VIRTUAL MADRID FOCUS ON PEDAGOGY

Abstract

Systems thinking is widely accepted in urban and environmental design. It fosters understanding of dynamic relationships, anticipation of second- and third-order effects of proposed change, and specification of alternative needs and opportunities for collaboration. In design education, systems thinking can help students extend their mental models, recognize interconnections among exogenous and endogenous variables, and develop scenarios to test ideas. This paper considers one use of systems in education within a framework that establishes and advances arguments for intentional change. The framework assumes a constructivist perspective in which a student gains new knowledge by building upon prior experiences and understanding. In this framework, design objectives are represented through systems dynamics diagrams. Directly and critically, systems are used as representations of cause-and-effect models to help students understand pragmatic concerns related to possible actions. The larger educational goal, though, is to enable students to apply systems knowledge to create preferred conditions. The definition and consequences of the system representation are developed and extended in two ways. First, acknowledging that a given phenomenon can be represented as different systems, the definition of systems in the framework is informed by a metaphor that provides a basis for idealization and a starting point for epistemological exploration. Second, acknowledging that the system is intended to inform the dimensions, locations, and materials of a built work, the definition of systems in the framework is also informed by composition and a starting point for aesthetic exploration. Examples of student work that demonstrate this arc are presented.