How to learn to be creative in design: Architecture students’ perceptions of design, design process, design learning, and their transformations throughout their education

Abstract

The study explores students’ perceptions of experiential learning, design and design process, and design education, and whether these perceptions vary according to school year students are in based on qualitative and quantitative data collected from two architectural schools. We inquire into how creativity and design could be learned through repeated design tasks without structured instructions about the creative design process. The explorative study employs surveys and semi-structured focus group interviews. The results indicate problem-solving view of design is the most common characterization, students think design is not a straightforward problem solving and is most related to art and creativity. Finally, students report school has a limited impact on how they learn designing. We conclude experiential learning in the studio create shortcomings if not accompanied with a critical and reflective stance and that undertaking design tasks one after the other without explicit reflection on these tasks is an inefficient strategy in learning about the creative design process.