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Informed Design: A Contemporary Approach to Design Pedagogy as the Core Process in Technology

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Title: Informed Design: A Contemporary Approach to Design Pedagogy as the Core Process in Technology
Language: English
Authors: Burghardt, M. David, Hacker, Michael
Source: Technology Teacher. Sep 2004 64(1):6-6.
Availability: Publications Department, International Technology Education Association, 1914 Association Drive, Suite 201, Reston, VA 20191-1539. Tel: 703-860-2100; Fax: 703-860-0353; Web site: http://www.iteaconnect.org.
Peer Reviewed: Y
Page Count: 3
Publication Date: 2004
Document Type: Journal Articles
Reports - Descriptive
Descriptors: Student Participation, Student Research, Technological Literacy, Educational Technology, Information Technology, Teaching Methods, Constructivism (Learning), Design
ISSN: 0746-3537
Abstract: In classroom settings, most problems are usually well defined, so students have little experience with open-ended problems. Technological design problems, however, are seldom well defined. The design process begins with broad ideas and concepts and continues in the direction of ever-increasing detail, resulting in an acceptable solution. So using design in the classroom can be challenging, as students are not familiar, or initially not comfortable, with the open-ended nature of design. This can also pose problems for teachers, who must relinquish directive control. However, it also provides opportunity to use constructivist pedagogical practice to engage students in their own learning. The informed design process discussed in this article, and the underlying pedagogical support methodology, provide a way to optimize the use of design as a pedagogical strategy.
Abstractor: ERIC
Number of References: 11
Entry Date: 2005
Accession Number: EJ706287
Database: ERIC
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  Value: <anid>AN0014493036;ttc01sep.04;2004Sep30.15:07;v2.1</anid> <jsection id="AN0014493036-1"> FEATURE ARTICLE</jsection> <title id="AN0014493036-2">INFORMED DESIGN: A CONTEMPORARY APPROACH TO DESIGN PEDAGOGY AS THE CORE PROCESS IN TECHNOLOGY </title> <p>In classroom settings most problems are usually well defined, so students have little experience with open-ended problems.</p> <p>The Standards for Technological Literacy (ITEA, 2000, 2002) document indicates the centrality of design to the study of technology, "Design is regarded by many as the core problem-solving process of technological development. It is as fundamental to technology as inquiry is to science and reading is to language arts" (p. 90). Design in technology education most closely allies with engineering design. For instance, The Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET) defines design in the Criteria for Accrediting Engineering Programs as "the process of devising a system, component, or process to meet desired needs. It is a decision-making process (often iterative), in which the basic sciences and mathematics and engineering sciences are applied to convert resources optimally to meet a stated objective" (ABET, 2000).</p> <hd id="AN0014493036-3"> Design as an Instructional Strategy </hd> <p>In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of the educational value of design activities in which students create external artifacts that they share and discuss with others (Soloway, 1994; Papert, 1993; Resnick, 1998). A synthesis of the literature reveals that pedagogically solid design projects involve authentic, hands-on tasks; use familiar and easy-to-work materials; possess clearly defined outcomes that allow for multiple solutions; promote student-centered, collaborative work and higher order thinking; allow for multiple design iterations to improve the product; and have clear links to a limited number of science and engineering concepts (Crismond, 1997).</p> <p>The National Research Council's How People Learn (Bransford, 1999) hails instruction where students monitor their understanding and progress in problem solving. Research reveals that experts consider alternatives, note when additional information is required, and are mindful if the chosen alternative leads toward the desired end. These strategies are central to the culture of design.</p> <p>However, in classroom settings, most problems are usually well defined, so students have little experience with open-ended problems. Technological design problems, however, are seldom well defined. The design process begins with broad ideas and concepts and continues in the direction of ever-increasing detail, resulting in an acceptable solution (Thacher, 1989). So using design in the classroom can be challenging, as students are not familiar, or initially not comfortable, with the open-ended nature of design. This can also pose problems for teachers, who must relinquish directive control. However, it also provides opportunity to use constructivist pedagogical practice to engage students in their own learning. The informed design process discussed in this article, and the underlying pedagogical support methodology, provide a way to optimize the use of design as a pedagogical strategy.</p> <hd id="AN0014493036-4"> Pedagogical Rationale for Design </hd> <p>As a pedagogical strategy, design activities have great potential to:</p> <ulist> <item> Engage children as active participants, giving them greater control over the learning process.</item> <item> Assist students to integrate learning from language, the arts, mathematics, and science.</item> <item> Encourage pluralistic thinking, avoiding a right/wrong dichotomy and suggesting instead that multiple solutions are possible.</item> <item> Provide children an opportunity to reflect upon, revise, and extend their internal models of the world.</item> <item> Encourage children to put themselves in the minds of others as they think about how their designs will be understood and used (Resnick, 1998).