Design Technology

Nature of the Subject

Design, and the resultant development of new technologies, has given rise to profound changes in society: transforming how we access and process information; how we adapt our environment; how we communicate with others; how we are able to solve problems; how we work and live.

Technology emerged before science, and materials were used to produce useful and decorative artifacts long before there was an understanding of why materials had different properties that could be used for different purposes. In the modern world the reverse is the case, and designers need to have an understanding of the possibilities offered by science to realize the full potential of what they can design in terms of new technologies, products and systems.

Design is the link between innovation and creativity, taking thoughts and exploring the possibilities and constraints associated with products or systems, allowing them to redefine and manage the generation of further thought through prototyping, experimentation and adaptation. It is human-centred and focuses on the needs, wants and limitations of the end user.

Competent design is within the reach of all. Through the practice and application of well-established design principles and methodologies, individuals can increase the likelihood that a design will be successful. These principles taken together make up what is known as the design cycle.

Designing requires an individual to be imaginative and creative, while having a substantial knowledge base of important factors that will aid or constrain the process. Decision-making needs to be supported by adequate and appropriate research and investigation. Designers must think “out of the box” to develop innovative solutions, while thinking “in the box” to conform to requirements set by clients or research.

Both the ideas of design and the process of design can only occur in a human context. Design involves multidisciplinary teams and stakeholders with different backgrounds and traditions. It is important to understand, however, that to design is to be involved in a community of inquiry with certain common beliefs, methodologies, understandings and processes. Design is multidisciplinary and draws from many areas including the natural and social sciences, mathematics and arts.

Diploma Programme design technology aims to develop internationally minded people whose enhanced understanding of design and the technological world can facilitate our shared guardianship of the planet and create a better world.

It focuses on analysis, design development, synthesis and evaluation. The creative tension between theory and practice is what characterizes design technology within the Diploma Programme sciences group.

Inquiry and problem-solving are at the heart of the subject. Diploma Programme design technology requires the use of the design cycle as a tool, which provides the methodology used to structure the inquiry and analysis of problems, the development of feasible solutions, and the testing and evaluation of the solution. In Diploma Programme design technology, a solution can be defined as a model, prototype, product or system that students have developed independently.

Diploma Programme design technology achieves a high level of design literacy by enabling students to develop critical-thinking and design skills, which they can apply in a practical context. While designing may take various forms, it will involve the selective application of knowledge within an ethical framework.

A well-planned design programme enables students to develop not only practical skills but also strategies for creative and critical thinking.