Hi Gunnar
Yes I’m sure we could each add quite a few more topics to your list!
I have observed over the years that one of the very real challenges for design students, especially from poorer backgrounds (I was one), is that of achieving sufficient cultural breadth to be able to operate in a field that draws upon or interacts with a number of other disciplines, some technical, some artistic etc. I don’t want to pick on any one discipline, but by way of example I have the sense that PhD students in say chemistry necessarily have great depth but are less concerned with breadth outside their immediate subject boundaries. It is much much more difficult for designers to narrow their boundaries in this way.
But research training has to establish boundaries. It is not possible to cover the whole range of possibilities for this particular study or that particular future project. What is it that is essential for all design research students?
My comment about statistics is because the subject pops up frequently, and it is on my mind at the moment as a colleague and I are attempting to figure out what stats a designer needs and how to teach the topic in a designerly way.
One can imagine fields where a knowledge of dead French philosophers is rather more important than a knowledge of the null hypothesis. Or where a deep knowledge of qualitative analysis techniques will be of greater value in employment than a deep knowledge of statistical techniques. Some may say that it is important to have a wider understanding of the potential uses for a number of techniques, to be able to call upon appropriate resources (including the ability to choose and ask an expert). One of my favourtite authors, Jonathan Grix, stresses the importance of positions arising from ontological and epistemological considerations.
Any curriculum would itself have to take a position on boundaries and content within those boundaries.
Thoughts anyone?
kind regards
David
___________________________________________________________________
David Durling HonFDRS PhD
Professor of Design Research
Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Coventry University, UK
[log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> http://durling.tel <http://durling.tel/>
Vice President IASDR iasdr.org <http://iasdr.org/>
> On 28 Dec 2017, at 01:20, Gunnar Swanson <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>> On Dec 27, 2017, at 1:52 PM, David Durling <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>>
>> One American colleague insisted that ALL PhD students should undertake a class on statistics.
>
> Including English literature, art history, theology, geometry. . . ?
>
>
> Gunnar
>
> Gunnar Swanson
> East Carolina University
> graphic design program
>
> http://www.ecu.edu/cs-cfac/soad/graphic/index.cfm
> [log in to unmask]
>
> Gunnar Swanson Design Office
> 1901 East 6th Street
> Greenville NC 27858
> USA
>
> http://www.gunnarswanson.com
> [log in to unmask]
> +1 252 258-7006
>
>
> -----------------------------------------------------------------
> PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]>
> Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design
> Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design
> -----------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------
PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]>
Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design
Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|