FUTURE OF DESIGN EDU CATION TRENDS
CURRICULUM
PEDAGOGY
LEARNER
WRITING TEAM Agat Sharma Ambika Magotra Meha Jayaswal Nidhip Mehta Niketa Chakrabarti Preeti Dewan Mehta Priya Mary Mathew Seema Mahajan EDITING TEAM
Anup Sasidharan Amitesh Singhal Michael Dotolo Nidhip Mehta Rajeesh Ravindran Ramneek Majithia
DESIGN TEAM Joyita Banerjee Milly Singh
Published in 2017; All rights reserved. ‘Expressions Publication Department’. Pearl Academy For any queries, comments, contributions, please email us at: expressions@pearlacademy.com
Contents Message from CEO Introduction by Anup Sasidharan chapter 1 - TRENDS
chapter 3 - CURRICULUM The curriculum of the future
78
Macro trends and curriculum
82
Connecting organic knowledge networks
88
34
Building curriculum that responds to the real world
94
40
Shared tasks across disciplines
100
Possible future of Design Institutions
12
Globalized world - crisis, change & alternatives
20
Emerging models of social grouping
26
Emergence of new work Culture Role of the educator?
chapter 2 - PEDAGOGY
c h a p t e r 4 - L E A R N E R
Pedagogy of the future
48
The learners of the future
108
Institutions for a sustainable world
52
Learner as a social citizen
112
Learner-driven pedagogy
58
Open source institution
118
Educator as an activist
64
New inspirations & challenges
124
Impact of Macro Trends
70
Professional of tomorrow
130
Introduction
Message from CEO
O
P
development. Today change tends to oust continuity and stability and
employability; catering to the needs of the design, fashion, business and retail
ne of the defining features of today’s life, and increasingly of the
future, is the accelerated pace of change. Our world never stands
still. Its swift changeability has turned into a consistent feature of global one needs to constantly work at keeping ahead or even abreast.
In this changing world, educators have to constantly achieve new ways to transform their role for relevance and maximum impact. As design educators we work in the realm of great possibility. Today, we not only
develop and empower design professionals, we additionally lend the principles and systems of design and design thinking to other verticals in education.
earl Academy is the premium design education institute in India. Since its inception in 1993, the academy has evolved into a globally
renowned institution of higher learning with a focus on entrepreneurship and sectors. However after completing over two decades of empowering creative minds we are posed with challenges about the future and our role in it as a quality higher education provider. Some of the questions posed to us were; > How to deal with the macro trends currently sweeping the education and the professional landscape? > Who are the learners of the future, what will be the impact they will have on
This book is a result of research, discussion, play, argument and
viewpoints originating from the confluence – What’s Next in Design Education. Global educators, design professionals, thought leaders
and students have put their thoughts together to develop direction. A special mention to two people without who’s passion and leadership this would not have been possible. Late, Professor M.P Ranjan, the
man behind the concept of the world cafe confluence on the Future
of Design Education. Late, Professor M.P Ranjan was our guide, friend and mentor. The “What’s next” series of events was the brain child of Mr Sharad Mehra, the former CEO of Pearl Academy. It was his endeavour
to explore the challenges, roadblocks and opportunities that lay in
the future of various disciplnes such as fashion, creative business, communication and design to provide insights about these industries
in order for the professionals and learners of today to solve problems of tomorrow.
our curriculum, pedagogy and the design academy of the future? > The world has seen crisis, war, floods, violence against women etc. What role can a designer play to create a resilient society? With the introduction of its new derivatives such as Design thinking, Speculative design, Social design and Design for social innovation, the classic modern design has evolved into a holistic discipline. For all the growth Design as a discipline has made, today’s world faces a major crisis such as climate change and are Designers responsible for this? The confluence has tried to address issues such as reimagining consumerism for sustainability and ways in which design can slow this ecological crisis. It also explores the potential value of making sustainability key in design system or design language and reassesses the role Design will play in this globalized world. This also provides opportunities for India, to evolve from an agrarian economy of the 80’s to a responsible digital economy by using social groups effectively, decentralizing
The intent is to imagine, share and prepare design educators
for tomorrow’s students, tomorrow’s learning environments and tomorrow’s world.
Nandita Abraham
designs and embracing our roots, heritage & craftsmen to create an indigenous consumer.
The future will witness the emergence of a new work culture of sustainable
With the advent of technology, the new-age learner or Millennials
development, where people are connected to each other and are not used
want
as utilities. The future of work will be led by connections and interactions
constraints. They are demanding, confident, connected and open to
where people will work as partners towards a common goal. A designer has
change. The curriculum of the future needs to integrate knowledge
the power to think differently and bring new things to the table to create
along with skills and attitude. This needs to be supported by a learning
sustainable lives.
environment comprising of teachers, domain experts, mentors and
According to Cisco the internet traffic is expected to reach one Zettabyte (one trillion GB) by 2016. Four billion people will be digitally connected. The world is in the cusp of a digital revolution. The learner of tomorrow will have access to all the information s/he needs. How will this impact the role of the educator? It’s possible that the educator of today, who as a source of information may become redundant. The role of the educator of tomorrow will be that of a facilitator with in a framework of design teaching and nurturing students to assess information and assimilate knowledge. The educator of tomorrow has multiple roles to play, varying from one of an instructor, participant, role model and researcher in an interactive structure which ensures greater amount of learning. The academic institutions in this dynamic environment of education are constantly metamorphosing in their roles and context. Design institutions are integrating and emphasizing on cross domain disciplines such as business, technology and social sciences. We are also witnessing a similar trend of B-schools and technology institutes embracing D-schools. This cross pollination of different domains has also observed a change in the pedagogy. Our classrooms are transitioning from the traditional face-to-face and instructional mode to an amalgamation of online, blended, flip, gamification and problem based learning techniques. The need for creating institutes with global value systems, endorsing sustainability principles and learner driven pedagogy has become paramount.
learning to go beyond class-rooms, rigid content and time
coach. The future curriculum should prepare the learner to be agile, in order to navigate the volatile and complex world, while leveraging the synergies of a connected globe. The curriculums of the future must break disciplinary monologues and be transient, dynamic and delicate while connecting the organic knowledge networks. According to Thomas Frey, “60% of the jobs 10 years from now haven’t been invented yet. Every job that exists today will morph and change with the impact of technology and improved communication systems.” As educators we are preparing our learners of the future to face and thrive in this fast changing and rapidly developing markets. The learner of the future needs to be a well-rounded individual who is globally aware, with digital prowess, intercultural sensitivity, adopts continuous learning, multi-skilled and multi-disciplinary. The education institutes of the future have to deviate from its traditional roots and must embrace technology, new pedagogy, new curriculum and many of them will be solely accessible online or become open sourced institutions. They are also tasked with the responsibility of creating a learner who is a social citizen. This is an opportunity for design educator to act as an activist and along with the learners re-invent education to solve the problems of the future rather than create them.
Thoughts on trends
>possible future of design institutions >Globalized World - Crisis, Change & Alternatives >Emerging Models of Social Grouping >Emergence of New Work Culture >Role of the Educator?
chapter 1
Possible future of design institutions
D
esign is ubiquitous. If you live in a city, you cannot exist without getting impacted by the power of Design. There is no escape from Design anymore. Everything around us is designed. By the virtue of its omnipresence Design has come to occupy a very critical place in our lives. Design claims to make our life easier and solve our problems. Design as a ‘problem solving’ is known about in every modern design school. However, in the last few years this role of design is being unsympathetically examined and contested. In today’s world flooded with crises of all kinds- ecological, political & financial, design has often been summoned not as a saviour but as the cause of the problem. Design today is a key ingredient in the neo-liberal economic ideal and helps superlatively in stimulating limitless consumption. Design is the modus operandi of the current system which is always at the brink of a financial & ecological tragedy. Designers have realised the problem. As a result newer more evolved meanings of design have emerged. Almost all top design schools in the world have a relatively new ‘Social Design’ program which incorporated learning and methods from the Social sciences and attempts to understand users in more intricate and comprehensive ways. Design has advanced a great deal from its active
14 what’s next future of design education
possible future of design institutions 15
chapter 1
self-criticism in the past few years and has now grown into a mature discipline that is often seen as a third spoke in Science, Arts and Design triad. Design has borrowed a lot from science and arts and has now evolved into a more holistic discipline. It has left behind its status of being the linchpin of the profit yearning capitalist. While problem solving remains a focus there is a certain complexity that has emerged within it. Human centrered Design, using data analytics within Design are some such instances. Apart from the problem solving strand there is another parallel strand namely ‘Design as polemics’. The polemical strand within Design is concerned primarily with articulating and understanding the complexity of the problems we face in our contemporary lives. Dunne and Raby’s Critical Design is an affirmative example of this tendency . Design Thinking, Speculative Design, Social Design, Contextual Design, Critical Design, Design for Social Innovation, Transition Design are some of the recent derivatives of the classic modern design. Design has emancipated and now is a responsible and holistic discipline. Design today is interdisciplinary and has taken a definitive social turn. John Thackara in his presentation talks about the energy crises that looms large on our heads, our unsustainable feverish cities and their fast approaching doom. He has highlighted the various imbalances in the world and urges us to take cognizance of the ecological crises that 16 what’s next future of design education
is definitely already here. He acknowledges the class inequalities that still exist in our contemporary world and hints at possible catastrophic outcomes of the discontent that grows therein. He illustrates how this epoch of financial capitalism is inherently far too risky and unstable and certainly cannot be the modus operandi in the near future. He asks us to reconsider the notion of big cities and reminds us that most of the human history has been sustainable, leaving the brief period of the past few hundred years. He also renders the neoliberal promise of infinite growth on a finite planet as thoughtless and reckless. He then challenges us to imagine a new narrative for our future cities. He proposes a cosmopolitan localism,
possible future of design institutions 17
chapter 1
Design has now grown into a mature discipline that is often seen as a third spoke in Sciences, Arts and Design triad.
