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CREATING
INTERDISCIPLINARITY
Janetta
Mitchell McCoy
School of Design
College of Architecture and Environmental Planning
Arizona State University Tempe, Arizona
Educators in the design disciplines speak of the positive value of interdisciplinary courses; however, creating interesting, assessable projects and assignments appropriate for students from diverse backgrounds can be an overwhelming challenge. With a focus on theoretical concepts of creativity and student-centered learning, this presentation describes a unique method for developing such assignments for an undergraduate course in design. Students representing each of the five majors within the college participated in a five day workshop with the goal of developing assignments to support student learning for each major: graphic design, industrial design, interior design, architecture, and landscape planning and design. Facilitated by the course instructor and working as a team, students developed four innovative comprehensive assignments with evaluation criteria that were relevant and appropriate for all participants' areas of interest. The workshop included a comprehensive overview of course content as well as team building exercises, brainstorming, creative problem solving, and hypothesis testing. At the conclusion of the workshop, the new assignments were clearly defined and described with evaluation criteria. Photography and field notes, together with the students' own sketches and displayed thinking documented their creative processes. Outcomes from this workshop are wide ranging. Not only has it improved the quality of the assignments and grading system for the targeted course, these assignments will provide opportunity and encouragement for students from diverse disciplines to begin important dialogue and interaction between design disciplines. The workshop produced new and innovative ways of teaching an interdisciplinary design course for undergraduates, as well as providing an opportunity for the workshop participants to develop interdisciplinary colleagues, to become familiar with techniques for teaching beyond their own design disciplines, and to enhance understanding of their own creative processes.