Category: Design education
-
Design Studio and Project-Based Learning
If you are a design student or educator, chances are that you have experience of and perhaps some strong views about the design studio. The design studio is a place that gives opportunities to students (and tutors) to co-exist: to interact, ask questions, work together, or work side-by-side, and learn from one another: either directly…
-
An introduction to the design of education: My experience as a design curriculum intern
Between November 2023 and May 2024, I had the opportunity to take on the role of Curriculum Design Intern. My responsibilities were primarily focused on providing feedback on educational content developed for future Design modules at the OU. I applied to the internship after seeing the Design team’s wish to engage with diverse students. As…
-
Desire-based Design as a Transformative Practice in Humanitarian Design Projects
In the last few years, I have been working on several action-based research projects in the Global South focused on designing with marginalised communities in low-resource settings. In these contexts, designing frugal innovations is crucial to alleviating big and small problems that affect individuals and groups. However, questions about people’s agency and how to foster…
-
Reflections on our face to face design meet-ups this year
We have been delighted to be able to run a number of informal face to face meet ups at various venues across the country this autumn. It has been wonderful to meet with students as well as their partners, children and grandchildren! It has been a joy to meet such enthusiastic students and to see…
-
Designing communities for belonging
For years, I’ve been exploring ways to design with and for communities at the Open University (OU). A recent event showcasing student community projects highlighted a growing interest among staff and students in building and supporting these initiatives. Being part of a community or communities instils a sense of belonging. Belonging, a sense of connectedness…
-
Design for Planet Festival 2024
This article was written on 15th November 2024 On 6th November, I had the privilege of attending the Design Council’s Design for Planet Festival 2024 in Manchester, where designers, studios, and businesses came together with the aim of working towards a net-zero future. The event was opened by inspiring leaders including Andy Burnham, Mayor of…
-
Report on visit to V&A Museum of Childhood
On the 12th October 2024, seven U101 24B students (including two children) met up at the V&A Museum of Childhood at Bethnal Green in East London. The museum itself showcases a mix of displays of artefacts relating to childhood from a diversity of cultures around the world. Some artefacts date back to the 16th Century.…
-
Transformative Learning for Sustainable Transitions
Inner Development Goals (IDG) Annual Summit in Stockholm This week, the non-profit initiative Inner Development Goals (IDG) held its annual summit in Stockholm. The goal of IDG is to harness the power of inner development to tackle global challenges, such as those outlined by the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The IDG community has developed a framework…
-
(Design) ecologies for learning and practice
In this post I acknowledge the contributions of Schumacher College to current shifts toward life-centred design and ‘design for planet’, show how Schumacher exemplifies the concept of ecologies for learning and practice, and draw out insights of value for our new B.Design in development. Collapsing and re-organising In late August 2024 the trustees of Dartington…
-
Nigel Cross on Design Thinking
A is for Architecture, a podcast series run by Ambrose Gillick of Kent University, invited Nigel Cross, a renowned expert in design thinking, to discuss his research. Cross is an Emeritus Professor at the Open University (OU) and a pioneer in distance design education. He has significantly influenced the field through his work as the…