Sunday, July 5, 2015

[bamboo-plantations] University wide course on Design Thinking: Ahmedabad University in India

Gigantis Bamboo plantation

Dear Friends

I am seeking your suggestions for books and papers that could form a core reading list for students as well as faculty from nine colleges of Ahmedabad University who will be taking my new course which I have outlined very briefly below. I would appreciate if list members can suggest papers and books under each of the nine modules listed below in my note. This is a semester long course of fifteen weeks each with sessions of three hours per week. 

In case you have pdf files of these papers do share these off list for our use.

Summary of the proposed course
Design Thinking inside the University. Elective across multiple disciplines of the university. Each module is of three hours each. 9 thematic modules are interspaced by 3 thematic guest lectures culminating in a 3 week project and an evaluation session, in all a total of 15 three-hour sessions with off-studio assignments and reading & reflection tasks.

Students and faculty participants will come from the colleges of management, commerce, science, engineering, humanities, heritage conservation, life sciences, and computer applications. 

Module 1: History, Overview, Introduction
Module 2: Design Education, Design Representation, Design Skills
Module 3: Understanding Context, Empathy, Early Stage Strategies
Module 4: Design Process, Tools & Methods, Analysis and Insights
Module 5: Story Telling, Story Boards, Scenarios, Models, Maps, Mockups
Module 6: Design Opportunities, Creative Exploration, System & Structure
Module 7: Ethics in Design, Trends, Regulations, Policies, Perspectives
Module 8: Copyright, Patents, Intellectual Property, CoCreation, Open Source
Module 9: Design Synthesis, Value Harvesting, Business Models, Services

Lecture to clarify concepts, vocabulary, and introduce thought leaders for further reading.

List of key reading resources in each module including books and critical papers.

Panel discussion with participation from multi-disciplinary faculty teams from the various colleges in the university.

Individual and group assignments to explore each of the key concepts introduced in the modules through making, modelling, games, crash assignments, charettes and concept exploration and collages.

Three guest lectures to share case studies from services, industry and communication sectors offered after modules three, five and seven.

Final micro project of three week duration dealing with a local problem or opportunity that is chosen by the student and endorsed by two of the faculty out of a team of ten.

Evaluation and presentation of projects and written submissions. Jury review of projects and group sharing sessions.

Feedback on course module by participants.

End of summary

I look forward to your inputs. A list of thought leaders in each of these modules would also be very useful for students to research on their own. Interestingly, many of these thought leaders are perhaps right here on this list and could be part of our extended list of faculty at large.


Quote from course outline
Design is a very old human activity that started when mankind attempted to change their environment for their wellbeing and to enhance their ability to protect themselves. This definition is very broad and it therefore places Design and Design Thinking as the very first tradition of human thought and action long before the evolution of science, art and religion. At this level all critical instances of human development can be attributed to some breakthrough design thought and action which then gets absorbed into the mainstream of human life through general acceptance and wide adoption. Design evolved gradually and reached a very high level of refinement in our villages and our traditional societies in the pre-industrial age. This craft based evolution was shaped by the interplay of time and the ingenuity of the local craftsmanship and leadership. This created a vast body of traditional wisdom that is today still fortunately still embedded in the rural and village life in places such as India.

Design as we know it today it is however the product of thought and deliberate action that is composed by intentions and imagination and its effects are refined by iterative explorations and supported sensitive judgments and convictions where actions come before the provision of proof of concept. Such action is informed by an act of faith which is grounded on the cumulative explorations and insights drawn from these multidisciplinary and multi-modal journeys. Design Thinking is now recognised at a strategic level as a modern business activity that can help — create the artifacts, messages, spaces, organisations, systems, services and governance of the future — all within the constraints of our particular context. The future is unknowable by scientific investigation but it can be envisaged and responsibly chosen through the use of design visualisation of scenarios on the one hand and ethical design judgment on the other using collaborative processes where stakeholder involvement and empathy go hand in hand. The proposed course is an introduction to Design Thinking which is delivered through a set of nine curated lectures, panel discussions to bring multiple perspectives to the debate, three guest lectures from the design profession and a variety of case studies and structured assignments that help internalize these basic concepts. Several minor assignments and a major project serve as a vehicle for participative action that is central to the understanding of design thinking as applied to the resolution of complex opportunities and challenges facing humanity and the planet today.

 This course is an introduction to key concepts and tools of design thinking and the areas of application across fields and levels of intervention that would lead to the creation of unique value in the chosen ecosystem. Understanding that design thinking leads to the creation of value in existing systems as well as unfolds value across various levels of products, services, systems and in intangible offerings such as systems of governance as well as policies and guidelines.

End of quote

http://www.academia.edu/13596219/University_wide_course_on_Design_Thinking

Your comments are welcome

Faculty involved in this course have all volunteered to join as both participants as well as learners so that the assimilation of design thinking concepts and attitudes into the university programmes and activities is facilitated by their involvement.

With warm regards

M P Ranjan

from my iBook at home on the NID Paldi campus

5 July 2015 at 8.55 pm IST


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Prof M P Ranjan 
Adjunct Professor (Design) Ahmedabad University

E8 Faculty Housing
National Institute of Design
Paldi
Ahmedabad 380 007 India

Tel: (res) 91 79 26610054

blog: <http://www.design-for-india.blogspot.com> (current and with downloads)
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Posted by: Ranjan MP <ranjanmp@gmail.com>


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