A HOLE IN ONE: BREAKING BARRIERS & CREATING COMMUNITIES BY ENGAGING PRODUCT DESIGN STUDENTS WITH CREATIVE MODEL MAKING & COLLABORATION EVENTS
Year: 2024
Editor: Grierson, Hilary; Bohemia, Erik; Buck, Lyndon
Author: Brook, Emily Elizabeth; Siena, Francesco Luke; Riding, George Thomas
Series: E&PDE
Institution: Nottingham Trent University, United Kingdom
Page(s): 67 - 72
DOI number: 10.35199/EPDE.2024.12
ISBN: 978-1-912254-200
ISSN: 3005-4753
Abstract
WitWithin product design education, encouraging collaboration, creativity, and a sense of community among students is vital, especially during the first few weeks of undergraduate study. Creating a student community in the early weeks is crucial for students to adapt to course cultures, adjust to new environments, and establish friendships. This is essential in creative disciplines where students must collaborate, serve as critical friends and network in a professional practice setting. Post-COVID-19 pandemic, students are increasingly anxious in new environments and reluctant to engage in large events, which is problematic in a sector where ‘community’ is essential. Thus, it’s important to create a collaborative culture quickly within undergraduate programs, however, this is a challenging task with large student cohorts. A strong design community can serve as an incubator for creative ideas, peer learning, and emotional support, helping students thrive in an academic environment that often demands intense problem-solving and innovation. This paper introduces 'A Hole In One,' a Welcome Week project designed to promote student engagement through competitive model-making. Using unique innovative approaches, we introduce core values to first-year Product Design students through experiential learning and collaborative design making. The core aim is to break down barriers and cultivate student communities by challenging student groups to construct a unique crazy golf hole in groups. The collaborative effort resulted in a crazy golf course being assembled for an end of welcome week student competition. Our findings offer educators/institutions guidance in promoting community-based teamwork within design programs, suggesting innovative pedagogical approaches to elevate the educational experience for product design students.
Keywords: Community Building, Creativity, Experiential Learning, Collaboration, Creative Model-Making