The sustainable future of our world will be commons oriented. Building, supporting and sustaining many forms of shared resource pools such as local, global, digital and physical will emerge as a role for the future designer. Designers will not stop at making a product but will imagine new communities and tribes in a sustainable future. Multi-disciplinarily collaborations and systems thinking could be useful tools for such designers.
Late, Professor M.P Ranjan in world cafe table discussion
reverence for nature and soil and a direct connection with food and water. He asks us to consider ‘the un-scalable’ as the building block of the new paradigm. This would imply thinking about ‘place’ as the given condition upon which a culture could be built or designed. He illustrates the importance of drawing connections, building communities and learning from each other. 18 what’s next future of design education
Self-organized networks will replace hierarchical institutions and peer-to-peer networks will emerge within local economies. Knowledge will be distributed and not concentrated; this will radically change the role of the teacher. Institutions of the future will be mission driven social ventures and will be found on principles of shared identities and co-responsibility. The design academy of the future might not have a heavy epic institutionalism but a small and elegant flexible modularity. It will be connected globally but will tessellate within the local context seamlessly.
possible future of design institutions 19
This book is dedicated to our beloved Late, Professor. M.P Ranjan
summary
Design has now evolved into a more holistic discipline. It has borrowed a lot from arts and science and left behind its old status of “just being about aesthetics.� Design can now be used to understand and solve problems and help in achieving a sustainable ecosystem.
possible future of design institutions 21
chapter 1
globalized world crisis, changes & alternatives “ When asked if I am pessimistic or optimistic about the future, my
answer is always the same: if you look at the science about what is happening on earth and aren’t pessimistic, you don’t understand the data. But if you meet the people who are working to restore
this earth and the lives of the poor, and you aren’t optimistic, you haven’t got a pulse.” - Martin Keogh
The climate crisis : are designers responsible? Can consumerism be re-imagined/ redesigned for sustainability? How effectively does design or design education negotiate with economy, society, technology and environment to have a sustainable impact? How can design slow down ecological crisis? Such barrage of questions makes me sit up and think seriously about the challenges we are facing today. In this article I will attempt to answer some of them. So what’s next? The future of design education as John Thackara rather likes to call it – is the driver of change that ties up with the other parts which is the learners methodology and the curriculum. There are two subjects John Thackara has touched upon. One is how design philosophy or design education would contribute towards reimagining a sustainable world? 22 what’s next future of design education
Vikas Satwalekar presenting at what’s next confluence
Should we make sustainability a key in design system or design language? And two, how do we look at design and how does design contribute to the globalized world? Globalisation has both positive and negative perspectives. Ideally, It should contribute towards a sustainable world but has proved to be disastrous in many ways. For example the fashion industry is the globalized world 23
chapter 1
second most polluting industry after Petroleum. Infact the developing countries are bearing the brunt of fashion’s ugly side. Naturally the key question then is – How does the future of design education embrace sustainability? How is fashion education evolving? According to experts in the panel, fashion education in India has created an international benchmark for itself. However, it needs to develop its own strengths and move faster towards making the Indian fashion education focused toward its inherent domestic strengths, crafts and textiles, which incidentally have survived for centuries because of their sustainable practices. Another panelist remarked, “We, as Indians, lack the understanding required to appreciate our own strengths because of our colonial and feudal hangover. Now more than ever, there is a need for the Indian youth (young designers) to reconnect with its rich heritage before it is all lost. This reconnection and rediscovery of our culture is of paramount important because design emerges and proliferates from there.” Thus, the design curriculum will also have to evolve to enable the young designers to reconnect with culture and heritage. The challenge here is that while on one hand we have to continue to strive in the globalized world, how can we take a strong stand together to not lose our identity. In that context, teaching design with local techniques, knowledge systems and local contexts would be relevant internationally too and stay unique. The first step towards that is to look at globalization from a different context. We should look at globalization as a 24 what’s next future of design education
way of exchanging experiences, knowledge and a robust value-based system with sustainability at its core. When we talk about the globalised world, are we considering issues of inclusion or reaffirming and propagating social exclusion? This is an international challenge because the globalised world we are in today is predominantly the capitalist world. Therefore, global design is strongly influenced by capitalist venture and this also has an impact when curricula is created. It certainly should not be homogenous. And heterogeneity should be a foremost premise for creating curricula, which means global approach with local inputs. What is pure design? There is a consensus that pure design is deeply influenced by global culture. Globalisation with all its dichotomy and complexity need not be feared, but understood better and embraced at the same time ensuring that we don’t ignore local inputs and our heritage. Sustainability therefore should become the core value around which design education needs to be woven. Curriculum should instigate and motivate future designers (or rather the entire community of designers) to stop accepting processes, as they are. It should give them the design confidence to impart radical solutions and practices to reduce the carbon footprint. It is important to note that design creates industry and industry sustains design. Therefore, if academicians make this effort to revamp the design curricula, sustainability will become the pillar of strength. Effective design curriculum would clearly set the path for a globalized world sans crisis and catapults India to a leadership position.
globalized world 25
chapter 1
Cue Questions
Q1. Climate Crisis. Are Designers responsible? Q2. How is
Consumerism being re-imagined for
Sustainability? Q3. How - Economy, society, technology and environment negotiate necessary “trade-offs”? Q4. How can design slow-down ecological crisis?
summary
Globalisation has it’s share of pros and cons. To make the most of it design education needs to put sustainability at the centre of the curriculum and focus locally. The definition of globalisation has to change. We should look at globalization as a way of exchanging experiences, knowledge and a more strong value based system.
26 what’s next future of design education
globalized world 27
chapter 1
Emerging models of social grouping
I
n the traditional Indian historical context, we have tended to think of social groupings in terms of the ancient caste system, in which only Brahmins were educated. Entire populations were not given the benefit of formal education because the family into which they were born. However, in the 21st century where only remnants of the caste system remain, when we think of social groupings for access to education, it is access to technology that has become the great divider. Society has increasingly become separated into digitals and non-digitals, and those that have been able to embrace technology have benefitted, by and large. So, while we have generally moved away from preset social groupings, the tendency now is for various individuals to form groups, clustered not by geography or ethnicity, but similar interests or skillsets. And this realignment is not fixed, but flexible, and constantly changing. How do we leverage this new technological arrangement of social groupings? Can the boundary that defines the group become an educational tool? Can the realignment of the group itself become a vehicle of learning? As academicians and teachers, we are catalysts that help industry to create and respond to desire in the consumer’s mind. It is thus our responsibility to embed social and
28 what’s next future of design education
ecological components into our educational structure and content. For example, cities such as Mumbai and Delhi are plagued with problems arising from over-population. Pollution and garbage levels are increasing while available resources are diminishing. India’s urban population is slated to increase 30% by 2025. Currently, India is the most urbanized large country in the world where much of the rural population has shifted to urban areas. It is time to control this shift and the panel unanimously stated that
emerging models of social grouping 29
chapter 1
this could be possible, predominantly through academic and curricular interventions. So as educators and designers, can we decentralize design? Can we drive the education system so that learning can come from villages, where technology has yet to flourish? If we accept and follow Prime Minister Modi’s initiative of ‘Make in India’, it is imperative to find indigenous ways of doing things with the hands. We should draw inspiration from our cultural and artisanal roots and look at India as a creation and consumption hub. One may consider that no craft is ultimately useful if it doesn’t employ or empower people. But are we actually crossing social lines and empowering people if we give the artisan only 2% of the value that has been generated by the craft, and retain the rest? A woman who weaves beautiful textiles may not be able to wear a beautiful saree. The irony is that such weavers create timeless creations but cannot afford them for their own use. Their wages are low and therefore survival is a struggle. But if artisans are empowered to be part of the mainstream design industry, they would earn more and live a better life. Decentralization of design is not just about production. For example, there is a Pantaloons store in Mumbai and another in Kanpur. What is the USP of a Pantaloons in Kanpur? Very little, if anything. We find the same collections and the same products in Mumbai. However, is it possible that the products in the Kanpur store are inspired by regional and local crafts?
