| 1. |
- Berglund, Anders
(författare)
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Compose or decompose - Resource allocation in engineering design projects
- 2013
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the 15th International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education: Design Education - Growing Our Future, EPDE 2013. - 9781904670421 ; , s. 362-367
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- This is a paper that reviews the planning, execution and reflection of the collaborative writing efforts made by students when composing their final design project reports. Past research has indicated collaborative writing (CW) as one of the most challenging task that could be assigned to student groups [1]. CW is a process that involves project management, including resource allocation and essentially a great portion of writing skill. Whereas numerous engineering design projects highlight the uniqueness and creative aspects brought forward and the process in which this was created - the final piece of the puzzle how the final report was established is a phenomenon that get dimmed. There is dualistic propagation of parallel processes where the 'artifact' constitutes the main design work and where the efforts made to produce a written report relates to the other. A tradition that maybe is obsolete in some places but that has a life of its' own in other domains. The more administrative work involved with compiling a report of 'good enough' character whilst motivating and supporting each other should be balanced against the activities involved in producing the final output/design/prototype. This study is based on interviews and written 'pros and cons' reflections with project participants, project documentation and lecturer's reflections. Early indications show that communication and iterative work processes, allowing cross-checking, validation and confirmation is crucial for engaging greater commitment to the collaborative writing process. Independently of project management style and delegations made; labour intensity and work distribution of activities seem to propagate a skew execution of work. This is especially noticeable when administrative functions are weak amongst project members, which can be a consequence when putting students from various programs/disciplines/schools in a joint exercise of this type. Based on the findings, the paper stipulates a set of preventive coaching tips to guideline collaborative writing efforts and endorsing increased rigor to the final report and its process. Establishing this set of awareness among students would ultimately minimize uncertainties and dilemmas prior to 'entering the boat' - when the ship has sailed so has also its crew and based on how well they master to serve and execute their skills - so will also the trip be remembered - pleasant or horrific - taking them to paradise or hell.
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| 2. |
- Berglund, Anders, et al.
(författare)
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Who wins from academic consulting
- 2013
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Ingår i: Design Education-Growing Our Future. - Glasgow : The Design Society Institution of Engineering Designers. - 9781904670421 ; , s. 82-87
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- University teachers who start teaching right after graduation have not used and developed their knowledge professionally thus they have never had the opportunity to test their acquired knowledge in practice. This results in teaching that tends to be heavily theoretical because the teacher teaches what he/she has learned in studies, instead of teaching the knowledge gained through professional experience. Unfortunately a teacher can feel insecure when not knowing if their teaching reflects currently used methods and/or appropriate tools. An effect of this can be that teachers who feel insufficient in their role as teachers. The aim of this paper is to see if academic consulting not only increases the practical experience of the teacher, but also helps the teacher in their role and gives them a better understanding of what the state of the art is. While some schools have some cooperation with the business community, both in student projects and research projects, although it is not common with external non-research consultation projects, which are conducted by the university teachers. A questionnaire was sent to both teachers and students’ asking them of their experience of academic consulting’s benefits to the classroom experience. As a follow-up were several interviewed, along with clients to gain more insight. The results showed that teachers, students and the clients benefited from these types of projects.
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| 3. |
- Hjort af Ornäs, Viktor, 1976, et al.
(författare)
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Teaching design theory: Scaffolding for experiential learning
- 2013
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Ingår i: EPDE2013 15th Itl. Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education, Dublin, Ireland. September 5-6. - 9781904670421 ; , s. 724-729
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- A future in ever changing professions requires design students to become competent in engaging with different types of knowledge. This article argues that teaching students the ability to reflect on their own approaches opens up for combining design theory and practice for the greater benefit of both. Yet, there are challenges in promoting such a ‘mixed approach’ in design education. In a prior paper, the authors took Kolb’s experiential learning model as a starting point for a post hoc comparison and evaluation of teaching design theory. The present paper describes the proactive application of this model in redesigning a course, given at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology spring term 2013. The course provides Concrete Experience through in situ-observations interviews, etc. Students are then requested to transform these into the generic requirements of a design brief (Reflective Observation), further interpret the brief in the light of theories (Abstract Conceptualisation), and finally convert findings into new design concepts (Active Experimentation). The paper discusses how learning models can be used proactively in design education, through three perspectives on learning: as Didactic staging-, Process driven-, and Reflexive independence.
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| 4. |
- Håkansson, Anders, et al.
(författare)
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Managing multidisciplinarity : growing future creators
- 2013
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Ingår i: Design Education - Growing our Future. - Glasgow : Design Research Society. - 9781904670421 ; , s. 587-592
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Preparing students for real life is a main issue for education programs. At Luleå University of Technology, (LTU), this is done by a range of different course layouts and course assignments. Students studying at the Industrial Design Engineering program practice this as group work, workshops and individual assignments always based on the intention to be as close to what students will face after exam in their first employments. Yet there is a major problem with this. Assignments are still not sharp and students know the worst outcome would be to not pass. This paper describes a project assignment connected to an international competition and on a complexity level that needs competences from several different university programs. The project is a competition, which is a successful way to increase focus, commitment and reaching a higher level of result. In this project students have to form their own project organization, plan and distribute work. This is very close to how they are going to act in their future profession and how they have to interact with other professions in the real life situation. Interaction with other programs sometimes occurs but in this project the interaction is on a much higher level because of the complexity and the intensity that is the effect of a competition. Being a part of a bigger project organization gives experiences in collaborating as handling personal problems and people acting unexpected with other competences. Successful competitions results create attention good for students, teachers and the university.
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| 5. |
- Nikitas, Alexandros, 1980, et al.
(författare)
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Encouraging Sustainable Urban Access: An Exploratory Student Approach to Design of Product Service Systems.
- 2013
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Ingår i: 15th International Conference on Engineering and Product Design Education Conference "Growing our Future", September 2013, Dublin, Ireland. - 9781904670421
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Urban access is a key trans-disciplinary design axiom looking to ensure that every member of the society can reach those locations and resources one needs for a sustainable standard of living and productivity. This should be achieved in a way that does not deprive others from their right to access the same urban environment. Crafting the future of urban transportation design is a dynamic process that depends on developing a thorough understanding of the complexity of the human needs that associate with delivering ways to support urban access and, in particular, more sustainable and socially inclusive mobility patterns. New market demands and customer expectations force public and private organisations to expand their commitment to cross-border collaborations to provide attractive alternative transport modes. This paper discusses the challenge of utilizing design innovation as a tool for eco-branding and how an exploratory approach to this has been used in a post-graduate course in Visual Brand Identity and Product Design. Seven research teams, closely guided by the authors, were affiliated with designing an innovative hypothetical bike-sharing scheme for the city of Gothenburg, Sweden, with the potential to captivate road users’ acceptability. An overall description of the project concept and a brief summary of the results produced are presented herein. More specifically, this paper concentrates solely on one of the most innovative projects delivered within the course and discusses how the students adopted the challenge, as well as the actual project outcome and its contribution to the overall learning experience.
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