</item> </ulist> <p>All too often, however, design is not used to maximum pedagogical advantage in the classroom. As an instructional strategy, design has all too often focused on the product rather than on the learner. Design is often characterized as "gadgeteering," and trial-and-error problem solving where students do not always gain important (i.e., standards-based) conceptual understandings.</p> <hd id="AN0014493036-5"> Informed Design </hd> <p>Informed design is a pedagogical approach to design that was developed and validated through the NSF-funded NYSCATE Project (New York State Curriculum for Advanced Technological Education) (Burghardt and Hacker, 2003). Informed design enables students to enhance their own related knowledge and skill base before attempting to suggest design solutions. In this way, students reach design solutions informed by prior knowledge and research, as opposed to trial-and-error problem solving, where conceptual closure is often not attained. Informed design emphasizes design challenges that rely on math and science knowledge to improve design performance. The approach prompts research, inquiry, and analysis; fosters student and teacher discourse; and cultivates language proficiency.</p> <p>Engineers and other designers do not always follow these steps in a sequence. As with most design cycles, the informed design cycle is iterative and allows, even encourages, users to revisit earlier assumptions and findings as they proceed. It was created with knowledge gained from works in cognitive science and learning.</p> <hd id="AN0014493036-6"> Knowledge and Skill Builders </hd> <p>A key factor that differentiates informed design from other design processes is how the Research and Investigation phase is approached. To provide the foundation for informed design, activity learners are engaged in a progression of knowledge and skill builders (KSBs). KSBs prepare students to approach a design challenge from a more knowledgeable base. The KSBs are short, focused activities designed to help students identify the variables that affect the performance of the design. They provide structured research in key technology, science, mathematics processes, skills, and concepts that underpin the design solution. They also provide evidence upon which teachers can assess student understanding of important ideas and skills. The final design is "informed" by the knowledge and skills that students acquired en route to designing and constructing their solutions.</p> <p>Figure 1 depicts the overall informed design cycle. The cycle uses familiar design cycle terminology; however, underlying the phases are important enhancements. The phases are described as follows:</p> <olist> <item> Clarify design specifications and constraints. Describe the problem clearly and fully, noting constraints and specifications.</item> <item> Research and investigate the problem. Search for and discuss solutions to solve this or similar problems. Complete a series of guided-knowledge and skill-builder activities that will help students identify the variables that affect the performance of the design, and inform students' knowledge and skill base.</item> <item> Generate alternative designs. Don't stop when you have one solution. Approach the challenge in new ways and describe alternatives.</item> <item> Choose and justify optimal design. Rate and rank the alternatives against the design specifications and constraints. Justify your choice. Your chosen alternative will guide your preliminary design.</item> <item> Develop a prototype. Make a model of the solution. Identify and explain modifications to refine the design.</item> <item> Test and evaluate the design solution. Develop and carry out a test to assess the performance of the design solution. Complete or review KSBs focused on developing a fair test.</item> <item> Redesign the solution with modifications. Examine your design and look at others' designs to see where improvements can be made. Identify the variables that affect performance and determine the concepts that underlie these variables. Explain how to enhance performance of the design using these concepts and variables.</item> <item> Communicate your achievements. Complete a design portfolio or design report that documents the previously mentioned steps. Make a group presentation to the class justifying your design solution.</item> </olist> <hd id="AN0014493036-7"> An Example in a Familiar Context </hd> <p>Bridge-building design projects have been used for many years; however they often are not informed by mathematical, scientific, and technological knowledge of the construction of various types of bridges. All too often, bridges are loaded to the point of failure, strengthened at the failure point, and rebuilt without delving into the cause and reasons for failure. KSBs for a bridge-building project might include:</p> <ulist> <item> Investigation and construction of simple beam bridges, suspension bridges, arches, and truss bridges.</item> <item> Investigation of tension and compression in bridge members.</item> <item> Gathering and plotting data to reinforce important mathematics and science inquiry skills.</item> <item> Determining and developing a fair test to focus on the design specifications and how to test for them.</item> </ulist> <p>To encourage the use of thoughtful alternative solutions, the problem statement is more open-ended than the traditional one of building a bridge to hold the most weight, a single criterion. In the new situation, the goal is to design and construct a cost-effective bridge that will hold the most weight for the least cost while meeting a minimum load specification, two criteria that may be inversely related. This more accurately models engineering practice. Materials have different costs associated with them, which can encourage a variety of design approaches and foster critical thinking about why they will be the best (Hacker and Burghardt, 2004).</p> <hd id="AN0014493036-8"> Research Base </hd> <p>The informed design process was created as part of the NYSCATE NSF curriculum materials development project. Of the thirteen modules developed, eight are intended for use on the high school level and can be modified for use in middle school; the remaining modules are for use in community college technology courses. The modules were developed using strategies of backwards design (Wiggins and McTighe, 1998) as replacement curriculum for existing technology and science courses.