30 what’s next future of design education
Design curricula includes business thinking, but social thinking also needs to be integrated. When we think of taking vacation, we might think on the lines of a design vacation. Since a majority of students and professionals prefer not to work and live in rural sectors, design institutes could instead organize Public Design Centers in villages. It was observed in discussion that a particular kind of specialization tends to become a social group. But the future will be characterized by cross specializations, or by an individual being a vertical specialist in one group and a generalist in another. These are the kind of groups that will co-create, collaborate, and create value for the future. The future of design education is in interdisciplinary learning. As mentioned earlier, traditional social groups are characterized by strict social structures and hierarchies. Breaking hierarchies can free up knowledge and information for accessibility by all. Providing more flexibility can give way to more social mobility. The resultant permeability may lead to dilution, but it will also open the door to change. Our culture is embracing globalization, so we should think how to develop ourselves so that social groupings become more relevant to a global citizen. John Thackara started his presentation stating that “realigning social groups are the drivers of exchange, bringing out the uniqueness of that craft.” So the social groupings can be a tool of bringing out the uniqueness emerging models of social grouping 31
chapter 1
of a craft, and solidifying its identity so that there is no incentive to replicate it. If we can influence the global narrative by embedding our own dialect into it, it could create strategic leverage and thereby embed a value for design.
32 what’s next future of design education
emerging models of social grouping 33
chapter 1
Cue Questions
Q1. Are Designers responsible for the economic crisis? Q2.
Is the global economic crisis fueling
sustainable alternatives? Q3. How can design enhance the value of the enterprise and make a difference on the bottom line? How Design pays off? Q4. How can economic drivers be part of the curriculum? Q5. How can design shape economic value? Q6.How can we integrate design into business
summary
The design education landscape has to undergo change and decentralization of designs would be or rather should be the focal point. Different specializations should form different “social groupings” where individuals can collaborate, have conventions and learn from each other.
thinking?
34 what’s next future of design education
social grouping 35
chapter 1
Emergence of new work culture
T
o some extent, traditional work environments have been characterized by strict hierarchies, enclosed silos, and linearity in communication, processes, and decision-making. Increasingly complex economies on a global scale have forced us to re-evaluate working environments, wherein there is the ability to adapt to uncertainty as well as diversity of perspectives. Topdown hierarchical structures have found it difficult to adapt to these complexities without a major change in organizational thinking, usually accompanied by major changes in work cultures. How the academic community subsequently prepares graduates for this new work culture is up for debate, but certain strategies are emerging and clarifying in today’s climate. The first element of change is a move away from pyramidal and silo-based organizational structures that promote linear decision-making. Hierarchies are becoming more loosely defined, with team members taking on less specialized roles. Rather, individuals are hired for core competencies, but are expected to branch out into “stretch” roles, often tangentially related to their 36 what’s next future of design education
own expertize. Graduates are hired less for their extensive knowledge base, and more for their ability to adapt and take on roles horizontally in their organization. Even reporting hierarchies have become more complex, with multiple solid-line and dotted-line reporting pathways. For designers, this is a reversal of a trend toward specialization which emerged in the latter part of the twentieth century. work culture 37
chapter 1
In some ways, we’ve gone back to the age of the Master Designer, who had a core discipline, but had the flexibility to flow into other disciplinary areas with some ease. To some extent, technology has been the equalizer that has facilitated this, allowing designers to quickly learn tools that otherwise would have required years or decades of learning and apprenticeship. An architect, for example, by necessity needs to know Photoshop and Illustrator, long held as the primary tools of the graphic designers. This facility with new technological tools allows the architect to “dabble”, if not completely immerse himself or herself in graphic design as a profession. This also reflects the desire of modern professionals to do work according to their own varying and changing inclinations. Work cultures of today are also becoming more valuebased. What this means is that organizations traditionally designed their structures and policies around singular organizational goals, with certain values perhaps inherently part of the organizational culture, whereas work environments now attempt to take on more societydriven initiatives. Almost every corporate body has some sort of CSR function in place, and increasingly, work environments are designed to be sustainable, with minimal impact to ecosystems. ‘B-corps’ or ‘benefit corporations’ are a new legal entity designed to merge goals of profitability with social good. In order to deal with both local and global crises – social, political, environmental – organizations have instilled values into all aspects of work culture. Moreover, a sensitivity to personal and family values has pervaded work cultures, 38 what’s next future of design education
not only allowing for individual inclinations, as stated above, but to accommodate different lifestyles and orientations. Design educators, with focus on humancentered systems, have always been sensitive to userbased demands, but the design academy is far more user-oriented today than in the recent past. Values have always driven design, but the scope has broadened with globalization. Collaboration is also a major driver in design-based work cultures, and increasingly in other work cultures, as well. Horizontal hierarchies, variable team-based groupings, and non-linear decision making processes help to diversify inputs as well as outcomes. Long a hallmark of design education, collaborative and project-based approaches have become more and more a part of the ways of working in all disciplines. What is changing, however, is the nature and scope of collaboration. Globalization and trans-oceanic teams have created round-the-clock work schedules, with no specific “closure” of working days. This requires educators to train students to collaborate in non-traditional ways, overcoming distances, languages, cultures, and even time itself to take advantage of global resources. The ongoing changes to work cultures and working environments is indicative of a move to create more adaptive and resilient organizations, no longer bound by geography or language. While this has the tendency to erase local paradigms and cultural mores and to result in homogeneity, it also allows small players to tap into resources previously available only to massive work culture 39
chapter 1
organizations, thereby allowing for faster growth. Design education, already well-equipped for collaborative, nonlinear processes, must now respond to rapidly changing modes of communication and production without losing sight of local paradigms rooted in local culture.
Cue Questions
Q1. The world has seen crisis – wars, terrorism, refugees, flood affected, crime against women, khap panchayat, and
summary
The new ‘work’ culture has to be one that shifts from being all about individuals to the one where a strong value based system motivates people to work towards a common goal.
apartheid. What role can design play to create a resilient society? Q2. What will be the work culture of the future? Will the way designers work today, change? How?
40 what’s next future of design education
work culture 41
chapter 1
Role of the educator
T
he role of an educator varies across the world, as cultural habits and values are unique to each country. What remains common, however, is the basic tenet to not assume their students’ aspirations, opinions and needs. It is often assumed that students of today are not curious. However, various studies and research have observed that the amount of time spent on the internet by students is constantly increasing. This tendency to explore, also reflects the innate curiosity within each of them. It is assumed they do not value research, but it is also true that hours of research now go into making everyday purchases – from the best shoes to the latest phones. The question to ask here is, is that information or knowledge? Educators of today are able to impart information, but does that convert into knowledge? Students today have been noted to put in more effort where they know that there is something at stake, and educators must adapt accordingly by making their curriculum more practical and knowledge-based. They must teach students the methods to assess the information (now available to them from various sources, both online and offline) and learn to correlate things. The role of an educator has transformed into being that of a facilitator and, within the framework of design teaching, an educator is also someone who nurtures creativity. 42 what’s next future of design education
The role of an educator as someone who nurtures, rather than someone who is necessarily already an expert and makes assumptions about their students.
Responsibility is a word that plays a very important role in education. While some years ago, educators were expected to simply impart information to a class full of students, they now have multiple roles to play – they are instructors as well as participants. However, this kind of interactive teaching comes with its own set of problems.
role of the educator 43
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There is often the fear that absolving students from taking responsibility from their individual work will hamper their ability to think for themselves in the future. The questions they face in the classroom today will not be the questions they face when they start working. And unless they have the were withall to evaluate or address their problems, it is quite possible that those going out into the world will be a group of individuals with a potentially dated skill set. Hence, the nature of the problem is arising from two perspectives – that of the educators’ and that of a student. There is a huge gap between the two worlds, and they are not aware of the others’ thought process. It is because of this gap that there is often a delay in recognizing a student’s abilities, or the educators’ ability to give opportunities where the students’ abilities can be
44 what’s next future of design education
Table discussions at the what’s next world cafe confluence
recognized. How far we are able to bridge that gap as educators and devise a mechanism to address it remains to be seen. Students can be taught when educators take an interest in them and are able to assess their talents individually. It is important to become relatable to students these days to be able to teach them effectively. Once students understand what their professors are trying to tell them, they shed their cynicism and become contributing members of the education system.
role of the educator 45
chapter 1
Cue Questions
summary
Q1. How has the networked global village impacted the world of design? Q2. How is ‘democratisation of knowledge’ impacting learning?
Modern day education needs to move Q3. Anti-globalisation movements. Role of technologies in organising these movements as grassroots movements? Q4. Can we conceptualise a design institution that is self organized, accessible, democratic and sustainable? Q5. The impact of technology on
away from their pre-conceived notions about students. Educators should keep in mind that their efforts should not propogate rote learning in any way, rather they should nurture students on their approach towards learning. In
multidisciplinarity in shaping design
other words students today should know
education. Are design disciplines re-
“how to learn?”
organising? Q6. Digital natives and Digital immigrants (Prensky,2001). For the first time digital natives will become educators and will teach digital natives. How should they harness this strength /opportunity and what should be their newer challenges?
