A Necessary Shift in Design Education: From Outputs to Outcomes
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| Title: | A Necessary Shift in Design Education: From Outputs to Outcomes |
|---|---|
| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Aidan Rowe (ORCID |
| Source: | International Journal of Art & Design Education. 2025 44(1):4-17. |
| Availability: | Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www.wiley.com/en-us |
| Peer Reviewed: | Y |
| Page Count: | 14 |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Document Type: | Journal Articles Reports - Evaluative |
| Descriptors: | Design, Educational Change, Competency Based Education, Outcome Based Education, Teaching Methods, Didacticism, Educational Practices, Attitude Change, Time Perspective, Design Crafts, Learning Processes |
| DOI: | 10.1111/jade.12521 |
| ISSN: | 1476-8062 1476-8070 |
| Abstract: | Traditionally, design -- and by extension design education -- has focused on the creation of distinct outputs (forms, artefacts, and objects) that satisfy a specific purpose and need. Historically these needs -- and often the designed outputs themselves -- have been dictated not by the designer but by clients and also through established disciplinary practices. Design was broadly framed as a commercial industry, where a client needed something (a poster, a chair) and the designer provided the requested output. Design education practices grew out of a master-apprentice approach, where students often learned by recreating idealized outputs repetitively. This didactic and skills-acquisition approach was sufficient when design focused on distinct fields (e.g., graphic, industrial, or fashion design), specific outputs, and traditionally understood challenges. As the field of design has expanded -- in the scope of practice, the complexity of challenges tackled, and the range of collaborators -- there is a need to re-examine our pedagogy. Traditional design education approaches are insufficient for the role that design needs to play in the 21st century. In this paper, I argue that a critical consideration of this re-examination is the reframing of a central tenet of design education, which is the production of outputs. Instead, what is needed is a re-focus considering the outcomes of design practice -- the processes involved, and the effects of our design actions and artefacts. I identify seven principal and interconnected factors that drive the need for this shift in focus. |
| Abstractor: | As Provided |
| Entry Date: | 2025 |
| Accession Number: | EJ1460424 |
| Database: | ERIC |
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| Abstract: | Traditionally, design -- and by extension design education -- has focused on the creation of distinct outputs (forms, artefacts, and objects) that satisfy a specific purpose and need. Historically these needs -- and often the designed outputs themselves -- have been dictated not by the designer but by clients and also through established disciplinary practices. Design was broadly framed as a commercial industry, where a client needed something (a poster, a chair) and the designer provided the requested output. Design education practices grew out of a master-apprentice approach, where students often learned by recreating idealized outputs repetitively. This didactic and skills-acquisition approach was sufficient when design focused on distinct fields (e.g., graphic, industrial, or fashion design), specific outputs, and traditionally understood challenges. As the field of design has expanded -- in the scope of practice, the complexity of challenges tackled, and the range of collaborators -- there is a need to re-examine our pedagogy. Traditional design education approaches are insufficient for the role that design needs to play in the 21st century. In this paper, I argue that a critical consideration of this re-examination is the reframing of a central tenet of design education, which is the production of outputs. Instead, what is needed is a re-focus considering the outcomes of design practice -- the processes involved, and the effects of our design actions and artefacts. I identify seven principal and interconnected factors that drive the need for this shift in focus. |
|---|---|
| ISSN: | 1476-8062 1476-8070 |
| DOI: | 10.1111/jade.12521 |
