The contribution of Design Thinking to the R of R&D in technological innovation

Literature on Design Thinking has mainly focused on whether its key principles enhance performance in the development phase (the D of R&D) of the technological innovation process. However, it has dedicated scant attention to the earlier research phase (the R of R&D). This aspect is surprising, given that many innovations fail as a result of early research actions and decisions. This article examines how it is possible and desirable to apply Design Thinking to the research phase of the technological innovation process. How can Design Thinking support innovation, even when advanced breakthrough technologies are at stake, the market is distant, and product applications and specific user needs have not been identified yet? To respond to this question, we investigate the research work of the design center of a global electronics company that uses a design approach called Proxemics to envision future interactions between bodies (people), objects (technology), and spaces (context). Although Proxemics is consistent with and implements the human centeredness and experimentation principles of Design Thinking, results of this study show that its logics and tools are different from those used in Design Thinking in the D of R&D due to the more abstract nature of the tasks in the R of R&D.     

Research on Basic Design Education: An International Survey

This paper reports on the results of a survey and qualitative analysis on the teaching of ‘Basic Design’ in schools of design and architecture located in 22 countries. In the context of this research work, Basic Design means the teaching and learning of design fundamentals that may also be commonly referred to as the Principles of Two- and Three-dimensional Design. The body of knowledge associated with Basic Design may be regarded as part of the general theory of teaching and learning design as practiced in many design schools and which has its origins in the classical design schools such as the Bauhaus. In the author’s perception and practice, the pedagogy of Basic Design promotes a holistic, creative and experimental methodology that develops the learning style and cognitive abilities of students with respect to the fundamental principles of design. This includes an understanding of the elements of shape, colour, texture, light, and rhythm in a manner complementary but usually unrelated to the common design methods teaching approach. As is well known among design practitioners, including architects and industrial designers, a deep understanding of the purpose of these fundamental design elements and principles is still relevant to contemporary design practice. The main objective of the research described in this paper was to determine the status and development of Basic Design pedagogy in a significant number of contemporary design schools. On the basis of the results of two surveys conducted in 2001–2002, this paper will identify and illustrate interesting aspects concerning the programmes and organisation of courses delivered by teachers of ‘Basic Design’. This work will also survey the viewpoints of Basic Design teachers in elementary years of design courses and of those teaching design through projects during the subsequent years of the same courses. Interestingly, the design project teachers surveyed in this research expressed a desire to be more involved in the teaching of Basic Design fundamentals which indicates strongly that Basic Design principles are still relevant in contemporary design education terms as they have ever been and that more research is needed in order to better understand and apply the related pedagogy.     

How can biological shapes inspire design activity in closed domains?

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - Biological examples have been used to increase innovation in design activities and design education. And biologically inspired design has...     

The genesis of design: learning about design,learning through design to learning design in play

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - Learning about design and learning through design have emerged in the literature and important works show heuristics and matrices for...     

Towards a three-part heuristic framework for technology education

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - There is not one single global version of technology education; curricula and standards have different forms and content. This sometimes...     

Technological knowledge in early childhood education: provision by staff of learning opportunities

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - Developments in early childhood education (ECE) over the last two decades have for many countries meant a change towards a more...     

The design language: Phase and levels

Design language as a theme for discussion may be examined from at least three aspects: its structure: its terminology and its phases and levels of development. An agreed and precise terminology in the field of Design, is desirable for communication, understanding and teaching. It can also unfold the subtle structure of that language.However, many studies of the phases and levels of design language have been undertaken, but often from the artistic, humanistic and scientific points of view, rather then the designistic perspective.In this article we outline the basis of a designistic analysis and classification of children's and adults' design language.Luiz Vidal Negreiros Gomes, Lecturer of the Federal University of Pernambuco, Brazil at the the Department of Methods and Technics in Education and at the Department of Design, and L.S. Medeiros, a freelance researcher.Correspondence to: Avenida Copacabana, 474/303 A, Piedade, Jaboatäo, Pernambuco, Brazil CEP 54410-250     

What form of modelling?

Conclusion The National Criteria and GCSE CDT: Technology have not kept pace with the progress of language, whereas the APU and the Design and Technology Working Group have an understanding, with the implications, of modelling 2, albeit fifteen years after the Open University's Technology Foundation Course for teachers. The Consultation Report Group has had the benefit of the insight given by the APU and the Design and Technology Working Group, but, it has not seen the probity and necessity of modelling 2. A summary of these documents in this five year period is presented in Table 2. It shows succinctly how the words model and modelling, from Table 1, have been used or implied.In conclusion, it would appear that through the Consultation Report no gain has been made from the advances achieved by the APU and the Design and Technology Working Group. The Consultation Report has restored a quasi status quo that does not challenge Design and Technology as would have the Final Report regarding modelling 2. If its perception of modelling 2 had been adopted by the National Curriculum Council the Final Report's modelling 2 philosophy would have challenged the GCSE Technology examinations and any Technology faculty who work on an understanding of modelling as an end-in-itself product.As a consequence of this weakening by the National Curriculum Council, there is the need to return to the philosophy of the APU and the Design and Technology Working Group in order to interpret the imminent Technology Statutory Orders. The non-statutory examples should be ignored, as an understanding of modelling 2 philosophy will give valid examples and contexts. Finally, an understanding of modelling 2 philosophy will help cross-curricular developments through the interaction of different aspects of modelling 2 within the curriculum.     

