Interior Design Curriculum Research Articles

Sustainability in the Education of Interior Designers in Egypt

The need to introduce issues of sustainability into the interior design curriculum has become critically important. So the purpose of this study was to investigate the current status of teaching sustainability in curricula of interior design programs in Egypt's universities; assess the level of awareness and training background on sustainability and determine the obstacles to incorporating sustainability into the programs. Interior design lecturers, professors were invited to participate in a survey on their university's interior architecture curricula. The study shows that all interior design programs currently do not teach sustainability within their curricula, and there are some obstacles in teaching sustainability.

Questioning=Thinking: Critical Curiosity as the Focus of an Interior Design Curriculum Redesign

Questioning=Thinking: Critical Curiosity as the Focus of an Interior Design Curriculum Redesign

A Comparison of Learning Experience, Workload, and Outcomes in Interior Design Education Using a Hand or Hybrid Approach

This exploratory study examined interior design projects developed using conventional hand techniques and a hybrid tool set of digital and nondigital media for differences in the learning experience, workload, and design outcomes. Two groups of students were randomly assigned to either a hand‐generated section or a hand‐and‐digital section. They were asked to design a residential unit within a given village site. Following presentation of the designs, students rated the effectiveness of visualization and the workload of using each tool set, and professional evaluators rated the design solutions on esthetical, functional, environmental, and viewing aspects. Overall, the performance outcomes were ranked higher for the hybrid group on three of four outcomes. The evaluators also rated the combined use group outcomes higher than the hand‐only group. These findings suggest that the hybrid design approach has a productive place in the interior design curriculum and practice. Future research with larger samples and more sophisticated technology is needed to fully examine the potential for integrating mediated tools into the interior design profession.

Integrating performance-based design in beginning interior design education: an interactive dialog between the built environment and its context

This paper presents a new paradigm in interior design education in which building performance simulation was employed for decision making and design generation. Digital technology was intermixed with conventional paper-based media in the design process to explore formal, spatial and passive solar energy solutions. The intention of the study was to re-discover the value of computers in assisting design thinking and improving effective learning. The results indicated the Performance-Based Design approach resulted in an early awareness of sustainable energy for beginning interior design students. Further, it enhanced understanding of the mutual relationship between interior and exterior and between the built and natural environment. This paper acknowledged the achievements as well as limitations and future directions for the integration of Performance-Based Design into interior design curriculum.

Ergonomics And Universal Design In Interior Architecture Education

The focus of this article is on the application of Human Factors and Ergonomics (HFE) principles on design process. Designers begin acquiring HFE principles and data during their university education. Universal Design (UD) approaches HFE as incorporating the whole of the population rather than a certain percent. This study explores the effectiveness of a specially designed course on UD in an interior architecture undergraduate program. After completion of the course, students were asked to evaluate their learning process. It was observed that learning UD principles is a process and requires some time, rather than being book information. The majority found the course helpful in increasing their awareness of UD issues. They also found the course helpful for improving their design work. The research suggests UD to be integrated into the interior design curriculum both as a separate course on its own and within the context of the design studios.

Deconstructing Service–Learning: A Framework for Interior Design

Service–learning has long been essential to university education. With the literature focusing on extolling its benefits to student learning, little direction is offered to educators interested in approaching a service–learning project. Applying this knowledge to a studio–based field like interior design requires additional adjustments, and questions still abound: What must be considered when integrating service–learning in an interior design curriculum? What are the challenges and opportunities that must be recognized? And, how best can the field take advantage of this teaching pedagogy? As universities are increasing the emphasis on service–learning in their missions, it is appropriate for interior design to start a dialogue around ways to strengthen its associations with service–learning. Drawing from a literature review and three case studies from the interior design program of the University of Minnesota, this paper responds to the above questions and posits that only by deconstructing service–learning projects can educators determine their suitability. The paper proposes a framework, a tool that can guide programs’ decision making of how and if to integrate a service–learning project in their curriculum. The framework consists of four criteria and sets of considerations relevant to each and sheds light on what service–learning projects entail. The authors conclude that educators cognizant of the multiple decisions embedded within each of the criteria (relate to course objectives, apply course knowledge, connect to the community, and reflect on learning) enhance their chances for successful service–learning experiences on all levels: the university, program, students, client, practitioners, and the community at large.

