Reflections - 13

Sunday 6th March 2011

Edd & Roz came round for a meal and drinks, and we spent the evening sorting out plans for VW trips for the year, including summer -  two weeks in France. I'm a bit worried about the dog, though - we'll have to find kennels for him, and I won't be happy leaving him.

Which brings me back to reflection. I had big promises about spending my dog walking time reflecting on education and study and students, and so far I have failed to deliver these promises. So far, I have whinged about many things, but there has not been much reflecting going on... I must try harder!

So in the spirit of trying harder, I have been thinking about my Critical analysis of a pedagogic text, and I have been thinking about which texts I use in my subject area. I like the idea of using something I am interested in and which I could find useful in my sessions. I have said that I would like to do something about Wertheimer and the Gestalt Theory (ideas can only be understood as part of a bigger picture), but I am really struggling to find the original text. I have found an online transcript of his address to the Kant Society from 1924, but I am not sure if this is enough. I'll keep digging around in the library, to see if I can find something more suitable. As for my innovative teaching session - I have had some thoughts about this... I want to create a studio environment within a session and facilitate a small team to work on a design scenario. I have a group in mind, and I need to promote one member of the group to be a studio manager. I will teach this group tomorrow, so I will get them to start thinking about how they want to manage this process. I want them to have a total studio experience, and I want to remain very hands off throughout the process - a bit like a Lord of the Flies situation (but without pigs, spears or dead pilots, hopefully)!

I need to ensure that the group are aware that their roles and responsibilities to the team are all assessable, and that they should take the scenario seriously. I will have a look at the learning outcomes and see if any of these can be made to fit the scenario.  I reckon that two sessions will be ample time to cover any brief, if we are to simulate a genuine studio setup... Six hours on a job in industry? Luxury!

I will also need to come up with a brief which is challenging enough to keep a group of 14 designers occupied and enable them to all have some creative input into the process. This may be the biggest challenge...