84908 Product Design Honours Project Research and Development A
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Subject handbook information prior to 2025 is available in the Archives.
Credit points: 12 cp
Result type: Grade and marks
There are course requisites for this subject. See access conditions.
Description
This subject constitutes part one of the design research component of the Honours program where students address an issue that aligns to a particular field of the product design discipline. The studio leader supervises and supports the student in identifying appropriate opportunities for product design intervention that moves the profession forward in new and ethically responsible ways. This is a project-driven subject with a focus on research that develops knowledge, strategies and practices to support the development of a new product design and often new product design processes. Students gather and analyse information that details the specific field of inquiry, the principle ideas, historical data, current literature and case studies in the development of a written dissertation that records the design process and design thinking in a structured way. The subject opperates in connection with 84905 Product Design Honours Project Conceptualisation and focuses on the production of the first half of the written dissertation. Students are expected to engage with appropriate research methodologies, be proactive in developing and pursuing their project, and demonstrate capacity for innovative thinking.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
On successful completion of this subject, students should be able to:
| 1. | Challenge product design convention and speculate future human-product interactions. |
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| 2. | Set knowledge directives, apply theoretical frameworks and adopt a practice-oriented research methodology. |
| 3. | Understand the use of prototyping as a central research device in knowledge-intensive design. |
| 4. | Develop an understanding of ethical practices and value for sustainable human cultures and environmental ecologies. |
| 5. | Professional and accurate written communication of a knowledge-intensive product design project. |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes to the following Course Intended Learning Outcomes:
- Commitment to ethical practices (A.2)
- Professional attitude to clarity and accuracy of written and oral communication (C.1)
- Ability for problem setting and problem solving (I.1)
- Ability to demonstrate industry-specific practical and digital skills (P.1)
- Analysis and synthesis of complex contexts for design (R.2)
Teaching and learning strategies
This subject includes active learning experiences where ongoing feedback is provided weekly in all on-campus engagements including an interactive lecture session and studios. It is therefore imperative that students attend all on-campus engagements.
This subject uses an enquiry-based learning strategy that involves students researching and developing their own solutions to complex design challenges. The subject may use design professionals as mentors and guest lecturers to ensure that all content and tasks are relevant to current professional practice in a global context.
The subject combines one interactive lecture session with a design studio per week. The interactive lecture sessions will provide knowledge relevant to the subject that will enable students to work on their design projects. The knowledge provided is information on the application of theory and methods in the conduct of practice-based research to be applied in the development of a design concept and hypothesis. Prior to each lecture, students are required to prepare material to be critically analysed in connection with their design project and in relation to the weekly lecture content. Students will be able to do this by reviewing reference material relevant to each interactive lecture session. The weekly lecture topic and where to find reference materials is listed in the program. In the studios students will work on their design projects with a mentor. At the beginning of each studio the mentor will discuss with the entire group the challenges they are facing with their projects and will facilitate collaborative discussions. The mentor will be reviewing the work weekly and will provide feedback verbally. It is the students responsibility to record any feedback provided in studio. Students will be expected to actively participate in collaborative peer review feedback exercises. Students will also be supported by the Level 2, Faculty Workshop in the construction of presentation models and prototypes.
Grades for final design submissions will be provided through Re.View.
Content (topics)
This subject addresses the following issues and topics:
- Conduct sociocultural research for responsible design interventions.
- Develop conceptual proposals that challenge existing design conventions.
- Engage with theory to frame a practice-oriented research methodology.
- Prototyping as a key method of critically and collaboratively analysing concepts.
- Record and prepare clear written and visual communication of process.
- Meetings and presentations that demonstrate week-by-week progress.
- Develop a design language that fosters debate.
- Build on communication skills for the conduct of research and the explanation of outcomes.
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Formulating the project
| Intent: | To identify an opportunity for design intervention to be addressed through a practice-orientated research methodology. A project idea must be proposed through the conduct of formative research and include a (draft) hypothesis in connection with (very) early product concepts. A hypothesis is a carefully worded proposition based on limited evidence and forms the starting point for further investigation. Proposals shall be presented by students in studio. | ||||||||||||
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| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 1 and 5 This task also addresses the following course intended learning outcomes that are linked with a code to indicate one of the five CAPRI graduate attribute categories (e.g. C.1, A.3, P.4, etc.): C.1 and R.2 | ||||||||||||
| Type: | Presentation | ||||||||||||
| Groupwork: | Individual | ||||||||||||
| Weight: | 25% | ||||||||||||
| Criteria linkages: |
SLOs: subject learning objectives CILOs: course intended learning outcomes |
Assessment task 2: Research design and hypothesis
| Intent: | Complete Chapter 2: Literature review and Chapter 3: Research questions and hypothesis, edited and formatted in a style intended for the entire book. The scope and intention of the project is established at this point, setting a direction whilst remaining open enough for iterative design. Your hypothesis for the project should be further developed and more appropriately worded now that you have gathered, analysed and interpreted new information and theory as part of your Literature Review. | ||||||||||||||||
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| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 2, 4 and 5 This task also addresses the following course intended learning outcomes that are linked with a code to indicate one of the five CAPRI graduate attribute categories (e.g. C.1, A.3, P.4, etc.): I.1, P.1 and R.2 | ||||||||||||||||
| Type: | Report | ||||||||||||||||
| Groupwork: | Individual | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 30% | ||||||||||||||||
| Criteria linkages: |
SLOs: subject learning objectives CILOs: course intended learning outcomes |
Assessment task 3: Research methodology
| Intent: | Complete the front section your R&D book that includes the Abstract, Chapter 1: Introduction and Chapter 4: Research Methodology. Also include updated versions of Chapter 2: Literature Review and Chapter 3: Research Questions and Hypothesis. Work with your studio mentor in the development of the research and the conduct of the project. At the end of semester an evaluation of the project is conducted with specific concern for your demonstrated understanding of design as a part of doing research. The written work in the book must be of an acceptable academic standard and be referenced appropriately. Additionally, the book must be visually sophisticated and include images and diagrams. The document is to be submitted as a digital file. Instructions will be provided on UTS Online. | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Objective(s): | This task addresses the following subject learning objectives: 2, 3, 4 and 5 This task also addresses the following course intended learning outcomes that are linked with a code to indicate one of the five CAPRI graduate attribute categories (e.g. C.1, A.3, P.4, etc.): A.2, C.1, I.1 and R.2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Type: | Report | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Groupwork: | Individual | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight: | 45% | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Criteria linkages: |
SLOs: subject learning objectives CILOs: course intended learning outcomes |
Minimum requirements
Lecture and studio attendance each week is expected. All assessments and attendance at assessible presentations is compulsary.