Interior Design in K–12 Curricula: Asking the Experts

The purpose of this qualitative study was to assess how interior design content areas (subject matter) could be introduced and integrated into elementary and secondary (K–12) grade levels in support of national academic education standards. Although the minimum standards have been developed for entry level interior designers (Council for Interior Design Accreditation [CIDA] Standards, adopted 2002) and beyond (National Council for Interior Design Qualification [NCIDQ]), a gap exists in the interior design education continuum from “kindergarten to career.” Between June 2001 to April 2002, in order to understand perceptions of experts in interior design and elementary and secondary education, focus group sessions and personal interviews were conducted with interior design educators and practitioners, K–12 teachers (elementary, junior high, and high school levels), national standards curriculum specialists (local and state levels), and school–to–career curriculum specialists. The goal of the study was to develop a framework that could guide the integration of interior design content into K–12 levels. This paper reports the findings from the focus groups and proposes a framework that could guide the national integration of interior design content into grades K–12, support national academic standards, and suggest possible channels of dissemination for developed interior design curriculum materials.

The Presence of Interior Design Content in K–12 Curriculum Materials

To assess the presence of interior design content in the elementary and secondary education (K–l 2) curriculum, a study was conducted to ascertain the amount and type of interior design curriculum materials available to K–l 2 teachers, curriculum specialists, and students. It was the first in a two–part funded study titled The K–12 Interior Design Education Project, to assist in the community's understanding of interiors as a part of the built environment and to promote interior design as a career choice. A framework reported by Marshall–Baker (2000) was used to develop initial key words for research on available databases. In addition, the researcher and a secondary education teacher developed a second set of key words related to the interior design profession. A qualitative methodology known as content analysis was used to analyze the findings from this three–month project (Solomon, 1993], Database resources were extensively searched to assess the presence of interior design curriculum and textbook materials available for use by K–l 2 teachers. These included Internet web sites (n = over 1,000), the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), professional organizations for K–l 2 (n = 33), professional foundations [n = 27), museums [n = 75), and design institutes (n = 7). Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the results. Findings indicate that: 1) little information concerning interior design was available within the K–l 2 arena and 2) if present, that information appeared within the context of the architectural profession. Other relevant areas, though related to interior design, did not offer any information about interior design within the context of K–l 2 education.

The Consortium for Design Education: A Model for Internationalizing Interior Design Programs

The trilateral Consortium for Design Education (CODE) project merged an international design experience with a student exchange among six institutions representing Canada, the United States, and Mexico. The purposes of CODE were to institute (1) trilateral North American student exchanges, (2) joint design projects through virtual charettes for interior design students, and (3) the means of exposing students to the nature of the profession in North America, so that they would recognize, realize, and capitalize on innovative opportunities, thereby improving quality of community life and the environment in North America. The two significant components of the CODE project were a virtual design charette and the exchange of selected students over a period of four years. The virtual design charette provided an intensive two–day international team experience for over 200 interior design students. The goal of the charette was to take interior design programs beyond geographic boundaries and employ technological and international approaches to a design problem. The intent of the exchange was to provide students with an opportunity to study in a North American culture other than their own. The CODE project embraced a framework of integrating a global community into the interior design curriculum. The project created an international environment that fostered an interactive atmosphere among North American students, faculty, and administration. The project may serve as a model for other institutions that desire to integrate an international program into their interior design curriculum.

