Design research is an integral part of undergraduate studies and although at this level it does not compete with postgraduate research, every undergraduate design cohort, in my experience of marking essays, includes examples of imaginative and innovative research by thesis that would deserve a broader audience beyond the immediate institution.
In widening the perspective of undergraduate design research beyond the remit of the traditional thesis, however, interaction technologies (Web 2.0) are creating networked environments introducing new practices and channels of communication spawning new spaces, processes and forms for research and enquiry.
This new climate of online experimentation and discovery suggests that institutions encourage and support the widest possible dissemination of students’ work, including research by thesis. If not, students, individually or collectively, may simply bypass the institution and gain a broader audience through social software (YouTube, MySpace, blogging etc).
Moreover, from my teaching and learning observation, by enlarging their audience students create collaborative opportunities for physical and virtual, local and global experiences that not only benefit their studies but also enhance design awareness generally.
More widely, then, can institution-based design research afford not to be part of open source development through online user-generated content (UGC), thereby also embracing sustainable and socially inclusive design? Indeed, inclusive design research!
Ben Jonson
(PhD)
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