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The Open University ’ s repository of research publications and other research outputs Design at a distance Conference Item
| Content Provider | Semantic Scholar |
|---|---|
| Author | Holden, Georgina |
| Copyright Year | 2012 |
| Abstract | The Open University has been teaching design at a distance for three decades. In this time delivery mechanisms have changed from non-interactive broadcasts to interactive media. A new generation of courses is emerging taught entirely online. This offers many challenges and opportunities This paper describes three tools that will be used in a new, level 1 course. Knowledge mapping, animated screen capture and an online studio space, OpenDesignStudio, which is a development of the Flickr photo-sharing interface. The advantage of the almost ubiquitous use of Web2 technologies is that students are communicating more and the potential for these technologies to support collaborative work in a learning environment is growing. The paper also discusses how assessment strategies might be re-considered to recognise and credit students who are increasingly using web resources to aid and augment their learning. The use of knowledge maps offers a way for students to bring together the materials they find for assessment tasks in one place and to relate and link those materials together. The use of animated screen capture offers the opportunity to present ideas and reflect upon process at a distance and hone communication and presentation skills. The online studio allows for peer support and review in text and audio-visually and also provides an arena in which the tutor can check on progress and offer individual advice at a distance. Introduction For more than 30 years The Open University has faced the challenge of teaching a diverse group of learners design, at a distance. This has been achieved through specially created course materials that present the requisite knowledge and skills in a mainly textual form. These materials are written by full time academics, who, until the advent of email, had little formal opportunity for contact with students other than occasional residential schools. The face-to-face contact that exists is between student and part-time tutor and this tutor is also the marker for assessment. Face to face contact is in general limited to half a dozen occasions per year. Central academics are thus tasked to create materials that stand alone, and can be studied by isolated learners with limited access to equipment and resources in their home learning environment. Despite these constraints the OU has succeeded in teaching many thousands of students fundamental design principles, knowledge and skills thorough a combination of theoretical and practical work. There are currently approximately 1000 students a year taking the design courses and this number is estimated to double next year when a new on-line course is introduced. The design courses contribute to a number of awards within the University, including the BSc Technology, the BA Business Studies, BSc in Computing and Design and a number of diplomas. There has, in thirty four years, been significant evolution of both the content and the delivery mechanisms for courses. My own involvement with the OU design group spans most of that 30 years and in that time I have held a number of roles from undergraduate and postgraduate student through to tutor, course manager, regional staff tutor and central academic. This experience has given me a deep understanding of the perspectives of most of the significant actors engaged with this distance, design education. The insights that are presented in this paper are grounded in my experience as a reflective practitioner, working to meet the changing needs of all those involved. Design at the Open University The first words of the first Open University Design course, Man-Made Futures (T262), launched in 1975 were a quote from Victor Papanek, "The main trouble with design schools seems to be that they teach too much design and not enough about the social, economic and political environment in which design takes place." [1] |
| File Format | PDF HTM / HTML |
| Alternate Webpage(s) | http://oro.open.ac.uk/19211/2/56F79C43.pdf |
| Language | English |
| Access Restriction | Open |
| Content Type | Text |
| Resource Type | Article |
