Experience design is a growing field that attracts many designers' attention. One of the challenges of experience design is to be emphatic with the users and be critical about evaluating the results of the design process. This challenge requires several skills and knowledge, which the designers could gain during their higher education. While…

Design activities are gaining interest as rich contexts for learning science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) subjects. STEM teachers may find this challenging however, as designing requires support that they are not used to providing. In a subject like chemistry, teachers would have to balance creativity and responsibility for the…

A fascinating and rich landscape of personal views and approaches can be seen in architectural design and in architectural design education. This variation may be confusing for students. This paper focuses on the question: is the framework of generic elements that we developed for explicating the design process helpful to compare the differences…

Historical investigation anchors architectural and urban practice. Analyzing two sets of questionnaires distributed in different class settings, this paper explores two questions: how do design students currently learn about architectural history, and how do they translate this knowledge into their design practice? First, tentative conclusions are…

Preliminary empirical research conducted by the leading author has shown that design students using biological analogies, or models across different contexts, often misinterpreted these, intentionally or unintentionally, during design. By copying shape or form without integrating the main function of the mimicked biological model, students failed…

Technological design is a core activity in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education. During the design process, students often employ research activities to enhance the quality of their design decisions and to rise above a mere trial-and-error approach to designing. There are many functions of research within the design…

Research and design activities are becoming more important in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and D&T (design and technology) education. Research and design are often taught separately from each other, while in professional STEM practices, many projects are neither 'research only' or 'design only'--they are both. In…

Iteration during the design process is an essential element. Engineers optimize their design by iteration. Research on iteration in Primary Design Education is however scarce; possibly teachers believe they do not have enough time for iteration in daily classroom practices. Spontaneous playing behavior of children indicates that iteration fits in…

The paradigm of design is changing. Designers now need to be equipped with the skills and knowledge that will enable them to participate in the global move towards a sustainable future. The challenges arise as Design for Sustainability deals with very complex and often contradictory issues. Collaborative learning experiences recognise that these…

This paper presents a mixed methods study in which 77 students and 3 teachers took part, that investigated the practice of Learning by Design (LBD). The study is part of a series of studies, funded by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research, that aims to improve student learning, teaching skills and teacher training. LBD uses the…

In 2007, the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering of the Delft University of Technology introduced a new bachelor program. Based on theories of learning and instruction three design principles were used to develop an approach that aims to make it easier for students to bridge the gap between theoretical design engineering courses and practical…

The methodological approach to technology education is illustrated by the case study of the development Active Matrix Liquid Crystal Displays in a small Dutch company. Problems emerge when this development is not dealt with according to nature of technologies involved. In technology education such insights can be used to prevent practices in which…