IN-PERSON MADRID FOCUS ON PEDAGOGY. SECTION A

Abstract

Design Education requires critical rethinking to address the complexities of our time and to prepare students to achieve their future goals.  This paper will share a decade of research, collective work, and the implementation of a future-casting curriculum in the University of Virginia’s School of Architecture’s Undergraduate Program for 400 students, a long-term vision for the future of design education. Learnings, detailed by the UGRAD Curriculum Chair, include developing curriculum thematics, peer institution review, goal setting, effective messaging and graphic design, and essential steps to rethink coursework, knowledge, and skills with diverse stakeholders.  This paper will also share ideas for integrating interdisciplinary approaches across all four years of a liberal arts architectural curriculum. The UGRAD Curriculum Committee Chair (Elgin Cleckley) will share course revisions, implemented exercises, student feedback, integrated successes, and areas for improvement, including the need for additional resources or the potential for further interdisciplinary collaboration. In light of recent governmental impacts on our school, such as changes in funding or policy, this paper will explore how the ideals of an education for all can be realized while respecting the past and engendering resilience in the present and future. We will also share insights into design education in a complex, highly charged context, offering benefits to a global audience.