Design Thinking at Ahmedabad University: A new beginning for Indian education
Design
Thinking at Ahmedabad University: An approach paper for a proposed course for
undergraduate students
Ahmedabad
August 2013
Why Design Thinking?
We have
constantly been amazed at the great creative actions of humanity, which can be
seen in their key inventions and major evolutionary steps that shaped human
civilisation and these have been initiated by generations of unknown creators
over time immemorial. These creators have helped shape our civilisation through
their breakthrough contributions by daring to experiment and create in the face
of social isolation and ridicule by the prevailing orthodoxy. They contributed
by innovating at the edge of society as stated by Alexander Doxiadis when he
talked about the blue dots and red dots that represented the typical
settlements where the blues were the majority conformists and the reds the
crazies who were ostracised and isolated till a paradigm shift in society
helped assimilate the thoughtful and insightful contributions from these
isolated creators. These contributions included small or major improvements and
change in processes, tools, arts, crafts, everyday artefacts, houses and public
structures which we have conveniently labelled as inventions and innovations
long before we could recognise these contributions as heroic acts of design
thought and action.
We now know
that these are early design acts that were not properly attributed in our
historic references so far. We are now beginning to understand that design
thought and action was central to all these breakthrough contributions and that
it is a basic human activity and ability at one level that is as old as
civilisation itself. The other form is a new and modern profession, and this is
created by the professional education of a designer who would be able and
sensitised to feel, think, act in an appropriate manner in a rapidly changing
material and social world in an industrial age. Today in an era of information
access and digital processes has brought on new possibilities for design as
well as enormous challenges and responsibilities that require an ethical and
feeling attitude alongside a sharp intellect and able set of hands.
Understanding design and design thinking today is a major challenge since it
has so many forms and those working in a variety of domains exhibit
capabilities and competencies drawn from a vast array of traditional
disciplines that have been integrated into the skill sets of a particular
designer in his or her modern form.
University
education has become dominated by vertical specialisations with little connect
between the various disciplines and the emphasis has been on development of
knowledge resources and capability within each domain of study. However it is
increasingly seen that to solve real world problems and emerging opportunities
there is a need for interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary attitudes and
abilities to collaborate and think across various styles of thought and action
to ralise innovative possibilities that are around us all the time. It is here
that many educators across disciplines are turning to design thinking to bring
these new attitudes and capabilities to the various domains of specialisations
within an educational and university setting. The core processes and
capabilities afforded by design thinking training are listed and stated below.
1. Understanding the Context: Framing Intentions and
Goals
Learning to understand the context and the social,
cultural, material, economic and political situation that usually leads to
trying to get clarity from a very complex set of signals and processes from the
real world that help provide the essence of a direction for design thought and
action. This kind of learning, like many others, does go through several
iterations but at the end of these multiple cycles the level of conviction and
sense of purpose is usually very high in the task and the purpose that it
represents. This early stage learning is at most times very fuzzy and a great
deal of flexibility is called for to be able to cope with the ambiguity that
accompanies this kind of design exploration leading to the building of some
convictions that are supported by the faith of these experiences. Many a times
this conviction can be a source of great frustration since few others have the
same insights that the design learner has garnered from the unique situations
that has been investigated in some considerable depth. Designers learn that
these early stage sense data needs to be trusted and not abandoned too early
and this is the foundation of an innovation environment in which they choose to
work. Lifetime of experiences are harnessed through the processes of
brainstorming and mapping of the context and the various elements that may
impact the situation that is being examined with a very open minded attitude
that is inclusive in nature rather than by being overly critical. All this
exploration is done with words and images and these need to be modeled in a
composite structure that captures both the structure as well as the form of the
situation under examination and this model is a dynamic one as it develops and
responds to new circumstances and information and insights. Insights about the
context and the particular situation are the most sought after by-products from
these early stages of design exploration.
2. Research, Knowledge and Insights: Plumbing
Information Sources and Dimensions
Design learning
needs to develop both attitudes as well as ability with tools of information
access and processing. The process of design deals
with access to information to many classes of information types which includes
published and reported facts and speculations and also field based observations
and self initiated experiments that are contextually mediated to fill gaps in
the current information or for a direct confirmation of some reported fact or
speculation which cannot otherwise be verified easily, to list only a small
sub-set of the huge variety of information types involved in design
investigation. Designers have drawn from all kinds of disciplines, from the
humanities, sociology, psychology and language studies as well as from the
sciences and technology fields,
various tools and techniques that were previously perfected within these
disciplines over the years of specialised investigations and these would be
available in published form as textbooks from each field of study. For example,
tools and procedures on field-work and observation of people in the particular
design situation, are drawn from the standard practices and work ethics and
techniques of anthropologists, sociologists a variety of humanities experts and
these have been adopted and used in numerous cases of design research that I
know of. The field of design research is growing with many of these disciplines
recognising new roles for themselves in the whole arena of innovation and
design action that is becoming recognised as a valuable area of work globally.