46 what’s next future of design education
role of the educator 47
Thoughts on pedagogy
>Pedagogy of the Future >Institutions for a Sustainable World >Learnerdriven Pedagogy >Educator as an Activist Skills or Ideology? >Impact of Macro Trends
chapter 3
PEDAGOGY OF THE FUTURE
A
ll educational institutions around the world are pondering the question of how teaching and learning is to be designed and managed in the short term and long term. Developing countries such as India are struggling between following western paradigms and extrapolating local and regional contexts towards new futures. The common ground is uncertainty, and there are numerous suggestions and strategies for navigating the uncertainties and reconsidering them as opportunities. The conference discussions under the theme of “Pedagogy of the future” were subcategorized into four broad viewpoints: (1) Institutions for a sustainable world; (2) Learner driven pedagogy; (3) Educator as an activist; and (4) Impact of macro trends. Sustainability has been used to describe various strategies aside from education; in context of the first sub-theme, the focus is on pedagogical practices that can carry the dual burden of adaptibility to change, and rising demand for education with limited available resources. The rising costs of education have forced institutions worldwide to look at technology as a means to provide education to vast quantities of people while maintaining academic and intellectual quality. Online learning, distance learning, and other modes of virtual learning environments have disrupted traditional pedagogies and have forced educators to rethink the tools, medium, and delivery of education. Design education in particular has had the most difficulty adapting to this change as it has traditionally been characterised by face-to-face, one-on-one, practical learning. Design Thinking – itself a disruptive paradigm – is faced with disruptive influences more so than ever before.
50 what’s next future of design education
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chapter 2
One of the main disruptions has been refocusing from teacher driven pedagogy to learner-driven pedagogy, the subject of the second sub-theme. What has become clear in the past two decades is the need to be adaptable to new generational behaviors. To an extent, design education has traditionally been ahead of the curve with respect to learner driven education, as the primary vehicle for design education is practical, individualised, project-based learning. Even so, there can be inherent biases and tendencies to teach as one has been taught, and a hesitation to adapt to generational change. While other disciplines have themselves adopted Design Thinking principles to their own educational modes, design education itself coming to grips with moving away from the top-down, expert-oriented studio system to a new bottom-up paradigm that allows the learner to shape and navigate their own learning in ways that have never been available in times past. In the past, there has been varied approaches to education as activism; it is not always a welcome approach, depending on the sociocultural context. In the third subtheme – educator as an activist – we think about how activism in education can be disruptive without necessarily be controversial. There is a view that misguided or incompatible education has, in some ways, done harm to society, particularly in terms of industryoriented education that leads to over-consumption. Given the uncertainties ahead of us, can educators be activists in a way that promotes sustainable social growth? Can pedagogy be formulated to prioritise gains
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that go beyond capitalistic enterprise? There may be a need to think beyond education for industry and explore education for life. The fourth sub-theme – impact of macro trends – explores this, in part. Indeed, there has been a strong tendency (especially in developing countries) to develop skills, and focus on short-term priorities for nation-building. However, in India for example, there seems to be a trend towards developing (redeveloping?) intellectual capacity and critical thinking, and away from simple employability. Current generations are also increasingly thinking of using their knowledge and skills for social enterprise, social change, and social impacts. Education must address this trend sooner rather than later. In addition, technology has forced the hand of educators, not just as a re-evaluation of tools, but teaching people how to navigate an increasingly techno-centric world. Finally, when looking at design education specifically, we’re looking at the profession of a designer as wider in scope and deeper in meaning. Designers are increasingly interdisciplinary and diverse in practice, and pedagogy must reflect that. So, the only certainty is uncertainty, and it has become clear that teaching and learning must become sustainable in a way that is adaptive, responsive, proactive, and relevant, especially to the changing demands of society, and the changing dynamics of generational behavior. Pedagogies will no doubt have to face this uncertainty in ways that are both positive and enriching to all stakeholders.
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Institutions for a sustainable world
I
n today’s world with the ever-changing, dynamic environment of education, the academic institutions are also constantly metamorphosing in their role and context. In order to adapt to changing times, the institutions are integrating different domain specializations within themselves. Design institutions are emphasizing more of business, technology, as well as social sciences; whereas technology institutes and business schools are looking at design, social sciences, and business. In order to capture and capitalize on the market force, many of the institutions are actually adopting or diversifying online courses. This gives the individual the ability of devising their-own course and curriculum, and an education, which is appending the type of formal education that one receives. This kind of maneuver increases the quality of the education for an individual. For enabling and reinforcing such practices, which enhance the student’s learning and experience, it becomes necessary that there is a conversion of institutions into a fully integrated-sustainable form which provides educational solutions to all. However, 54 what’s next future of design education
It is imperative that the thought process moves away from considering the institution as a physical entity to a virtual entity for having a sustainable institution.
there are many paradoxes attached to the same; for example, how to make the whole thing sustainable? And, what are the different educational models that are possible? Of all possibilities, it becomes evident that a single pedagogical identity will not work for creating a sustainable institution. It should be an amalgamation of online, offline, flipped classrooms, and probleminstitutions for a sustainable world 55
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based learning techniques, which are simultaneously embedded within a technological interface. For the institutions to become sustainable, they have to re-think and reframe the entire process. In doing so, it becomes imperative that the thought process moves away from considering the institution as a physical entity, to a virtual entity. The factors of sustainability should involve the vocational form of structured studying, Fee collection, usage of social media, and real-time communications, etc., for removing the hurdles of F2F interaction, reframing the delivery, and modeling course content. Moreover, there is always a constraint on physical resources and availability of facilities at every brick and mortar setup. Therefore, sharing of the resources on a global scale can be done and via a global platform for networks of shared-labs and technology, which can profoundly affect the quality of education and enhance the learner’s experience. The need for placing more emphasis on a common global value system of sustainability, not just from an industry perspective, is most paramount; the institutions of the future have to be relevant and without boundaries. They have to imbibe social, political & cultural perspectives. The core values that will address the challenging questions of the dynamics of customer and student and their requirements, are the actual focal points that will provide us the inspiration to structure and align sustainable practices in our institutions.
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institutions for a sustainable world 57
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. Can we imagine a design institution that has sustainability at its core value? Q2. How could today’s teachers adapt to this sustainable institute and what should be their profile? What will be their challenges? Q3. What will be the role of the educators in sustainable institutions? What will be defined as sustainable academic processes? Q4.What cultural values will sustainable institutions stand for? Q5. What will be the role of the learner and challenges s/he will face through sustainable processes?
The design education landscape is evolving . The student needs a certain kind of flexibility when it comes to deciding their portfolio of subjects/ areas that they want to be exposed to. Institutions need to be open about embracing technology in order to deliver value to students.
Q6. How will design negotiate the binaries of global and local? Q7. What do we envision technology’s role to be in the institution for a sustainable world?
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institutions for a sustainable world 59
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Learner Driven Pedagogy
L
earner driven pedagogy is a macro level question. The current structure of the academic institution enables this belief to be inserted, practiced, and understood in bits and pieces. It’s not a fundamental re-thinking on how the relationship between the student and teacher, student and institution, institution and teacher, is. It is modular between these frameworks. It is the faculty who decide the curriculum by deciding what will be taught and how it will be structured. Academic delivery and not pedagogy, is generally considered to be learner driven, as the learner creates an impact on the method and content of delivery, creating a feedback loop between the academic systems. The processes of curriculum development and delivery are transparent. But, in deriving an exact and critiqued feedback of the curriculum, we must provide the necessary impetus for the development of pedagogy. The learner driven pedagogy has a multifaceted structure which integrates multiple hypotheses and their various permutations. In some hypotheses, the teacher acts only as a facilitator or moderator in setting a course of action, as the learning is achieved by execution of a first-hand experience. The concept of self-led education comes into force only after certain key questions relating
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to motivation, mental maturity, and ownership of selflearning are addressed. Throughout their academic journeys, students are not encouraged to question their results, nor critique their deductive processes - the realization of how one learns and the comprehension of skills being learnt - comes through peer evaluation and comparative analysis. Also, the interest and passion for learning is kindled if they have an opportunity to select the subject of their choice and the flexibility of the curriculum. If there are student bodies within institutions that have the capacity to activate other areas of interest, it tends to be outside the ambit of the curriculum. The most independent way of learning - and to develop
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role, working on a program with a clearly defined scope or project brief. Second, the teacher, functioning as a free agent, builds-up the student’s capacity to self-learn through the master-apprentice dialectic.
a pedagogy in a learner-friendly manner--is to instil the student with some sort-of experience, practice or understanding, which accommodates divergent thinking, preceding exposure to a concept representative of any type-of expectation. However, the main question is: are institutions equipped to do that? How is the learnerled pedagogy, different from an independent study programme? And, Is there a necessity in adopting it early on, in design education? The general consensus is, instead of a focus on foundation courses, which deliver a bouquet of skills, should the emphasis not be on a discovery process? There are two scenarios that can emerge. One, a peer learning work group with inclusive mentoring
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Helping the students to become capacity-builders themselves can change the path towards self-learning methodology. Although, the situation, is realistically more dependent on an external catalyst, such as a mentor, to define what kind of capacity they can work on, as they become capacity builders. This allows them to function as their own catalyst, and faculty functioning simply as facilitators. The learning then becomes situational, where students are left at different places, to observe, to see, to experience the various problems people are facing. They can carry this experience into groups of their peers, where they decide, amongst themselves, how a change may re-organize the situation, and introduce a solution. The gratification is immediate, and they are able to recognize, within themselves, the satisfaction of success in the role of a real-world solution-maker, rather than an in the classroom with a simulated design brief. Finally, vertical and horizontal knowledge sharing is endemic to this system of self-learning, and beyond the expectation of the syllabus. This encourages responsibility, empathy, curiosity, imagination, choice, ownership, and growth. These factors develop the central tenets for learner-led pedagogy; embodying the mechanics for feedback, academic planning and curricular development, affording students to impact pedagogy, as well as, how and what we teach. learner driven pedagogy 63
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. What if the students decided everything in a design institution? Q2.How could today’s teachers adapt to this student-driven institute and what should be their profile? What will be their challenges? Q3. What cultural values will this electivedriven institute stand for? Q4. What will be the role of the educators in such a learner-driven institution? Q5. How will such a student-driven institute negotiate the global and local binaries? Q6. How will elective-driven institute articulate community?
