Designing Together, 12 credits

Contents

The aim of the course is to explore the value and limitations of design in addressing contemporary societal challenges, with particular emphasis on the values created through multidisciplinary collaboration under the concept of design together.

Conceptual Orientation, 3 credits

This module aims to develop knowledge and understanding of community in design and interdisciplinarity. Forms of collaboration within the design field, such as participatory design and co-creation, will be further explored to better understand complex challenges and to work together with students or professionals from other disciplines. What unique values in design can be discovered through working with other disciplines and their practices?

Expected learning outcomes: ELO 1, ELO 3, ELO 4

Theme Week: Sociopolitical Issues, Movements, and Contexts, 1.5 credits

The module focuses on exploring societal sociopolitical issues and phenomena relevant to the design field. The module constitutes a theme that spans across the years of the bachelor's program.

Expected learning outcomes: ELO 2

Applied Project Work, 4,5 credits

In this module, students develop skills in working on projects using problem-based learning in an interdisciplinary environment, with a particular emphasis on collaboration. Through methods for co-creative processes, the design process is carried out using multiple co-creative workshops. Students are given opportunities to practice the design process and deepen their ability to work systematically with design-related problems. In this module, students work in project form with a contemporary complex design challenge.

Expected learning outcomes: ELO 5, ELO 6, ELO 9

Design Presentation, 3 credits

To conclude the course, students communicate their project work and reflections on different forms of interdisciplinary collaboration both orally and visually. The module includes support for planning and delivering an oral presentation of a project. Students also develop their fundamental skills in planning project documentation and in describing a completed design project through text and images in a clear and structured manner.

The module also includes the development of an individual portfolio contribution as a communication tool to describe competencies and level of knowledge.

Expected learning outcomes: ELO 7, ELO 8

Expected learning outcomes

Knowledge and Understanding:

(ELO 1) Demonstrate understanding of and describe the potential roles of design within interdisciplinary collaborations.

(ELO 2) Explore how design is influenced by and can contribute to sociopolitical movements and societal development, with a focus on inclusive and ethical perspectives.

(ELO 3) Demonstrate familiarity with and exemplify the “more-than-human perspective,” global challenges, and wicked problems.

Competence and Skills:

(ELO 4) Apply methods to analyze complex systems related to sustainability challenges.

(ELO 5) Plan, organize, and participate in collaborative workshops with various stakeholders.

(ELO 6) Co-create and evaluate future scenarios to explore and discuss issues related to sustainability.

(ELO 7) Demonstrate and present the visual work of the scenario or concept, and communicate its meaning through storytelling.

Judgement and Approach:

(ELO 8) Reflect on one’s personal and professional role based on interdisciplinary collaboration in both global and local contexts.

(ELO 9) Account for the opportunities and challenges that may arise in co-creative design processes within the concept of “design together.”

Required Knowledge

In addition to general eligibility, admission to the course requires that the student has passed courses amounting to at least 75 credits within the Bachelor’s Programme in Industrial Design (DGIND) at Umeå Institute of Design, or the equivalent. Proficiency in English equivalent to Swedish upper secondary course English B/6.

Form of instruction

The teaching consists of lectures, seminars, workshops, reflections, dialogues, field studies, practical exercises, and activities carried out both in groups and individually. Students are encouraged to support each other’s learning through exploratory and experimental approaches, with a focus on learning-by-doing.

Presentations are conducted in various formats, including oral presentations, visual representations, and written texts. The course includes assignments, and students receive supervision in connection with practical exercises.

Participation in seminars, as well as the presentation of exercises, project work, and reflections, is mandatory.

Examination modes

Each module is assessed continuously throughout the course and includes submissions in the form of written and/or visual material, oral presentations, individually or in groups.

To pass the course, all modules must be completed with a passing grade. Grades are given for each module and for the course as a whole according to the scale Fail (U) or Pass (G).

Adapted assesment

For students who have received a decision on recommended support due to a disability, the examiner may decide to deviate from the form of assessment stated in the course syllabus. Any individual adaptation of the form of assessment shall be considered based on the student’s needs and the course’s expected learning outcomes. For more information, see the Procedure for Support for Students with Disabilities and the Rules for Grades and Examination.

Transfer of credits

A student can receive credit for all or parts of this course if they can present a certificate showing that they have completed and passed an equivalent course. Furthermore, approval by the course responsible teacher is required, based on an assessment of the student’s knowledge level and experience in the subject area concerned. For further information, refer to the Procedure for Credit Transfer on Umeå University's website, www.student.umu.se.

Other regulations

The courses Design Studies 4 and Design Expression 4 are conducted in parallel with the course.