In this module you’ll address the theoretical background and aspects of design discipline through questions such as: What is human-centred design? How can it be applied in different contexts? and, Why is it so important? It will provide you with the opportunity to explore and experiment with existing design methods and develop new ones, finding ways to articulate your knowledge and skills in practice and text, in a self-selected project through a taught process. You’ll explore the importance of human-centred methods and systemic design approaches in addressing local and global issues, examining a range of current concepts, principles, and models of design and designing, including problem finding, ideation, types of design methods, creative processes, and tools etc, as well as their usefulness in tackling social, economic, environmental, and cultural challenges. The module is course-directed and delivered in a multidisciplinary setting, led by a dedicated team of tutors and visiting lecturers. You will attend formal interactive lectures followed by case study analyses, group seminars and discussions, practical workshops, demonstrations and role play exercises. It will stimulate debate, as well as your understanding, awareness, intellectual confidence and self-expression in the history, philosophy and criticism of design research and design methods relevant to the various disciplines taught in the School, and also across contemporary and historical themes relevant to art and design disciplines, particularly Human-Centred Design. You will engage with key theories, and contextual and critical discourses at the forefront of the discipline, and become informed by a global and multidisciplinary perspectives. You will take part in a blend of face-to-face and supported online learning, including weekly intensive sessions that run concurrently with other modules. This will give you an opportunity to explore the links between modules. which will focus on discussion and critique, and allow you to examine good practice and case studies. At all times, there is an emphasis on your involvement in participatory learning, ensuring you can readily develop, discuss and exchange your opinions, ideas and information. This process is a vital and necessary part of the dissemination of the subject material, and the building of your skills and self-confidence which will enable you, as a graduate of the course, to become a catalyst for change.
This module will help you understand the complexities of the world and the human to planet relation, with a focus on the role of design in addressing human and planet needs, climate change and the designer’s power and responsibility to help address local and global emergencies. and enabling you to become the agent of change — moving the image of the designer from destructor to regenerator, turning resources to empower those around you.
This module will pioneer your use of design to address local and global, small and large-scale problems in a structured, process-led, and ethically rigorous manner. This will enable you to design to address challenges of various types, including social, environmental, and economic. In multidisciplinary groups, you will investigate, develop, and build methods, systems, and interventions with a challenge partner on a pressing and immediate challenge. You’ll go beyond the traditional design approaches and problem-solution focus to tackle the needs of human, planet, and future conditions through a range of subjects including an ageing society; sustainable growth; health and safety; future of mobility; and resilient cities etc. You will develop networks, build relationships and receive the necessary skills and support to start your own business and enterprise, and make a real difference to people’s lives. Building multi-stakeholder partnerships for society-specific issues, while creating new opportunities to make the world a better place for everyone, you will create impactful and planet-conscious innovations, and develop strategic interventions through design as a transformative tool for society.
In this module, you will develop your practice to focus on people’s needs - not as individuals, but as societies with complex, deep-rooted problems. You will explore various design-thinking concepts, including circular design and inclusive design, and consider the cognitive and social biases that lead to broad, unintended consequences by removing the short-term impact and benefits of design. You will develop ideas that will have minimum negative impact; create and sustain equity; and build on technological advances without disrupting the foundations of society through continuous change of perspective, timeline, and methodology. By identifying necessary actions and steps that will connect the future to the present, the module will allow you to evolve ethnographic research, empathy maps, and an understanding of interests, biases, and motivations, adopting a systemic approach to examine broader implications, and focusing on preferred long-term outcomes for humanity as a whole.
Integrating your values, beliefs, and passions with research and experimentation, you will define, develop and deliver a project that demonstrates mastery in Human-Centred Design, combining your approach to product, service, and systems design. You will be given the opportunity to develop your research capability, depth of understanding and ability to provide world-class solutions to real problems.