Comparing the dialogue of experts and novices in interdisciplinary teams to inform design education

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - Design education has moved towards a collaborative practice where designers work in teams and with other disciplines to solve unstructured...     

A meta-synthesis of primary and secondary student design cognition research

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - Design within primary and secondary schools has been increasingly emphasized over the past decade. As a response to this increased...     

浅谈“教学结合职业规划”模式下服装设计教学的改革方向

二十世纪八十年代以来,中国的经济从计划经济体制逐渐转变到了市场经济体制,并取得了巨大的发展和成绩。在这个过程中,服装行业也是转变和发展最彻底的一个行业,可服装设计教学作为教育行业的一部分并没有因此发生较大的改变,所以服装设计教学在中国很多高校里实际已经和服装市场脱节,甚至出现了很多没有任何企业实践经验的教授、教师却在天天进行实践性教学环节,并且教学目标是培养学生去服装企业里做一个优秀的设计师这么尴尬的现状。所以本文主要论述在新时代背景下,服装设计教学如何走出这种困境,顺应时代和市场的发展而进行改革、调整而发展的方向和思路。     

Aligning a CAD course constructively: telling-to-peer and writing-to-peer activities for efficient use of CAD in design curricula

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - As the literature points out the lack of efficient use of Computer-Aided Design (CAD) in design curricula, we aimed to align a CAD course...     

浅论税收筹划

税收筹划是企业用足用好税务政策的新课题，在新形势下企业作为纳税人，熟悉了解税法及财务会计制度，用足用好税务政策，运用税法上的优惠政策为企业创造经济效益。     

The locating of emotion within a creative, learning and product orientated design and technology experience: person, process, product

Within this paper, a conceptualised triadic schema is hypothesised for locating emotion within a creative, learning and product orientated Design and Technology experience. The research is based upon an extensive literature review that has been synthesised and juxtaposed with the broad aspirational aims of the subject. The schema, based upon abductive reasoning and grounded theory, ultimately conceptualises the overarching theme of emotion within a creative, learning and product orientated Design and Technology experience within the Primary and Secondary stages of England’s education system. The triadic schema offers an additional opportunity in meta-theorising how the broad aspirational aims of the subject, as outlined in the English national curriculum statement of importance for Design and Technology, can be achieved through recognising the powerful overarching concept of emotion within three emerging domains: Person, Process and Product. The central tenet of this paper is the recognition of emotion within a triadic schema for meta-theorising the place of emotion within a creative, learning and product orientated Design and Technology experience. David Spendlove was previously a senior teacher in secondary education before moving into Higher Education and is now the subject leader for Design and Technology at the University of Manchester. He co-edits both Design and Technology Education: An international Journal and the DATA international research conference proceedings. He is a director of the Design and Technology Association and his research interests are broadly based around learning, pedagogy, creativity, emotion and gender.     

The influence of distributed collaboration in design processes: an analysis of design activity on information,problem, and solution

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - Design education and practices increasingly involve distributed collaboration. However, its effects on students’ design processes,...     

Exploring the impact of design thinking tool among design undergraduates: a study on creative skills and motivation to think creatively

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - This paper exploring the impact of the utilization of Design Thinking tool in facilitating the development of a group of design...     

Application of the DIERS methodology to the study of runaway polymerization: Validation of the DIERS methodology using blow-down tests

The Design Institute for Emergency Relief Systems (DIERS) and more recently the DIERS Users Group have been investigating various aspects of emergency relief for more than 12 years. The DIERS programs have given rise to an in-depth understanding of the basic mechanism of how runaway thermal reactions are safely vented. In concert with the development of the understanding of the venting mechanism, DIERS also developed experimental procedures and computational techniques for estimating emergency vent sizes.     

Towards constructive design feedback dialogues: guiding peer and client feedback to stimulate children’s creative thinking

International Journal of Technology and Design Education - Design feedback is an essential pedagogical tool that can help young novice designers navigate divergent and convergent paths while...     

Technology and Design, at Key Stage 3, within the Northern Ireland curriculum: teachers’ perceptions

Technology and Design was introduced at Key Stage 3 for all pupils in Northern Ireland, as a result of the Education Reform (NI) Order in 1989. Central to the process of introducing this new and compulsory subject, the government spent in excess of ￡167M to make provision for the subject in all post-primary schools. This paper explores the perceptions of teachers of Technology and Design (known as Design and Technology in GB) in post-primary schools throughout Northern Ireland to the introduction and implementation of the subject. The methods involved a questionnaire survey to all teachers of Technology and Design throughout Northern Ireland (n = 587) and one-to-one interviews with 24. Findings suggest that teachers consider Technology and Design to be a worthwhile subject and believe that it adds much to the educational experience of the pupils involved. Nonetheless, there is general acceptance that difficulties surround the whole issue of subject definition and content delineation. As a consequence, significant demands are placed upon these teachers as they work to ensure that all pupils are given a worthwhile and valuable learning experience. These findings are discussed in terms of teachers’ perceptions of subject definition, delineation of subject content, the nature of the work involved and issues related to academic ability.     

浅谈设计管理与设计资源

设计管理是一门如何有力地应用及协调设计资源的学科。设计管理是提高服装设计工作效率和工作质量的有效途径,是服装企业管理的重要组成部分。服装企业的升级和产品竞争能力的增强,服装设计管理是重要的决定因素。