BACKGROUND STUDIO-BASED LEARNING.pdf

1 A re-examination of graphic design pedagogy, and its application at the University of Wollongong: Towards a PhD in design education Biography: Grant Ellmers currently lectures in graphic design and digital media in the Faculty of Creative Arts at the University of Wollongong. Between 1999-2002 Grant lectured in graphic design at the University of Canberra where he was primarily responsible for developing the new media course component. Grant obtained his Masters of Visual Arts from the Australia National University in 2000 where he investigated issues of national identity contrasting the Australian indigenous and non-indigenous perspective within a post-colonial framework. Grant’s current research focus is design pedagogy and is currently enrolled in a Masters by Research in the Faculty of Education at the University of Wollongong. BACKGROUND STUDIO-BASED LEARNING Studio-based learning has its origins in architectural design education and has been informed by a number of historic educational approaches. These include the Quincy system dating from the late 1800s, John Dewey’s work with the development of the Laboratory School in Chicago during the late 1800s, and the platoon system developed by William Wirt at the Horace Mann High School in Indiana during the early 1900s (Lackey 1999). Lackey (1999) outlines the fundamental features of studio-based teaching in the architecture studio; setting the design problem, periodic lectures, critique of student work (4 distinct types - desk critique, pin up, interim/midterm critique, and final critique), and assessment by design jury. 2 The studio-based learning process is outlined by Kvan (2001) in figure 1. Firstly there is the formulation of the problem, then exploration of solutions through action-based activity, followed by problem re-examination, and finally to jury for examination. The first three steps are recycled until a satisfactory solution is