The design education landscape is evolving . The student needs a certain kind of flexibility when it comes to deciding their portfolio of subjects and disciplines that they want to be exposed to. Institutions need to be open about embracing technology in order to deliver value to students.
Q7. What do we envision technology’s role to be in the cross-disciplinary institution for a sustainable world?
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Design educator as an activist
O
ur future is uncertain. We could conduct a comprehensive exercise in forecasting the future and yet not be definite about how our future will present itself. To add to this, today we live in a world overwhelmed by crises and instability. The bearings of the anthropocene are being witnessed at a global scale. Inequity is at its highest, austerity is being salted in wounds of dysfunctional organs of the world economy, discontents and protests mark every corner of the globe, farmer loans and so called advances in agricultural sciences are resulting in farmer suicides while crops continue to fail year on year in many parts of the world and our cities are increasingly becoming unlivable. What was promised to us yesterday as elucidations for a utopian tomorrow, have turned out to be untrue. Our future is tarnished and has no clarity. Education is in some way responsible for the ill health of our age. We should have been better educated about the effects of our human centric actions and retribution that would follow. Design education has a more specific blame to share. Why did it not teach its learners (in a more undisputable way) about the ecological impact of overconsumption? Design education was in the least ignorant and myopic if not a crafty conspirator of the crises itself.
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Educators along with the learners can now re-invent education as an instrumental tool for direct action.
Today we cannot be sure about what to teach except a healthy scepticism about design itself. The world of tomorrow will be unrecognizable. The skillsets of tomorrow
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are inconceivable. The role of a teacher living through these times is to inspire criticality and independent thinking so that the designer of the future can see through the smog. It is clear that if we continue to make designers for the current system it will not help the situation at all. The new breed of designer has the epic task to rescue the world from its many crises. In this situation role of the design educator is very vital. The educator has to first identify the core of problems we face today and internalise the intensity of their impending outcomes. Then they must adopt a sense of urgency within them about their role in articulating the aesthetics of design as a rescue operation or disaster management. They certainly must abandon any such ideal of design education that could result in mindless over-consumption. The educator has to then work along with the future generation and create a pedagogy that will make designing safe for tomorrow. Educators along with the learners can now re-invent education as an instrumental tool for direct action. They can move across disciplines and address larger issues that affect them directly. They can now question everything and propose radical new ways of thinking. This is the emancipatory promise of design education today. Education is ready to change gears from being an incubatory labour grooming space sponsored by tax money or industrial patrons. Today a large part of design education is being increasingly funded by loans or personal savings. Therefore, education can step out of its 68 what’s next future of design education
industrial context and work within a larger, more general context. This education is responsible to ethically enable individual learners to achieve whatever they might find meaningful. Its disposition in the service for the industry is now only an alibi to justify high fee against which students are promised a job in the industry. But this does not account for the potential value that designers might bring, if they are able to think independently of the context limited to that of industry and their intention to make profits. The next generation of designers might be worth a lot more. Today design education has the potential to lead the world into a better, more sustainable industrial paradigm. It has to become a space that looks at preparing the learner not for a specific industrial context but for the conditions of life itself, of their ethical and responsible becoming in the future. The place where design education would play out as a profession i.e. industry can now be replaced by life at large. Problems of life, such as mass urbanization, lifestyle and health issues, agriculture, inequality of all kinds including those of wealth, caste and gender have all become the problems of design without necessarily being the problems of any industry. Life itself is the context and the outcome of education. In this way education makes life actionable and the urgent task of a responsible designer is to rescue the world from its crises. Design education makes life actionable. Learners and educators are energetic activists that could collectively lead us into a better future.
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. Is teaching a form of radical activism? Q2. What can we expect from such a socially aware educator? What would be some of the challenges the educator will take on? Q3. What cultural values will a socially aware institute stand for? Q4. What will be the role of the educators in a socially aware institution? Q5. What will be the role of the learner in a socially-aware institution? Q6. How will this socially active learner / institution negotiate the global and local
The role of an educator has always been a complex one, it has now evolved further to a certain extent. The educator needs to constantly learn about the changing face of design, so that the pedagogy of tomorrow ensures that design is understood and learnt the way it’s supposed to be.
binaries? Q7. How is the learner emerging as a productive force in social transformation?
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Impact of Macro Trends
T
oday’s system of education is a dynamic system of multiple drivers which constitute facets such as academic processes pertaining to curriculum content and assessments, academic quality and its enforcement, program or course promotions, resources and funding etc. In the domain of design education, the forerunner questions that arise are: How does the new social fabric value design discipline? What are the new emerging design disciplines? And how do the people in design disciplines negotiate global and local boundaries? What do we envision technologies’ role to be in an institute that propels design discipline for sustaining the world? While, there are a number of hypothesis which have tried to address these questions. The key trends of these hypothesis revolve around, employability and technology. However, these two trends may be detrimental to design pedagogy as it’s not just the economic indicators which are important. The environment and ecology which also includes social ecology is key. Worldwide, the entire
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Summarizing the discussion on impact of macro trends
Employability seems to be the sole driver of curriculum worldwide and therefore education is failing in producing a thinker or an intellectual or a good citizen. impact of macro trends 73
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Therefore, there is a need to reorient the major trends that impact design education, considering the emergence of trends, are they spontaneous, organic, evolutionary? or are they designed, completed & extrapolated? Then there are other trends which are forced, and this is where the business model comes in. There are certain models of economy which manipulate trends, which actually create an ‘inorganic’ trend and it forces people to follow a path, and designers often by virtue of their profession are forced to accept the trend even if it is not desired.
purpose of education is seen as employability, and therefore education is moving in direction of producing skilled people who fit like cogs in a wheel of industry or business. Employability seems to be the sole driver of the curriculum worldwide and therefore education is failing in producing a thinker or an intellectual or a good citizen. It is even more detrimental in design because a designer needs to be a thinker first and not necessarily a provider of product outcomes, because that’s what skills leads to. Secondly, the other global trend, which is excessive technology involvement, is impeding the power of the mind, to think.
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summary
Cue Questions
Q1. How is the new social fabric
Education today is driven at
impelling new design disciplines?
creating an individual who is
Q2. What are such new design disciplines emerging? Q3. How will an institute that propels new design disciplines negotiate the global and local binaries? Q4. What do we envision technology’s role to be in an institution that propels new design discipline for a sustainable world?
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ready for the job market. This model may not fit or work for a design student who needs to be a thinker first and immediate employability may not be
a priority. Students need
to choose their own path rather than be forced down one.
impact of macro trends 77
Thoughts on curriculum
>The Curriculum of the Future >Macro Trends And Curriculum >Connecting Organic Knowledge Networks >Building Curriculum that Responds to the Real World >Shared Tasks across Disciplines
chapter 3
generation
X
generation
y
Curriculum of the Future 80 What’s next future of design education
generation
z
C
urriculums are vital because they shape learning that has a life-long impact on individuals. Traditionally our curriculums are highly structured, predestined and created by academicians with little room of co-creation by the learners. The creator, deliverer and the user of curriculum are completely different players. Curriculums get designed by Generation X, delivered by Generation X faculty and learned by Generation Y today and Generation Z tomorrow. The time is ripe to blend silo-thinking curriculums and revolutionize them to become more responsive and real-time. Why? Because Generation Y and Z are set of two completely different learners The three features that are distinct about millennials are their confidence, connectedness and openness to change. School education, largely, has not changed to the advantage of millennials. They are already hooked to technology and classrooms would serve as coffins if teachers continue to be knowledge generators. Knowledge is the easiest to acquire, however skills and attitude acquisition is not as easy. Millennials want learning to go beyond the classroom. In fact, they want it to be omnipresent – thanks to technology, the enabler. The new-age learners want learning to go beyond the rigid content as well as the time constraint. They are demanding flexibility curriculum of the future 81
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of both time and space. Their open-minded framework is – “we don’t want to be confined inside the walls of an institution. For us institution can be an expansion of various environments”. It’s kind of comical, but true, that learners are learning at home and coming to the class to do their homework. The learner today is already engulfed with a lot of knowledge through various mediums. What they need is existential experience, out of the box, where they can go out and explore. When the students are more in sync with their environment, learning crosses all borders. The visual learning strategies bring a student closer to digesting knowledge and internalizing the value of what was learned. The most vital question that we need to ask therefore is – ‘how do we bring that experience in?’ Creative expressions need to be designed into the future curriculum. And this can be inculcated through multi-dimensional environments such as classrooms, open space, virtual, industry, design studio, research lab, etc. Such a matrix-learning environment needs to be supported by ecosystem of teachers, subject experts, mentors and sometimes, a coach. In fact, future curriculum seems to be one that is responsive to the learning ability of the student. A responsive curriculum adapts itself from session to session, person to person, culture to culture and perhaps demands more practical hours than theoretical hours. The future of curriculum lies in this kind of metamorphosis. There is an increase in depth of integration between 82 what’s next future of design education
Taking notes during table discussions
watertight compartments and so these places need to be explored more for institutions. The future curriculum should make learners agile to manage the volatile and complex changes in the world and leverage the synergies of a connected globe.
