Identity discovery: Small learning interventions as catalysts for change in design education

Abstract

As design has taken a social turn toward the co-designing of complex situations, design students are increasingly adopting multiple identities including that of a thinker, facilitator, activist and observer through engagement and collaboration with others. This expansion of identity from being solely a creative maker has presented a challenge for design students, which has been exacerbated by the external shock of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article, we introduce small learning interventions that can be flexibly incorporated into the current design curriculum to promote identity discovery and self-awareness among students. Through four case studies, these interventions are organized at three levels of scale in understanding identity: learning from self, learning from each other and learning from self with others. By providing students with opportunities for reflection and introspection, we aim to help them develop their social mindset and identity as designers, as well as prepare for more comprehensive curricular changes in the future to catalyse the shift towards the social turn of design.