Design schools too are beginning to adopt many of these tools and processes as
their own and building competence in their use and analysis. The purpose of
these design research efforts however tend to be focussed on finding useful
insights for the design action and decisions to follow rather than be focussed
on finding fundamental truths and new knowledge as a final goal of the
particular design research effort.
3. Finding Structure: Mapping of Resources and
Opportunities
Design problems
are better understood by juxtaposing factual and observational findings with
new proposals and imagined possibilities that are visualised at an early stage
in a what if mode of thought and action. New scenarios for action come up for
active consideration and these also inform the design teams about the possible
gaps in their information that need to be filled as they move forward. These conjectural models can be subjected to early analysis using a variety
tools and frameworks to conduct such analysis. The hypothesis and insights
arrived at in these early explorations drives further design investigation in
the form of advanced scenarios of parts or the whole of the design situation or
in the form of narratives and stories that cover both the micro and the macro
levels of observation and visualisation of the stated and imagined need as well
as the consequences and potentials that are being investigated by the designer.
This too moves through numerous iterations till a selection is possible of a few
major alternate courses of action that can be taken to the next level of
investment planning and decision cycles, be it the sharing of these models with
stake-holders, conduct of further focussed experiments or the building of
expensive prototypes of parts or the whole product or business offering, as the
case may be. This also applies to visualisations at many levels of expression
from the abstract to the real, such as pre-cognitive diagrams, doodles and
fuzzy sketches at one end, that are the preliminary visualisations created in
many cases intuitively by the designer for themselves in the search for
possible configurations and relationships of the various attributes of the
solution to the other extreme involving expensive articulations of scenario in the
form of detailed drawings, renderings and models and even real material
prototypes in many iterations in a search for new and particular configurations
affordances that resolve the many contradictions that exist in all design
tasks. We can call this an analytical exploration of the design situation using
visual tools and processes that generate external models rather than numerical
or verbal expressions, although in some cases even these would be used in
conjunction with the visual as well. Many of these models can be shared with
large groups of critical participants to find gaps in the offerings and areas
of improvement may emerge from the suggestions that are gathered in this
process.
4. Communication of Concepts: Negotiating with
Stake-holders
Designers need
to develop an ability to make their concepts visible at an early stage and to
be successful they also need to be able to communicate these effectively to a
wide range of stake-holders as well. The ability to work in a team situation
with many stake-holders with different areas of expertise is critical and using
verbal, textual and visual discourses is an integral part of design thought and
action. Design action calls for articulate expression of intermediate findings
as well as expressive presentations of findings and results of concept
explorations along with justifications of investments that would need to follow
to make the concept a reality. Therefore, interactions
with numerous stakeholders and in most cases approving authorities with whom
the interactions are both critical and necessary for the task to progress to
the next logical level of action with funding and other supports, calls for
fairly advanced skills of communication and language use along with multi-media
presentation skills. The learning involved is in communication, in seeking
collaborations and in understanding the responses with empathy to the situation
and the needs and feelings of the identified users. For major projects of
public utility there is the added complexity of public discourse and politics
of governance that would need to be negotiated and navigated with competence if
the design teams are to be successful.
5. Ethical Frameworks and Holistic Models: Synthesis
of Positions and Informed Decisions
Values and
ethical positions are a part of all design choice making and these would come
up at numerous stages in the process of design. Learning
to accept and process the feedback from stake-holders into contact with
constructive actions is a great leveller, and it brings the design thinker into
uncommon scenarios on the cusp of great change and this could induce change in
the individual themselves, since some of this feedback could be cultural in
nature or outside the accepted frame of the designers frame of “personal
ethics” – for want of a better term, which may be reflexive and transformative
in both directions. The nature of design calls for the practitioner to be
widely informed about both technical as well as socio-political matters and be
able to use these in the context of the task at hand. There are many instances
of the designer embarking on a new path outside the scope of the current task
based on the insights and convictions derived from the learning experiences
embedded in the design task. Today we are finding numerous examples of great
complexity that may contain challenges of trying to bring sustainability and
social equity into design tasks that may have in the past been considered a
pure technical exercise. Awareness levels are high and public participation in
such matters is also approaching high levels compelling designers to adopt
methods that could make the design process less intuitive and more accountable
and with public visibility at all decision stages, particularly for good
governance in public expenditure. Documentation in such situations becomes
doubly important.