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Macro Trends and Curricuuum
the rigid content and beyond the time constraints we have. A student might like to learn beyond what is stipulated and sometimes less than that, but does the curriculum of the day have that flexibility?
L
earners of today are confident and inquisitive, they are open to change and they brazenly question the status quo. They are wrapped in a connected, highly wired and digitised cocoon that defines their own learning capacities. Emerging trends in technology, culture and prevalent views in society can influence the curriculum of the future.
The current curriculum structures are predefined by the academicians rather than the learners.
The curriculum needs to enhance the abilities & competencies of the learners of the future. The current curriculum structures are predefined by the academicians rather than the learners. While there has been a lot of emphasis or rather talk around the need to move curriculum out of the four walls of a classroom, there hasn’t been any major headway in this direction. Cognitive thinking & learning process is not immune to the sea of changes. An important aspect of learning as a process today is that applied learning, in some cases, has taken place without following the conventional norms of pedagogy. The hyper connected era has enabled the learners of today to choose their own time & pace to acquire the desired learning. As mentioned before, the curriculum is largely predefined by the academicians instead of the learners. The learners of today is still handheld a lot, as that has been the traditional way. The curriculum has to move beyond the classroom, beyond 84 what’s next future of design education
macro trends and curriculum 85
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Prof. MP. Ranjan
Important macro trends in Curriculum There are emerging trends in technology, culture, market and they should be fed into the education stream on a day to day basis. There has to be an alignment with online portals such as YouTube, TED Resources and other online media that discuss the best industry practises of design. Lectures could also be done on Facebook, chat forums or other discussion threads. If the modern day student is tech-savvy, then why not make the most of it and use technology to impart education. The impact of the macro trends on the curriculum of the future will BE
Summarizing table discussions on macro trends
>> Curriculum would promote blended learning & flipped classroom & pedagogical models to increasing student accessibility & facilitated asynchronous learning. >> The curriculum would focus on skill enhancing as main learning outcomes. >> Focus on developing moral and ethical ecosystem in students. >> Give preference to visual education and interface.
>> Curriculum would need to enable collaborative learning among students. 86 what’s next future of design education
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. Enlist areas that need design interventions for a sustainable world. Why? Q2. Can we conceptualise a curriculum that directly engages with real life problems / impact areas for a sustainable world? Q3. If we were to design a new curriculum that embodied sustainable processes and values, what would you propose as essential subject areas that it must cover? Q4. How do you imagine teacher-student relation to be in an institute where the design is a way of life for a sustainable world? Q5. What would be the success parameters of a curriculum that embodies areas that need design interventions? Q6. Can you imagine and illustrate instances of use of technology in ways that could enable delivery of a curriculum that encapsulates ‘design for
Curriculums are vital because they shape learning that has a life-long impact on individuals. Traditionally our curriculums were highly structured, predestined and created by academicians with little room for co-creation by the learners. The future curriculum should make learners agile to manage the volatile and complex changes in the world and leverage the synergies of
a connected globe.
sustainability’? Q7. What are the values that such a curriculum will instil in those who participate in a learning that promotes ‘design for sustainability?
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macro trends and curriculum 89
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Connecting the organic Knowledge networks
C
an we re-imagine the design academy as an organic network of diverse connections? Can we consider something non-architectural that is transient, dynamic and delicate? Can we imagine it emerging unhurriedly and sluggishly as a result of changes in its surrounding? Can we imagine it as a network of interdependent actors without the need of any centre? Can we imagine an academy rooted in the context of a place? Can it exist without an identity? Can it exist as a process of learning subsumed in life, without any abstract distance from the world? Can such an academy solve our complex problems? Can it’s institutionality be modest? Can we build an institution that will leave back a legacy? We must radically depart from the ways in which we imagine a design academy. If we continue to exist in the context we have inherited we might never be able to make a meaningful impact on our future. The context has changed. The world is crises ridden, climate is changing in ways we can’t fully grasp and the few hundred years in which we have become a fossil fuel burning animal, is approaching its natural end. So we must leave for a postanthropogenic future urgently. But how can we do that? How can we think of ourselves in newer ways? How can we
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imagine a post-individual world? We must lose ourselves within what is left outside of our influence and hide ourselves deep enough to resist self-destruction. How can we begin to depart from our tendency to imagine time at a human scale? How can we think of much longer and much shorter horizons? We have to learn to reinvent ourselves? Can we think of an institution in that future? Can we learn from more
intelligent species than us? Can we for instance learn from a forest? Can we think like a forest & build a dense web of interconnections with diverse species? Can design help us be an architect of symbiotic relationship with diverse species? Can that be the foundation of a design school? Can we learn for instance from mycelium and the internet of trees? Can we imagine a world that is not subjugated by humans? Can we reinvent design to exist in that world? Can we make closed loops through processes of design? Can we make the impact of our species through our designs invisible? Can a design academy be invisible, can
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its pedagogy be invisible? Can we think of design at the non-human scale? Can designers work with newer models of economics that do not generate value through a false promise of individual emancipation? Can we think of a form of Design that does not think of the human species in any special way? Can we think of designing within the economic paradigm that is not anthropocentric? Can we imagine a post-design world? Should we not make connections and think collectively about a post-design future? Should we not imagine alternatives? Should we not enact these alternatives in our labs? What would be the nature of knowledge that will teach us to exist symbiotically with nature? 92 what’s next future of design education
How can we begin to think about a world where Design can lead us into a sustainable future? What could be the design pedagogy of sustainable coexistence? Can we make our impact on our world invisible? Think we must. connecting the organic knowledge networks 93
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. How could we create learning communities that are self organized? What would these learning communities aim to achieve ? Q2. How do we sustain and manage multi team student based projects? Q3. How do we compensate external contributors in project based learning as an incentive? Q4. How do we use technology to connect global expertise to project based learning? Q5. Can we mentor students online and
The entire design or design academy ecosystem has reached a point where it needs to evolve. The purpose of design education needs a more holistic perspective that not only looks at the immediate sphere of influence but rather what all can it influence, which in turn creates a positive impact in society.
practically implement? What are the challenges to be negotiated?
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Building curriculum that responds to the real world “ When everyone in the classroom, teacher and students, recog-
nizes that they are responsible for creating a learning community together, learning is at its most meaningful and useful.” - Bell Hooks
T
he students may not appreciate Caravaggio, but there are better chances of them appreciating a quote that is posted on Facebook with a visual. The paradigms of understanding have changed significantly. They are growing up looking at these things, but with a different perspective. A responsive curriculum has to be open, differentiated, provocative and it has to be multidirectional. It does not matter which generation the curriculum is prepared for openness of the curriculum allows the curriculum to mould itself. Differentiation within the curriculum allows the range of participants; not necessarily defining it by one set of students or one generation. One needs to know the feedback of the millennial generation on digital life; 96 what’s next future of design education
Responsive curriculum has to be open, differentiated, provocative and it has to be multidirectional.
whether there is a digital overload, fatigue or burn out. This is a very important dimension of the digital condition. So if a curriculum is differentiated then it might allow for both slow paced learning and digitally paced learning. If curriculum is provocative then it might be instrumental in making students want to pursue knowledge. Pursuit of knowledge can be multi-dimensional which increases the chance of channelizing, moulding, streamlining people into one direction. The delivery of the curriculum is an important cog in making any curriculum responsive. A classroom where student voices can be ‘heard’ is a positive space. Here the teacher becomes a facilitator, s/he lends an ear to the students and helps them work together where the values of cooperation, responsibility and accountability are further instilled. Students get a level of autonomy that involves them more in their own learning and helps them feel better about themselves. The technique might be secondary; what matters is that in a responsive curriculum, it is important to protect a student’s dignity and restoring positive behaviour so that the students continue to learn with enthusiasm.
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Doodles during table discussion
When teachers gain an understanding of where students come from, they can incorporate learning styles, culture, background, prior knowledge etc. Students have an innate ability to know when educators are not being themselves. Therefore, for educators, it is important that they are connected to their students, but it is even more important to be sincere and be themselves. 98 what’s next future of design education
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. What are the values, skills and sensibilities at the core of design learning for which abstract non-prescriptive assignments are needed? Q2. What kinds of assignments do great design teachers use to instill selfconfidence as well as sustained practice without boredom during the skill development stage? Q3. What are the qualities of good assignments for advanced learners and those for novice learners? Q4. Enumerate abilities, knowledge, sensitivities and values that structured
It does not matter which generation the curriculum is prepared for openness of the curriculum allows the curriculum to mould itself. Differentiation within the curriculum allows the range of participants; not necessarily defining it by one set of students or one generation.
design assignments can instill in an extended programme of life-long learning. Example composition, typography, colour, material sensibilities, structure, modelling, sense making etc.
