edublogs: Design permeating learning: what inspires you?

March 31, 2008

Design permeating learning: what inspires you?

Design features in almost every aspect of what we do, they way we live, how we interact with other people and how we interact with information. But, arguably, the only place we study design in Scottish secondary schools is in the technology class or workshop. That's changing, and as part of a new nascent project between a few public sector groups and private industry, I've created a new design category on the blog (a few posts in the archive to reclassify now, too) and have put my initial thoughts to what design has inspired me recently.

First, there are a raft of TED Talks which talk about the importance of design. My top eight would have to include:

Saul Griffith: Hardware solutions to everyday problems
Stefan Sagmeister: Yes, design can make you happy
Ross Lovegrove: The power and beauty of organic design
Paul Bennett: Design is in the details
Moshe Safdie: What makes a building unique?
Jonathan Harris: The web's secret stories
John Maeda: Simplicity patterns
David Kelley: The future of design is human-centered

What is it that I like about them? They are about all areas of design, first of all, from the web to daily objects, from the buildings we live in to the iPod that plays our music. They're well presented. They are good design in themselves as presentations.

But talks are not the only sources I would seek out in trying to help design permeate further into our curricula. Some of the most inspiring design pieces for me have been books, namely Simplicity, Smile In The Mind, The Laws of Simplicity, The Art of Looking Sideways, Zag, Words Fail Me, Whatever You Think Think The Opposite...

What design videos, books or objects, photos or places you've been to, have inspired you to do things a bit differently. I'm guessing that the design focus frequently blogged out by Christian, Krysia, Stuart and Dan might lead to a few great suggestions to help us find even more focus on what we're thinking about.

March 31, 2008 in Design | Permalink