6. Exploring Alternatives: Developing Strategies and Details for Parts and Whole.
Learning to design leads to be open to vast range of
alternatives and in decision-making choices from out of the numerous
alternatives of parts and wholes that are the result of progressive
visualisations and experimentations conducted in the progress of the design
task. The definition of the task itself is open to review and many a times the
investigations and design investments have veered of into an entirely new
direction as a result of this kind of review which is quite normal in a design
situation that is complex and previously less explored. The ability to develop
alternatives calls for flexibility as well as the ability to generate prolific
variety of expressions that can shape possible futures through the mobilisation
of many types and styles of thinking for exploration and synthesis. Design
thinking has many modes of thought from explorative, analytical, synthesis,
abductive, categoric as well as reflective thinking styles at various stages as
the work progresses.
7. Developing the Self: Learning New Attitudes, Skills and Concepts
Design students
need to be curious people and they should have an urge for constant learning
about changes in their environment as well as in society at large. The ability
to find what is not known and to quickly learn the principles or alternately to
find those who can help them learn is a quality that is valued in a design and education
setting. The constant self development that we see
in what designers do in their search for new and interesting bits of knowledge
that would be of value in the future on some not yet anticipated task usually
within the frame of interest paths that each designer traverses over a career
of continued learning to cope with the new and the unexpected in their usual
area of work and areas that overlap their multiple interest paths. This calls
for high degree of self-motivation and a sustained level of interest that can
be supported when the task becomes both difficult and in many cases frustrating
when no progressis
easily visible on the horizon. The attitude towards learning is one of
curiosity and with a constant search for excellence and quality in whatever is
being addressed.
Design
Thinking Course at Ahmedabad University:
A Course Abstract
Paper for an elective course created for undergraduate & postgraduate
students
Prof M P
Ranjan
Independent Academic & Author of Blog –
www.DesignForIndia.com
Ahmedabad
Course Title: Introduction to Design Thinking
Sessions: 30 sessions
Pre-Requisites: Offered to all students of Undergraduate
and Postgraduate Programme at Ahmedabad University.
Objective: Broad based introduction to the processes
and concepts of Design Thinking with
a sensitisation to attitudes and action skills required to innovate and deliver
new and compelling design concepts. Participants will be introduced to various
processes and styles of Design Thinking
using selected real world settings in the City of Ahmedabad — to explore,
understand, structure and build new products, services and systems with the use
of design and innovation processes. Help participants appreciate design thought
and processes with a familiarity to key design thought leaders in the field
through select readings, contemporary debates on issues and perspectives as
well as online resources that are relevant and current. The assignments will
give students an exposure to the hands-on minds-on perspectives needed for
handling complex and wicked problems that are typical of design challenges and
these collective experiences as well as reflections on these actions taken
together will give them confidence to handle new and unfamiliar situations and
use these processes and styles of thinking to create new and compelling
offerings using design thinking as a way of living and action.
Methodology and Structure: This 30 session course is divided into 10
modules, each composed of lectures, discussion sessions on the Key Theme of each module and these are
followed by structured non-prescriptive assignments for the students to work in
teams to explore and discover the boundaries of the chosen task and navigate
the complexities of the situation in exploring design opportunities through the
set of structured assignments and learning to work in teams at the same time.
Course Content: Introduction to Key Concepts of Design
Thinking through lectures, discussions, group assignments and presentations
divided into ten major overlapping modules as listed below:
A: Key Concepts of Design Thinking
1. What is
Design Thinking?
2. Styles of
Design Thinking
3. Goal Seeking
& Setting Research
4.
Understanding Context
5. Visual
Mapping & Resource Mapping
6. Categories
and Trends
7. Compositions
and Judgements
8. Opportunity
Mapping and Scenario Visualisation
9.
Communications and Reflection
10.
Presentations with Business Models
(See supporting
notes attached for a description of the design thinking models and stages as
well as styles of thinking)
B: Opportunities for New/ Improved Services and Business offerings through
design. Context City of Ahmedabad of 2015 - 2020
These are broad sectors within which
there would be numerous specific design opportunities worth doing and these
would be explored and developed as a theme each year depending on the context
and current interest of the participating students and the imagination that
they would unfold.