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Shared tasks across disciplines
T
he “curriculum of the future” is often portrayed as a projection of what a ‘teacher generation’ believes a ‘learner generation’ needs to know in order to survive in the punishing world of profession and industry. The burden of experience is often passed on to the learner from the standpoint of the teacher, the professional turned academician, who has descended down to impart important advice and guidance to the naive young student who is a few steps away from entering the industry. A certain degree of adaptation to generational differences is grudgingly accommodated into pedagogy, but for the most part, new curricula tend to be designed with limited appreciation for how new generations actually think, learn and experience. The above characterisation is perhaps an exaggerated view of reality, but to some extent, it represents the traditional mode of education that no academician seems to want, yet every academician seems to bemoan the status quo of their particular institutional system. A passionate plea from every generation of teachers is an intent to move away from this traditional mode of knowledge-transfer, and embrace a new mode, a new learner-driven pedagogy. 102 what’s next future of design education
An intent to move away from this traditional mode of knowledge-transfer, and embrace a new mode, a new learner-driven pedagogy.
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The keynote presentation by Aditya Dev Sood highlighted the possibilities of such radical learner-driven pedagogies and introduced new ways of conceptualizing curricula that break down traditional disciplinary barriers. The ensuing discussions focused heavily on how traditional curricula create seemingly artificial silos out of well-intentioned disciplinary divisions.
Future design curriculum needs to allow students the opportunity to engage in creative, multidisciplinary tasks from the moment they enroll.
Academic departments are usually created along disciplinary lines with the intent to give focus to learning, but often these lines are not permeable enough to: (a) address industry realities in where designers routinely cross disciplines; and (b) reflect individual tendencies amongst millennial students to explore disciplines about which they are simply curious.
these flexible frameworks is an overly outdated perception that course syllabi needs to “cover” a fixed quantity of knowledge or skill content before the student graduates into a profession, rather than developing a students’ competency and confidence to be a problemsolver and independent thinker.
Tasks in newer curricula (taking shape as projects, assignments, research, etc.) often try to break down these disciplinary walls by allowing for multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary pedagogies. The difference between these two being that the former represents a student from one discipline working on a task that cuts across other related disciplines, while the latter represents a group of students from multiple disciplines collaborating on a single task together. Both of these reflect current widely practiced professional behaviours, and thereby the importance of new and future curricula being designed to align with these expected practices. The obstacles that prevent such tasks from happening include overly rigid curricular structures, syllabi created in isolation from one another, and lack of modular “plug and-play” frameworks. Potentially the biggest obstacle to 104 what’s next future of design education
Research into millennial traits and characteristics, as presented in the confluence by Prof. Darius Sollohub reveal that these obstacles are particularly difficult to overcome for today’s higher education learners. Traditional chalkand-talk pedagogies, vertical departmental structures, and compartmentalised disciplinary curricula are specifically unsuitable for the cognitive trends of millennials, who prefer choice and flexibility. The millennials excel in handson exploratory learning that doesn’t necessarily rely on a prior knowledge base gained from in-depth readings and lectures. Millennials are eager to explore immediately, and are not willing to wait until after they have taken hours and hours of theory subjects before they start designing and innovating. Future design curriculum needs to allow students the opportunity to engage in creative, multidisciplinary tasks from the moment they enroll.
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. How do you imagine teacher-student relation to be in a participatory production of knowledge? Q2. If we were to design assessment briefs for collaborative tasks / projects across disciplines, what could those be. Q3. How would we manage multi player project with students from different disciplines? Q4. How might we increase opportunities for
Traditional chalk-and-talk pedagogies, vertical departmental structures, and compartmentalised disciplinary curricula are specifically unsuitable for the cognitive trends of millennials, who prefer choice and flexibility.
multi player projects in our curriculum :
The millennials excel in hands-on
With students from different disciplines;
exploratory learning that doesn’t
With students from other schools; With students from exchange programmes? Q5. Can you imagine and illustrate instances
necessarily rely on a prior knowledge base gained from indepth readings and lectures.
of use of technology in ways that could enable delivery of such a curriculum & in Collaborative learning?
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Thoughts on learning a descriptive line about learning here
>The Learners of the Future >Learner as a Social Citizen >Open Source Institution >New Inspirations & Challenges >Professional of Tomorrow
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T
he learner of today far surpass any student that has existed in the history of education. They are complex, dynamic, energetic and evolving by the hour. There are certain traits and abilities which will serve them in a time that is fast changing and rapidly developing.
the learners of the Future
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The critical 21st-century skills that every student needs to acquire, in order to succeed in this world, are global awareness and internet navigability. A well-rounded and responsible global digital citizen practices personal, global, and online responsibilities geared towards creating a better world for everyone. This is a selfless, helpful, and caring individual who is respectful of other cultures and belief systems, and diligent about being at their best with interactions of all sorts, both online and offline. Opportunities and resources available to these learners are no longer scarce but abundant; they are pervasive rather than localized. Students of the digital age are social by nature. They text, post, update, share, chat, and constantly co-create in technological environments with each other. When they are unable to do this in classrooms, they become disengaged and detached with their learning. Connection and collaboration with others are essential not only to their learning but to their mental
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Students of the digital age are social by nature. They text, post, update, share, chat, and constantly co-create in technological environments with each other.
colleges that stick to conventional forms of learning will be considered for qualifications only and not for any useful learning.
Summarizing discussions on learners of the future
and emotional health as well. They want to be challenged and inspired in their learning. They want to collaborate and work with their peers. They want to incorporate technology they so love into their classroom experiences as much as they can. In short, they have just as high a set of expectations of their teachers as their teachers have of them. With time, there is a possibility that schools and 112 what’s next future of design education
Learning in the next century will be outside the four walls, at the students pace, suiting their style and breaking all geographic and language barriers. More than anything else, an institute that creates this thought shift from ‘learn when you need it’ to ‘continuous learning’, will be the clear winner. Unless continuous learning becomes a natural choice of a learner, there is no way he or she can adapt to the quick changes and stay ahead. As John Dewey said, “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself.” The learner of the future will learn using an unlimited library of tools and devices, and education will lose all the shackles that society has today imposed on it. Tomorrow’s world will embrace the dynamics of deep, appropriate and engaging learning that changes lives and, above all, makes sense. As learners gained control of their listening with the arrival of the mp3, so they will increasingly gain control of their learning, thanks to the arrival of MOOCS, social media and informal learning. the learners of the future 113
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Learners as a Social Citizen
T
he traditional education system traditionally revolves around knowledge gain and skills development. Most of the education still emphasizes on STEM system. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. There are a few schools and higher education institutes that have adopted STEAM system, where Arts is also added to the knowledge-skill outcomes. STEM or STEAM , do any of these empower the Learner to be a ‘social citizen’? When we talk about education, should we not focus just on skills and knowledge, on communication, social responsibility and collaborative attitude for inclusive decisions? What kind of education will enable these outcomes in the learner? Perhaps the solution lies in designing the journey of learning rather than just focusing on outcomes (grades). The journey of learning should encourage negotiation, engage learners to raise funds for social causes, encourage community engagement, and above all, awaken the learners to their responsibility towards contributing back to society. 114 what’s next future of design education
Learners staRt seeking information and experience from many social circles.
There are plenty of people with skills but without the knowledge to use them. For instance, there are many skilled artisans who are unable to channelize their creativity leading to a strong market demand for their products. They need knowledge to enable critical thinking, to strategize and scale up the influence of skills. There is also a possibility that a craftsman has both skill and knowledge, but a new technology is introduced in the market which makes his know-how redundant. A social learner proactively predicts the change and gets ready to de-learn and adapt to the change. This kind of agility in learning is what is missing in traditional education systems. Everyone is a learner in this era. Open source of knowledge has made knowledge accessible to all. In fact, open source has enabled knowledge to be universal. Open source of knowledge will eventually lead to uniqueness. So there is a possibility to design an exam, individualized just for the learner, to test that specific learner’s experiences. learner as a social citizen 115
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Social learning opens collaborative learning breaking all divides – gender, geographic and digital. Such learning will allow for more understanding and peace-seeking global citizen
This is an era of distractions that come in the form of smart phones, internet-enabled, computers, video games and televisions, not only for children but also for mature adults. Hence, there is an emerging need for learners to self-regulate their learning and keep updating it. Learners have to develop key life skills such as goal setting, time management, learning strategies, self-evaluation, self-attributions, seeking information and developing self-motivational beliefs. The role of teachers has not diminished; in fact it’s transformed into mentor-coachfacilitator. The focus of teacher has shifted from teaching to learning. Learners start seeking information and experience from many social circles. Social learning opens collaborative learning, breaking all divides – gender, geographic and digital. Such learning will enhance understanding and create peace-seeking global citizen.
