Abstract
A renewed interest, propelled by the European Bauhaus initiative, has sparked a re-evaluation of design education in response to the growing complexity and interdisciplinary demands of design, encompassing both craftsmanship and academic discipline. While ongoing discussions focus on school types, curriculum development, and pedagogical approaches, there is an oversight in examining the expertise profiles of design educators. These profiles encapsulate the competencies and proficiencies of teaching staff, profoundly influencing the ethos, objectives, philosophy, and substance of education institutions. This paper proposes a theoretical framework delineating three archetypal expertise profiles for design educators: design practitioner, design researcher, and hybrid, nuanced to reflect the multifaceted nature of design expertise. Drawing insights from design history, theory, and professional experience, this framework holds promise in guiding the cultivation of expertise profiles, prioritizing proficiency enhancement, curation, and recognizing the value of hybrid profiles. Our aspiration is to elevate the quality, relevance, and adaptability of design education amidst the evolving landscape of contemporary design.
Keywords
design expertise profiling; design education; design competency; design proficiency; community of practice
DOI
https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.649
Citation
Baha, E., Dorta, T., and Gauthier, P. (2024) Expertise profiling in design schools: A theoretical framework, in Gray, C., Ciliotta Chehade, E., Hekkert, P., Forlano, L., Ciuccarelli, P., Lloyd, P. (eds.), DRS2024: Boston, 23–28 June, Boston, USA. https://doi.org/10.21606/drs.2024.649
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Conference Track
Research Paper
Included in
Expertise profiling in design schools: A theoretical framework
A renewed interest, propelled by the European Bauhaus initiative, has sparked a re-evaluation of design education in response to the growing complexity and interdisciplinary demands of design, encompassing both craftsmanship and academic discipline. While ongoing discussions focus on school types, curriculum development, and pedagogical approaches, there is an oversight in examining the expertise profiles of design educators. These profiles encapsulate the competencies and proficiencies of teaching staff, profoundly influencing the ethos, objectives, philosophy, and substance of education institutions. This paper proposes a theoretical framework delineating three archetypal expertise profiles for design educators: design practitioner, design researcher, and hybrid, nuanced to reflect the multifaceted nature of design expertise. Drawing insights from design history, theory, and professional experience, this framework holds promise in guiding the cultivation of expertise profiles, prioritizing proficiency enhancement, curation, and recognizing the value of hybrid profiles. Our aspiration is to elevate the quality, relevance, and adaptability of design education amidst the evolving landscape of contemporary design.