1. Food preparation and delivery 9.
Urban Farming Trends
2. Healthcare opportunities 10.
Garbage and Urban Hygiene
3. Urban Mobility challenges 11.
Web Enabled Services
4. Entertainment and then City 12.
Library & Knowledge Services
5. Public Spaces Utilisation 13.
Music Events and Competitions
6. Tourism and Heritage offerings 14.
Social Networks for City Governance
7. Events and Festivals 15.
Riverfront Opportunities
8. Education related needs 16.
BRTS support Services
And many more which would be developed as part of the
early Goal Setting assignments in the early phase of the course.
Space and
Facilities Required: Flexible space planning with
appropriate furniture and lighting would be needed to conduct he various parts
of this course. Lectures and presentation sessions would be for the whole group
and depending on the total number of students the space requirements would need
to be made appropriately. During each Module the groups would require access to
lecture spaces provide with audio-visual facilities as well as clear wall
spaces with white soft boards for display and discussion of posters simultaneously
for at least five groups. Each group would be composed of 6 to 10 student
participants and the class strength could vary from 30 to 50 participants each
year. Each group would need a work space suitable for group processes in design
thinking and preferably these tables and chairs should be stackable to clear
the space for group presentations that would use the wall space around the
design space.
List of key
thought leaders and published resources: Design
Thinking is a rapidly evolving field and more published resources are being
made available each day as the field grows. We will keep a close watch on the
evolving literature and suggest appropriate papers, books, web sites and
discussion lists that the students can interact with as part of their course at
the University. Being an introductory course, the selection will be governed by
the material being suitable for entry-level students into the field of design
and design thinking. However the University needs to invest in expanding their
design related library so that these students can continue to use the resource
long after the course in a continued learning setting and it would also
encourage other students to think about using design as a key resource for
their own projects and initiatives. We anticipate many such innovation
initiatives from the student body once the course is set up and finds a place
in the mainstream of the University offering.
Evaluation
Criteria and Feedback: Students will be evaluated on
both participation as well as performance. Participation will be on the basis
of attendance and quality of participation in group processes. Results of group
assignments will be graded for the group and not for the individual student.
However, students not showing interest or effort in group processes would need
to be counseled to ensure a level of learning that is wholesome and properly
assimilated. The final presentation would be a public event and the concepts
developed by the students will get live feedback from teachers, mentors, peers,
as well as members of the community with whom they have interacted during the
course. Attendance and individual participation tasks will carry a 40 percent
weightage while group tasks would carry 60 percent.
Learning
Outcomes: Understanding of Design as an action discipline. Ability to frame
complex challenges using design thinking skills and visualization of these for
sharing with stakeholders. Familiarity with design concepts and tools with an
introduction to key thought leaders. Familiarity with a vocabulary of design
and innovation as they would be applied to a wide spectrum of opportunities and
complex challenges.
Suggested
References
1. John Heskett,
Design: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford University Press, 2005
2. Jon Kolko,
Exposing The Magic of Design: A Practitioner’s Guide to the Methods of
Synthesis, Oxford University Press, 2011
3. John Thackara,
In The Bubble, Designing in a Complex World, Massachusetts Institute of
Technology, 2005
4. Harold G
Nelson & Eric Stolterman, The Design Way, Intentional Change in an
Unpredictable World, MIT Press, 2012
5. Roger Martin,
Design of Business: Why Design Thinking is the Next Competitive Advantage,
Harvard Business School Press, 2009
6. Kees Dorst,
Understanding Design, BIS Publishers, 2006
7. Bryan Lawson,
What Designers Know, Architectural Press, 2004
6. M P Ranjan,
Design Thinking Models: A Primer, The Author, 2013
7. M P Ranjan, Design
for India, blog : http://www.designforindia.com , 2007 to 2013
8. M P Ranjan,
Academia.edu, Archive of Papers and Books by the author,
http://cept.academia.edu/RanjanMP
~
On 18 August 2013 the Academic Council of Ahmedabad University reviewed the proposal and accorded an in-principle approval to launch the course as an elective offered across several colleges of the University, This is a significant move since in India we have over 500 recognised Universities and the need for embedding design and design thinking into the 230 sectors of our economy is still a long way away, a journey that we started on this blog in 2007 on 14th June with the publication of our Mission Statement for the Design for India initiative.
