1) The document discusses the need for developing design literacy and competence in society. It argues that we currently have systems designed in the 19th century that need transforming. 2) Design uses knowledge to create desired situations from existing problems. Understanding systems as interconnected problems is key to their redesign. 3) Acquiring design literacy would empower people by enabling them to make judgments about design decisions and their implications.

1. Bela H. Banathy,
1996 by Plenum Press
in New York
Part 1: Understanding Design

2. “We are entering the
21st century with
organisations designed
th
during the 19 ”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/86624586@N00/10187684

3. Activity
Review 20 definitions of design and
synthesies/construct your own definition.

4. “Design uses knowledge to
create what should be; it is the
core of all professional activities.
Design is the intellectual activity
of changing existing situations
into desired ones.”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/497851367

5. “The systems design approach
seeks to understand the
problem situation as a system
of interconnected,
interdependent, and
interacting problems”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/irschick/2975202054

6. Activity
Select a socio-technical system of your
interest and stipulate fields of knowledge
that might contribute to the knowledge
base of engaging in the (re)design of your
selected system.

7. “Messy systems have
properties that none of their
parts have. These properties
are lost when the system is
taken apart”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/uggboy/5181846719

8. “It is a mistake to begin design
by focusing on the problem and
leave thinking about the
solution to later stages. Over
the course of design, often
designers are thrown back to
square one”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/linhngan/2849874977

10. “A design literate population will
be able to make judgments about
the instrumental and social
effectiveness of design decisions.
It can make judgments about the
socio-economic and political
implications of design decisions”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tubb/4385856884

11. “Design literacty enables us to
understand what design is as a
human activity, what design does
and how it does it, what the role of
design is in society, what the
impacts of design are on human
quality and betterment”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/modenadude/5256894008

12. “We have two choices. We can
relegate authority and
responsibility to others who
represent us, as we do today. Or
we can empower ourselves by
acquiring design literacy and
competence”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/toniblay/92083733

13. “The primary generator is formed
very early in the design process as
a set of initiating concepts. It helps
designers make the creative leap
between problem formulation and
a solution concept”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/lrargerich/4122613710

14. “Broad design requirements in
combination with the primary
generator help designers arrive at
initial conjecture that can be
tested as an interactive process.
Conjectures and requirements
mutually shape each other”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hamed/2070859805

15. “Designers seek
solutions by synthesis,
scientists by analysis”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kurafire/250686996

16. “Ideal designs should be
technologically feasible,
operationally viable, and
capable of rapid learning
and development” -Ackoff
http://www.flickr.com/photos/genista/3484416

17. 1)Look at the unstructured problem situation
2)Develop a richest possible structured picture
3)Speculate about systems with relevant solutions
4)Develop abstract representations (requirements)
5)Compare conceptual model with problem
6)Identify feasible and desirable changes
7)Take action and introduce changes
http://www.flickr.com/photos/pensiero/217713887

18. “The behaviour of designers
depends on their image of
society and the image they
have about the societal
function of the system they
wish to create”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/danielavladimirova/4922367899/

19. “An image of a new system will
be revolutionary, but the move
toward it can be evolutionary.
The image is speculative and
serves to trigger further
exploration and refinement”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/belowred/507227632

21. “Incremental adaptations or
restructuring of our existing
systems is not working for us. We
have to transform our systems and
learn to change and coevolve with
our constantly changing
environment”
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eole/380316678

23. Activity
Run a design process
●
Vision-quest:
●
What kind of society do we wish?
●
What is our contribution to this vision?
●
Initial exploration:
●
Study various dimensions: economic,
sociocultural, sociotechnical,
technological, organisational, scientific...
●
Revisit the vision statement
●
Define system boundaries & requirements
●
Formulate collectively agreed core values
●
First image of the system:
●
Build a 'macro-view' of the ideal system
●
Evaluate against requirements

26. Group techniques
Nominal Group Technique (NGT):
●
●
Formulation of triggering questions
●
Silent individual ideation in writing
●
Record and display to the group
●
Discussion and clarification of ideas
●
Selection and designation of ideas
Role Assignment:
●
●
Guardian of participation
●
Guardian of focus
●
Guardian of selected group technique
●
Guardian of documentation
●
Guardian of tolerance and values
●
Guardian of motivation
●
Guardian of coordination

27. Group techniques
Heartstorming:
●
●
Express the subjective, value-laden
aspirations and idealistic dreams of
the participants
●
Create a common vision
●
Requirements:
●
Attractive
●
Powerful
●
Clear and focused
●
Delphi
●
Interpretive Structural Modeling
●
Option Profile and Option Field
●
Attributes Porfile and Attributes Field
●
Trade-off Analysis
●
CogniScope

28. http://www.flickr.com/photos/nimrodcooper/2007228257

29. Activity
Construct a statement of 2 pages that
you could use in discussing the necessity
of developing design literacy and
competence

30. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jenjoaquin/1100098716