The trip aimed to align educators with current thought in the design industry, as they visited living classrooms such as the Louvre Museum and renowned design institutes in Paris and Milan such as Les Ateliers Design University, Design Academy Eindhoven and the Domus Academy and Paolo Rizzatto Studio.

Brimming with fresh inspiration, the teachers returned equipped to impart the most up-to-date design methodologies to their students in Design & Technology classes. Immersing themselves in the cultural movements that shaped key design philosophies, the teachers gained first-hand insights into the evolution of design education that would help them better catalyse the learning process for their own students.

Recognising that this return to the ‘drawing board’ strengthened their capacity to distil fresh ideas into design lessons, the teachers named their group INIZIO - Italian for "the beginning", "the first step" or the inception of an idea or movement.

At Design Feast, the teachers set up installation art works that illustrate design elements gained from the trip.

Learning and teaching the design process

One key lesson from the trip was that there is only one design process but many ways of teaching it. At Les Ateliers Design University, Aw Yong Wai Keet of Canberra Secondary found that students were very open in discussions and receptive to feedback during the investigative and brainstorming steps. He was particularly impressed by the intensive use of models and sketches before the actual production. “Through simple modelling, the students could check on the design’s feasibility and further improve on the idea,” he said. “This is one learning point that I would like to incorporate in my lessons.”

Meanwhile, Christina Toh of Fuchun Secondary discovered that Domus Academy operates on the RICH concept: R for Real Problems, I for Interaction, C for collaboration and H for hands-on exposure. Instead of closed classrooms, the academy has large open spaces to allow students and teachers to work and interact in small groups. “Collaboration with companies in product design gives the students opportunities to work on real life problems,” she quipped.

Another vital principle is functionality and design’s impact on society and ecology. Having learnt that the purpose of design “is to make something better”, Toh Hong Seng from Christ Church Secondary now seeks to reinforce to his students the message that design must “enhance or improve our lifestyle.”

Observing that the key factors to product design in Europe are usability and sustainability, Ms Toh noted that lots of consideration is put into making products for people and creating a human touch.

And giving students the freedom and platform to explore and interact is crucial to catalysing creative results. Mdm Sung Mee Har, Principal of Woodgrove Secondary recalled that at Les Ateliers Design University, “child’s play, in particular, curiosity and free exploration, is incorporated into their curriculum.” Students of different age groups and cultural backgrounds work together and a personalised learning approach that focuses on individual growth is adopted. Likewise, at Eindhoven, the Design Academy, she saw how the curriculum strives to “inspire, stimulate creativity and challenge the students to develop daring concepts and to realise individual and unconventional designs.”

After the trip, Woodgrove Secondary hosted a Design FEAST where the trip participants presented their impressions to students and colleagues through a photo exhibition, a display of installation art works and an Elderly-In-Transit Project that showcased urban design features that cater to ageing citizens.

For INIZIO, the trip’s end marked a new start in their Design & Technology classes. Using the resources they obtained from Europe, the teachers refined their teaching packages and explored new classroom techniques such as combining classes of different levels to gain more diverse input. Taking a leaf from Domus Academy’s RICH book, teachers with different expertise and interests will present seminars to offer students multi-disciplinary perspectives on design. At Woodgrove Secondary, MOE’s Centre of Excellence in Design and Technology, a Material Resource Room is being set up as an artefact-encyclopaedia to help students uncover the design principles behind everyday objects.