More Teaching Design William Oakes

Crismond (2007) draws from many sources in his definition of design as “’goal- directed problem-solving activity’ (Archer, 1965) that initiates change in human-made things (Jones, 1992), and involves optimizing parameters (Matchett, 1968) and the balancing of trade-offs (AAAS, 2001) to meet targeted users needs (Gregory, 1966). ” Source: Crismond, D. (2007). Contrasting strategies of beginning and informed designers: One representation of learning progressions in engineering design.

EPICS Balance Service-learning is a balance of the learning of design and the service we contribute the communities through completed designs and support Service To our partners, meeting needs in the community Learning Becoming good designers, professionals & active citizens Complimentary goals that enhance each other

The EPICS Design Cycle Specification Development Detailed Design Production Service Maintenance Redesign Retirement Problem Identification Conceptual Design Disposal

Why is design difficult? Engages different types of thinking Requires designers to manage so many ideas and aspects Addresses different types of problems

Different Problem Types Logical StoryDecision-Diagnosis-Design MakingSolution AlgorithmicRule-Trouble-Case UsingshootingAnalysis Well-defined Ill-structured More abstract context Real-world Single, correct answer Multiple solutions Constrained Information Provided Many unknowns Source: Jonassen (2000). Toward a Design Theory of Problem Solving.

Nature of Design SciencesHumanitiesDesign Phenomenon of study The natural world Human experience The artificial world Method of inquiry Controlled experiment, classification, analysis Analogy, metaphor, evaluation Modelling, pattern- formation, synthesis Values Objectivity, rationality, neutrality, and a concern for ‘truth’ Subjectivity, imagination, commitment, and a concern for ‘justice’ Practicality, ingenuity, empathy, and a concern for ‘appropriateness’ Cross, N. (2006). Designerly Ways of Knowing. London: Springer-Verlag.

Developing Design Expertise Novice Expert

Characteristics of Designers Good designers have the ability to: Tolerate ambiguity that shows up in viewing design as inquiry or as an iterative loop of divergent- convergent thinking Maintain sight of the big picture by including systems thinking and systems design Handle uncertainty Dym, Agogino, Eris, Frey, and Leifer (2005)

Characteristics of Designers Good designers have the ability to: Make decisions Think as part of a team in a social process Think and communicate in the several languages of design Dym, Agogino, Eris, Frey, and Leifer (2005)

Designer’s challenge: Not exhibiting the “Novice concepts of design” Newstetter and McCracken (2001, p ) list five, but I would like to challenge you on three of them! Design arrogance – Students do not place their designs in the context of the environment in which the design will reside. The “arrogantly” ignore the constraints of the user (whether that is a machine or a person). They often design for themselves.

Designer’s challenge: Not exhibiting the “Novice concepts of design”, cont. Design shutdown – Students tend to focus on single point solutions to problems once beyond the ideation stage. In other words, once they have an idea, they stop considering alternative and focus all their energy on that one solution regardless of its feasibility. Design routinization – Students act as though designing is a serial/linear process. The way they deal with design problems resembles the linear parsing of the algebra problem. Iteration, revisiting past decisions and evaluating alternatives is not in their process model.

I. Explore the Challenge Contrasting Strategies Title What Beginning Designers Do What Informed Designers Do Tools Premature / Delayed Decision Making Treat design as well- structured and make premature design decisions Delay making decisions in order to explore challenge, learn about critical issues Functional descriptions, Problem Scoping Skip / Do Research & Info Searches Skip doing research and information searched, and instead start generating design solutions immediately. Do research and information searched about the problem, includeing materials, prior art, users, product histories, etc. Studying prior art, Product history and analysis, Researching users Confounded/ Valid Investigations Do few early investigations or conduct confounded tests that build little understanding of the design problem. Do valid investigations to help them learn quickly about design variables, users, materials, & how things work. Product dissections, Product comparisons Source: Crismond, D. (2007). Contrasting strategies of beginning and informed designers: One representation of learning progressions in engineering design.

II. Generate, Build & Communicate Ideas Contrasting Strategies Title What Beginning Designers Do What Informed Designers Do Tools Idea Fixation / Idea Fluency Fixate on first design ideas, which they won’t let go of, and work depth-first in developing a single plan. Practice idea fluency via brainstorming, sketching, and rapid prototyping, and use gestures, words, & artifacts to communicate these ideas Brainstorming, Constraint Relaxation & “Dream Designing”, Database Searches, Rapid Prototyping, Task Sequencing Surface / Deep Drawing & Modeling Describe & sketch surface features of device that would not work if built. Make drawings and models that show how parts connect and interact well, and models that test key features. Alternate Sequencing for Sketching, Discussions & Annotated Sketches, Gestures and Artifacts as Stand-ins for Drawings Unfocused / Diagnostic Vision Have a generalized unfocused way of viewing tests and troubleshooting their ideas. Use diagnostic vision to focus their attention while troubleshoot critical areas of the design plans and products. Cognitive Training, Teaching Modeling & Coaching Source: Crismond, D. (2007). Contrasting strategies of beginning and informed designers: One representation of learning progressions in engineering design.

