Design
Define Value	To capture customer value, or what a customer is willing to pay for.	What learning experiences are instructors looking to provide, or students looking to engage with? What value do they get from this experience?  From a course design standpoint we consider not only the course learning objectives but also the student learning experience.
Map the Value Stream	Map out activities as they relate to the customer-identified values.	Identify how instructors “add value” to our courses Do students or instructors desire face to face time? Do they prefer lectures or active learning? Are there things we are doing within our courses that do not add value (i.e., align with learning goals/objectives) or  contribute to the student learning experience? This could be coverage of unnecessary content (curricular overload), or activities that do not enhance learning. Those items are considered “waste”.4
Create Flow	After removing waste, ensure that everything remaining runs smoothly.	This is where the course director’s holistic view of the course and all of its “customers” shines. In large team-taught courses, having a person or group that is able to assess the flow of student progression and teaching styles across the continuum will promote course efficiency and quality improvement.
Establish Pull	Responding to customer demands without creating excess inventory.	While we may not have a warehouse full of car parts to consider inventory, we can consider our other resources – faculty, classrooms, support staff, etc. What rooms are available for us to use? Am I able to train the instructor on a relevant educational technology (e.g. learning management software, classroom polling software, etc.)? Does this require time-intensive grading/feedback as follow-up?
Pursue Perfection	Continuous quality improvement is essential for success.	Were all course goals met? What feedback did students provide about their learning experience? Was student performance consistent with or improved from historical norms?  Did instructors feel engaged and fulfilled? Did instructors identify any content specific areas for improvement?

As you walked through this example you may have thought that these are things you are already doing, but perhaps through a different lens. For me, the consideration of maximizing our resources is what makes Lean so impactful in an academic setting, as efficient use of resources promotes the well-being of both the faculty and students involved by maximizing everyone’s time and energy. Ultimately we all want to provide an optimal learning experience for students, and a fulfilling education opportunity for our faculty and guest instructors. Using the principles of Lean, what meaningful change could you implement in your course(s) to enhance your teaching team’s productivity and to create valuable educational activities with finite resources?

References:

1. Womack JP, Jones DT, Roos D. The Machine That Changed the World: The Story of Lean Production – Toyota´s Secret Weapon in the Global Car Wars That Is Revolutionizing World Industry. 1. paperback ed. Free Press; 2007.
2. What is lean?: Lean thinking. Lean Enterprise Institute. January 27, 2023. Accessed June 2, 2023.
3. Do D. The Five Principles of Lean. The Lean Way. August 5, 2017. Accessed June 2, 2023.
4. Cline KM, Winhoven MM, Williams VL, Kelley KA, Porter BL. Backward design to combat curricular expansion in a large, interdisciplinary, team-taught course. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education. Published online March 2023:100052. 

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Pulses is a scholarly blog supported by Currents in Pharmacy Teaching and Learning