</p> <p>There was a great deal of enthusiasm expressed by teachers and students for all the modules. The Project evaluators indicated that the technology and design components were consistently understood by students and teachers, and that the understanding of science and mathematics concepts varied depending on how explicitly they were addressed by the KSBs. For instance, in one module, where students designed a food dehydrator (Drying by Design), the three field-test teachers agreed that students learned important technology concepts and important design processes.</p> <p>Students were questioned about what they perceived they learned. The following summarizes their responses:</p> <ulist> <item> Students strongly agreed that they learned important science, technology, and design concepts.</item> <item> Students strongly agreed that they learned from the design task so that they could do it better if they did it again.</item> <item> Students moderately agreed they learned important math concepts.</item> </ulist> <p>The modules developed through the NYSCATE Project use informed design as the core instructional strategy. The modules are shown in Figure 2.</p> <hd id="AN0014493036-9"> Conclusion </hd> <p>The results from reviews by experts, pilot testing, and field testing of the modules has shown that informed design and the pedagogical strategies that support it are effective. The informed design process contextualizes learning and applies the latest constructivist pedagogical practices to enhance student learning. This process complies with current understandings of how students learn and how to create effective learning environments for them.</p> <p>This is a refereed article.</p> <ct id="AN0014493036-10"> Legend for Chart: A-AREA GRADE B-MATERIALS AND MANUFACTURING C-INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY D-BIO/CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY NYSCATE Modules A B C D Gr. 9-10, HS Drying By Design Mapping Through Remote Sensing The Help Desk Genetic Testing Gr. 11-12, HS Liquid Crystals Introduction To Networks Polymers Gr. 13, CC Control Systems Paving The Way To The Internet Solutions And Dilutions Gr. 14, CC Design For Manufacture Gatekeeper To The Internet Purifying Proteins By Design</ct> <p>DIAGRAM: Figure 1. Informed Design Cycle Hacker and Burghardt, 2004</p> <p>PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE)</p> <p>PHOTO (BLACK & WHITE)</p> <ref id="AN0014493036-11"> <title> References </title> <blist> <bibl id="bib1" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology. (2000). Criteria for Accrediting Engineering Programs: Effective for Evaluations During the 2000-2001 Accreditation Cycle. Baltimore, MD: Author.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib2" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Bloch, Erich. (1986). Science and Engineering: A Continuum. Washington, DC: National Research Council.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib3" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Bransford, John, et al. (1999). How People Learn. Washington, DC: National Academy Press.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib4" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Burghardt, M. David & Hacker, Michael. (2003). The New York State Curriculum for Advanced Technological Education, <ulink href="http://www.nyscate.net">www.nyscate.net</ulink>.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib5" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Crismond, David. (1997). Investigate-and-Redesign Tasks as a Context for Learning and Doing Science and Technology: A study of naive, novice and expert high school and adult designers doing product comparisons and redesign tasks. Unpublished doctoral thesis, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib6" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Hacker, Michael, & Burghardt, David. (2004). Technology Education: Learning by Design. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib7" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Papert, Seymour. (1993). The Children's Machine. New York: Basic Books.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib8" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Resnick, Mitchel. (1998). Technologies for Lifelong Kindergarten. Educational Technology Research and Development, Vol. 46, no. 4.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib9" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Soloway, E., Guzdial, M., & Hay, K. (1994). Learner-Centered Design. Interactions 1, 2, 36-48.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib10" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Thacher, Eric, (1989). Design. In Principles of Engineering. New York State Education Department.</bibtext> </blist> <blist> <bibl id="bib11" type="bt"></bibl> <bibtext>Wiggins, Grant & McTighe, Jay. (1998). Understanding by Design. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.</bibtext> </blist> </ref> <aug> <p>By M. David Burghardt and Michael Hacker</p> </aug>
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  Data: In classroom settings, most problems are usually well defined, so students have little experience with open-ended problems. Technological design problems, however, are seldom well defined. The design process begins with broad ideas and concepts and continues in the direction of ever-increasing detail, resulting in an acceptable solution. So using design in the classroom can be challenging, as students are not familiar, or initially not comfortable, with the open-ended nature of design. This can also pose problems for teachers, who must relinquish directive control. However, it also provides opportunity to use constructivist pedagogical practice to engage students in their own learning. The informed design process discussed in this article, and the underlying pedagogical support methodology, provide a way to optimize the use of design as a pedagogical strategy.
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