Emerging technology is developing at an exponential rate and has a direct impact on design education. This boom in innovation has been dubbed the fourth industrial revolution (4IR). This economic initiative was framed at the 2015 World Economic Forum by Klaus Schwab and has been echoed since 2016 by South African politicians as a government and education policy transformation catalyst to South Africa’s struggling economy. Academic scholars are critical about these objectives against the face of high unemployment, poor education and developing foundational skills in South Africa. Educators are confronted with very little support to address this technological development, often leaving design educators with scepticism.

In an earlier paper presented at a DEFSA conference, Munro called for a debate on and the development of a research ethics code tailored specifically for design – as opposed to simply importing, applying or borrowing ethical principles applicable (and as such possibly more suitable) to the medical and scientific disciplines.

The aim of this paper is to advocate likewise for a tailored research ethics code, but, more comprehensively, aimed at researchers working in the fields of art, design, as well as photography.

There has never been a better time for tertiary curricula to provide a learning framework for the development of personal as well as professional ethics and accountability. Research shows that tertiary education today should address the development and transformation of the self (Mezirow

Wicked problems are wicked because, amongst other things, understanding problems as existing in society, at the intersection of many possible points of views held by a variety of potential stakeholders introduces indeterminacy. Ethical frameworks in this context may also be multiple and may exist in harmony or dis-harmony alongside each other.

In order to produce skilled design graduates schools regularly restructure their curricula to develop knowledge  characterized  by  continuous  advancements  applicable  to  the  ever-changing  design industry. New schools are in demand and a concern arises that these offer little more than specialized software training and do not sufficiently prepare students to become empathetic, thoughtful individuals that may serve the needs of society.  Former president of the International Council of Graphic Design Associations (ICOGRADA), designer and educator Jorge Frascara (2008, sp) confirms this:

Participation of students from disadvantaged backgrounds in South African higher education has been below acceptable levels and recent reports indicate that it is still in decline. Much has been discussed about the link of under-preparedness to poor performance of students. However not much has been discussed about under-preparedness of universities curricula for teaching an evolving student population in the design disciplines.

Although based in various design disciplines the concept of user centred design (UCD) and "design with intent" has been linked to the notion of "human-centred principles", "design for behavioural change", "persuasion technologies" and "interaction design" at international design institutions for some time.

Understanding how user behaviour can influence technological solutions is critical for designers wishing to effectively tackle social issues such as eco-solutions, effective wayfinding design as well as the design of information brochures/pamphlets. Designers influence behaviour from a distance through the creative products and services that are produced based on their understanding of user behaviour.

The diverse tautology applied to graphic design means different things depending on the perspective from which it is viewed and has become the topic for much debate in recent times. This is of particular relevance to the tertiary educational arena in South Africa, where universities (including Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU) which provides the context for this paper) are faced with the dual spectres of programme re-curriculation and Higher Education Qualifications Framework (HEQF)1 level compliancy in the near future and graphic design programmes will have to reconsider their relevance in a changing/changed educational and business paradigm.

This paper questions how we teach and practise within our various specialities without a holistic understanding of the self and our humanity.

The predominant focus of contemporary Art and Design education is visual, rather than written, communication. This paper explores recent shifts in Art and Design curricula, which have brought students’ engagement with the written word to a bare minimum. Drawing on my recent experience teaching at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design (CSM), Winchester School of Art, University of Southampton (WSA) and the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), I will discuss how the written word may begin to take up a more productive place in Art and Design teaching.

The study investigates appropriate approaches to new curriculum development and educational practice at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT).This is necessary in order to ensure success of the multi-cultural student body and facilitate the creation of ethical and culturally unique design solutions by the Bachelors of Technology (BTech) Fashion and Surface Design learners at CPUT.

By using the research dissertations and studio work of six learners as examples, possibilities of best practice and challenges with regard to this diverse context are highlighted, as the success of these learners in the 2006 BTech programme is analysed in a qualitative manner.

Full Title: A short story: towards developing a Personal and Professional Development (PPD) curriculum for first-year design students

As South Africans, we have often taken a somewhat perverse pride in how complex our society is. It is with a macabre delight that we talk about our population of approximately 43 million people being made up of about 8 different cultural groups speaking 11 official languages and practicing many different religions. We have 1st and 3rd world infrastructures, incredibly diverse literacy levels and ethnic affiliations and we are in the process of re-inventing ourselves as a nation and a new democracy. How complex, how colourful, how diverse we pride ourselves in being.

On Monday, June 5 2006, on the front page of the Business Report, it was stated that, “Schools fail to teach the basics, MPs hear”. The article proclaimed that young people were leaving school without having reading or numeracy skills, and because of that businesses were often unable to train young recruits. Each year, fewer than half of the million children who started at grade 1 will register for grade 12. Even those who leave after grade 12 do not have the basic skills to seek work (Hamlyn, 2006: 1).

Some of those school leavers may become our students.

This paper will look at the conceptual understandings of design education in South Africa with reference to the Fenwick monogram (2001). Learning, according to Fenwick, is categorised into five perspectives: constructivist, critical cultural, psychoanalytic, situative, and enactivist.

I believe we are living in a time of opportunity. Democratically established and constitutionally sound, South Africans have created a platform for opportunity on an unprecedented scale. Within this framework South African designers are beginning to show their mettle.

Over the last few years we have seen some exciting work from both established and emerging designers in a variety of disciplines from fashion to product design. We have always been inventive creatures. We are continually solving problems and developing new technologies at an astounding rate. We are forward looking beings set on breaking new frontiers. We have the ability to predict many of our future needs.

When new media and interactive design were added to the traditional graphic design curriculum at the University of Potchefstroom this year, I became keenly aware of the current complexties in the industry and the difficulties involved in teaching students a wide range of specialized skills with limited funds, limited expertise and in limited time. I certainly sensed what Lorianne Justice termed the ‘big squeeze’ when she refered to the ever expanding knowledge base that needs to be accommodated in limited time in current design curriculums (Justice 2000: 49).

The University of Botswana is proposing to introduce an undergraduate degree program in Industrial Design. It is inevitable that a new program must have local relevance while not loosing touch with the global realities. This paper discusses the need for the course, the proposed program structure and its rationale within Botswana’s social, economic and industrial setting. 

The submission discusses global factors that were considered in designing the program. It also highlights the implementation plan in terms of student enrolment and their exits profile, staff, resources both existing and projected, and industry collaboration.