III. Test & Evaluate Solutions, Reflect on Practice Contrasting Strategies Title What Beginning Designers Do What Informed Designers Do Tools Ignore / Balance Benefits & Tradeoffs in Making Decisions Ignore or pay too much attention to constraints and focus on + or – aspects of ideas without also thinking of benefits and tradeoffs. Balance systems of benefits and tradeoffs when making design decisions, and use guidelines and rules-of- thumb to make these choices. Design decision charts, Design Guidelines, Heuristics & Rules-of- Thumb Haphazard, Linear / Iterative, Managed Design Design in a haphazard ways, working on whatever problems emerge, or treat design as a set of steps to be done once in linear order. Do design as an iterative process, improving ideas based on feedback, and use strategies in any order, as needed, in a managed way. Project & Time Management, Design Process Knowledge and Support Tacit / Reflective Thinking* Do tacit designing when they think with little self-reflection & monitoring of actions. Practice reflective thinking by keeping tabs on design work in a metacognitive way. Design Notebooks and Portfolios, Computer- supported structured reflections Source: Crismond, D. (2007). Contrasting strategies of beginning and informed designers: One representation of learning progressions in engineering design. *Self-monitoring is associated with higher levels of design performance and product quality (Adams & Atman, 2000).

Activity What are places to integrate development of good designers into the high school curriculum? oHow can EPICS be a leverage point?

Communication is key to successful design!! oWith community partner oWith each other oWith the artifact that you are designing Design Review Templates

Good design… Good designs involve diverse perspectives and expertise IDEO – industry leader in design and innovation oDesign thinking is a crucial business asset—one that can, indeed, move a company forward and improve the bottom line. To optimize this impact, (we) advise thoughtfully structuring the innovation process. They stress working on projects that improve people’s lives.. - Ryan Jacoby and Diego Rodriguez, Innovation, Growth, and Getting to Where You Want to Go, Design Management Review Vol. 18 No. 1

19 Sustainability in design Lecture Notes: pg 62-73

Name as many “resources” as you can 20 Renewable Resources living resources (trees and soil) hydroelectric power, solar power, wind water Non-Renewable Resources coal, oil natural gas

21 why sustainability? Designing for increasingly limited and expensive resources: water nonrenewable materials

The Triple Bottom Line Traditional bottom line is economic Consider two other bottom lines: oSocial costs and benefits oEnvironmental costs and benefits 22

tools for thinking design: footprint Year

24 tools for thinking design: footprint

25 What goes into your energy footprint today? lighting: wattage, hours on, heat loss heating: hours on, temperature change food: growing, transportation, packaging, storage, cooking, disposal self care: water transportation, heating, treatment; cleaning products production, transportation, treatment tools for thinking design: footprint

26 What goes into your energy footprint today? tool use: ofood preparation: tool construction, transportation, cleaning, disposal oclothing: material production, construction, transportation, cleaning, disposal oentertainment: production energy costs etc., energy during use otransportation: material production, construction, transportation, use, disposal tools for thinking design: footprint

27 What goes into your energy footprint over your life? big choices as well as little Will you live close to or far from work and family? How often will you travel by car, train, or plane? Where will you stay when you travel? How many kids will you have? What appliances will you buy for your home? - energy and resource efficient? or cheaper now? made locally or shipped from another country?

28 why sustainability? Engineering is “optimization under constraints” Good design now requires life-cycle consideration “cradle to cradle” design McDonough & Braungart 2002 (

29 case study: cradle to cradle Interface Carpet

30 tools for thinking: systems design supplier producer processing plant distribution center grocery store

31 tools for thinking: systems design supplier producer processing plant distributio n center grocery store fertilizers pesticidesseeds machinery truck machinery truck machinery truck food waste freezer packaging

32 tools for thinking: systems design supplier producer processing plant distribution center grocery store fertilizers pesticidesseeds machinery truck machinery truck machinery truck food waste freezer packaging

33 tools for thinking: systems design supplier producer processing plant distributio n center grocery store fertilizers pesticidesseeds machinery truck machinery truck machinery truck food waste freezer packaging fossil fuels hydroflurocarbonsfossil fuels irrigation renewable energy fossil fuels

34 tools for thinking: systems design supplier producer farmer’s market compostseeds machinery truck cover crops fossil fuels renewable energy

35 energy balances: how much energy does product use? how much energy to construct product from available materials? how much energy to transport materials from collection site to production site? or transport product from construction site to user? how much energy to produce materials? how much energy to recycle/reuse product at end of life? tools for thinking: systems design