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Cue Questions
summary This is an era of distractions that
Q1. What is the difference from training a
come in the form of smart phones,
specific skill to educating a student to cope
internet-enabled computers, video
with a changing scenario?
games and televisions, not only
Q2. How do we meet student expectations
for children but also for mature
to balance general abilities and industry
adults. Hence, there is emerging
specific demands? Q3. How can learning communities balance individual aspirations and social well-being? Q4. Explore and articulate models based on experiential learning, hands-on learning and knowledge acquisition through research and instruction. Q5. Explore and list possible tasks that the learner will actually do at the place of learning.
need for learners to self-regulate their learning and keep updating it. Learners have to develop key life skills like goal setting, time management, learning strategies, self-evaluation, self-attributions, seeking information and developing self-motivational beliefs.
The role
of teachers is not diminishing; in fact it’s transformed into mentorcoach-facilitator.
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Open Source Institution
W
ith the advent of globalization, a noticeable trend that we see is the pervasive nature of technology and internet that has enabled sharing of ideas and design. Globalization has helped the global community move closer together, so that sharing of ideas has become seamless. This has led to the birth of open source of information, where learners can learn anytime, every time, anywhere and every where. Students are no longer 6 to 21 year olds found in finite spaces called schools and colleges. Times have changed, and today, a learner is anyone who can access knowledge on tablets and other screens and choose the content about which he/she is curious. Earlier schools were in temples, churches or mosques and they had all the manuscripts which were proclaimed by the keepers of knowledge. The keepers of knowledge taught how to handle the knowledge, but that does not hold true today. Today, you Google. So the ‘institution’ is now an ‘app’.
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A student obeys, but a learner is proactive and takes initiative. If one can identify the type of learner’, the next step would be to identify what he/she can learn and the desire to learn.
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Today learners don’t just talk about content, they also talk about delivery and other aspects of pedagogy. We as teachers, institutes or universities should not only be looking at the ideal delivery, the ideal content or the ideal learner but focus on delivery methods and innovation in pedagogy.
philosophy, the benefits would be massive. If alumni start coming to their alma mater and create products using the machinery there, everyone gets to see and learn. By asking students to open up and explore, you are actually asking students to be fearless but at the same time you should also open up your resources for this to be effective.
It is therefore imperative to open the source of learning, so that the original is protected and shared to breed progeny of knowledge. This is precisely why there is an emphasis on creating ‘learners’ rather than ‘students’ of the conventional mould. A student obeys and follows whereas a learner is proactive and takes initiative. If one can identify the ‘type of learner’, the next step would be to identify what he/she can learn and bring out the desire to learn.
It would be a mistake to avoid open source; the schools need to change and update themselves. Rote learning combined with classroom activities and homework is redundant. Innovation needs to happen here and ‘open source’ is the perfect stimulant.
Open source is based on two principles, one is the ‘ideology of not for profit’ and the other is the ‘knowledge available to all’. ‘Open source’ has evolved in its identity from being ‘a content developer tool’ to be ‘resource based’. It can also be a social group where people can huddle up and learn together. For instance, libraries should be open source; many universities have libraries that are huge, but how many actually read the books? Many institutions have resources in terms of equipment. The students make use of the equipment during the day, which is roughly six hours, the remainder of the day they remain shut. There are people in the design community who want to use such facilities and will pay three times more for it somewhere else. Now imagine if these workshops or libraries start following the ‘open source’
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. Discuss models that enable the learner to make her own institution -- the open source institution. Q2. Global explanations of e-learning are disrupting existing brick -and -mortar schools. What would learners need to sharpen skills and clarify concepts in a networked situation? Q3.List possible tools, strategies and
Today learners don’t just talk about content, but they also talk about delivery and other aspects of pedagogy. We as teachers, institutes or universities
should not only be
approaches to facilitate learning across a
looking at the ideal delivery,
variety of subjects, skills and sensitivities.
the ideal content or the ideal
Q4. Make a bank of challenges that you would
learner but the focus now has
like the learners of tomorrow to take up.
to be on delivery methods and
Q5. How could tutors mentor self-efficacy and
innovation in pedagogy.
goal-setting in an open-source institution?
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New Inspiration & Challenges
I
n today’s hyper -connected world the young learners must be inspired and use environmental challenges to spur them further on the path of learning. We find that the learners of the future are not seekers any more. That the teacher is no longer regarded as someone to look up to. He is seen as a service provider while learners see themselves as customers.
Somewhere in the whole idea of making an easy system of education we have made it so easy that the challenge of learning has been compromised
New emerging Challenges for the learners of the future >> The proliferation of digital media and the ease that it offers has made learning like following the path of least resistance. Whereas learning should ideally take the path of most resistance because it’s the friction and resistance that enables learning. >> Learners today are seeking convenience. They are impatient & have a short attention span. There is lack of trust as well as a consumerist attitude towards mentors and facilitators.
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>> The learning environment is becoming slippery. Often mentors have a preconception that the younger student can’t assimilate complex things. They feel that they do not have exposure and are too young to comprehend and practice complex theories. Somewhere in the whole idea of making an easy system of education we have made it so easy that the challenge of learning has been compromised.
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>> Learning how to learn is part of the cognitive theory of learning. But most of our education is organised around the behaviourist approach where we punish bad behaviour. This is essentially the Indian pattern. The behaviourist approach presents its own set of challenges. It is the teacher telling what’s important to know and necessary to learn now rather than late. So the teacher determines the path which might pose a challenge for the learner to tread on. >> Knowledge and information available on the internet also poses its set of challenges to the learners. While learners can connect with readily available information, the challenge is to decipher and use the right source of knowledge.
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Emergence of new Inspirations towards seeking & learning >> Today what we need is a more cognitive or situational learning approach. For example, students like to learn at their own pace and they would like to apply learning to real life problems. This can also be a motivation to learn. >> Physical play can also be motivational tool for learning. Introducing physical activity that could impart learning to the students would be beneficial to the learner. What could also inspire students is to make them realise that they are empowered to make an impact, even while they are still students.
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Cue Questions
summary
Q1. What could inspire the 21st century learner? Q2. What could be challenges she will face? Q3. Could we conceptualise classroom exercises that make the designer an organizer of networks? Q4. What are the challenges thrown up by evolving technology to learning situations and possible outcomes? Q5. Global movements and socio-cultural realignments attract student learning
Today what we need is a more cognitive or maybe a situational learning approach. For example, students like to learn whenever they feel it is necessary to learn at their own pace and they would like to apply it to real life problem. This can be an inspiration to learners.
interest. How do institutes cope with these diversity challenges? Q6. Who are the thought leaders driving contemporary learning aspirations across disciplines in design learning?
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Professional of TomorrowMultiple Careers
T
he learners of the future will be the professionals of tomorrow. Professionals of tomorrow will need to concentrate on gaining knowledge. They are willing to broaden their knowledge base and are open to newer experiences. There is a cross-pollination of ideas which will lead to entering into this overdrive of new professions.
some level, we will need more professionals as doers. There is an urgency for professionals to be mindful and committed and to demonstrate application of thoughts. Whatever may be the role, it is clear that this is not a binary, thinkers v/s doers, doers v/s thinker scenario. There is a definitive change in the entire process or ‘kind of doing’. Hence the professionals of tomorrow will need to develop a strong foundation. Foundation in terms of skills, analytical abilities, reasoning and collaboration. This will enable them to work in the changed workplaces of the future. The future role of professionals will also be direction finding, as a curator and an advisor. It can even be as someone that will act as a catalyst. Professionals of tomorrow - Multiplicity.
Professionals of tomorrow - Changing Definitions & Paradigm Who is a professional? Generally it’s someone you expect to do a job properly. Professionals of tomorrow can either be thinkers or can be doers. A school of thought believes that professionals need to be liberalised thinkers. They argue that people are conspiring more and more as thinkers and they need someone who can bring ideas on to the table and set up teams of collaborators with specialists that will deliver the task. However the counter thought here is that at
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Real professionals of tomorrow will effectively be hyper experts. They will indulge in multiple careers, other than their chosen field of work & service. They can be a professional marathon runner or they might be member of a band, while practising medicine or legal professions. So, there might be a doctor who’s had a history of gaming & his approach to medicine might be substantially different from another practitioner who has a history of theatre within the profession of medicine. While it will be difficult to predict exactly who the professionals of tomorrow are going to be, this multiplicity
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of knowledge worlds that professionals will be involved in will actually lend to cross - pollinating and cross-feeding of ideas. It would also thrust upon excellence in deliveries by professionals.
Cue Questions
summary
Real professionals of tomorrow will effectively be hyper experts. They will indulge in multiple careers other than their chosen field of work & service. They can be professional marathon runners
Q1.How do we manage the huge variety of
or they might be professionals in
aspirations to limited teacher bandwidth
a band or singers while practising
that is available in each teaching centre or institution? Q2. How do schools manage an open menu
medicine or legal professions as mainline careers.
option across disciplines as well as levels of expertise? Are there good examples that we can study or share?
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Sneak peak into the event aditya dev sood deepankar bhattacharya Jogi Panghaal John thackara madhav raman nicoletta morozzi rahul mishra satish gokhale scott skipworth Suchitra balasubrahmanyan vijay kumar vikas satwalekar
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picture caption will come here
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Dedicated to our friend, philosopher and guide
Late Prof. MP Ranjan
Delhi NCR | Jaipur | Mumbai www.pearlacademy.com