Interior Design Faculty Intentions to Adopt Distance Education

The purpose of this study was to assess whether behavioral modeling (via CD–ROM demonstration) could affect a change in interior design educators’ perceptions of distance education. The diffusion of innovations conceptual framework suggests that perceptions of an innovation's attributes will predict an individual's intent to adopt that innovation; using the diffusion of innovations framework suggest a manner to assess the acceptability and adoption of distance education by faculty members teaching in the arts. Little research has been conducted to assess distance education, or to better understand the limited participation in distance education efforts by faculty members in the arts (Abacus Associates, 2000). The sample for this study included 67 self–selected interior design faculty members from across the United States who had no previous experience with distance education. A Solomon four–group experimental design was used with a questionnaire that addressed the attributes (i.e., relative advantage, compatibility, trialability, complexify, and observability) of an innovation (i.e., distance education) and assessed intent to adopt that innovation. A 15–minute CD–ROM presentation demonstrating Web–based studio instruction served as the experimental treatment. Findings indicated that four components of this study—relative advantage, compatibility, trialability, and intent to adopt—have significant impact on interior design educators’ perceptions of distance education. Changes and strategies that may reduce educators’ resistance to adopt distance education into interior design curricula are suggested.

Theoretical Framework for Instruction that Accommodates All Learning Styles

Students’ learning experiences are affected by the way in which they are taught. The teacher's role in the classroom and the teaching method will positively or negatively affect the learning experience. Attention to learning style theory may improve learning outcomes and attitudes toward learning. Instruction in interior design, a multidisciplinary field with a variety of learning styles and various visual abilities, should accommodate this diversity to improve learning outcomes, attitudes toward learning, and visual abilities. The goal is to teach to all learning styles and to emphasize right–brain activities. A theoretical framework was developed that utilizes learning styles and superimposes hemisphericity with emphasis on right–brain activities. This framework may be applied to various subjects within the interior design curriculum—particularly, those taught in the lecture format. The learning experience may become more exciting and challenging for students if all learning styles are accommodated. The emphasis on right–brain activities may encourage visual and creative thinking among interior design students with the result that students may grasp more and deepen their learning experience.

Designing for Good Indoor Air Quality in Hot,Humid Climates: Development of a Student Design Competition

Residential indoor air quality (IAQ) is an emerging issue that deserves attention by educators of interior design. This paper focuses on the development of a national student design competition and supporting materials to address residential design for good indoor air quality in hot, humid climates. Utilizing expertise from consultants in the fields of architecture, engineering, interior design, and medicine, an integrative model for teaching environmental design was developed and applied to a hypothetical residential design project. With expanded knowledge of IAQ design, coupled with instructional units aimed at developing student critical thinking and problem-solving skills for complex environmental design issues, educators can contribute to the “greening” of their interior design curricula.

Learning to Write and Diagram, Writing and Diagramming to Learn

Issue Interior design, which aspires to elevate the individual's experience of space, involves application of theories and principles governing the definition and ordering of space. Learning these theoretical design principles is an essential part of the interior design curriculum. To become informed interior designers, students need a solid theoretical base, anchored in historical and spatial analysis, that can intelligibly render the relationships between problems and their solutions. Goal The use of theory helps designers plan, predict, and create from a knowledge base. The desired result is to assist students acquiring this foundation to generate ideas for designing interior spaces and use informed, critical thinking to evaluate and select from those ideas. Application A diagram is an image that explains rather than represents the basic arrangements and relations of the organizational elements in a specific environment. Combining the diagramming of interior spaces with analytic, intensive writing experiences serves as a model for learning design principles. The unique efficacy of the two teaching strategies is due to their correspondence to powerful learning techniques that involve analysis as well as synthesis. Description Theoretical design principles such as contrast, proportion and scale, symmetry and balance, and containment are introduced in lectures and illustrated through slide presentations of significant spaces. Students create collage diagrams of the spaces and complete writing assignments. The diagrams and written compositions are reviewed and discussed in a weekly studio–lab for revision and reinforcement. Conclusions As students in this course write about and diagram interior spaces, they develop their writing and diagramming skills and deepen their understanding of design theory principles. Students of interior design are introduced to seminal works in their field, taught to break down interior space into its component parts to understand its organizational structure, enabled to put the parts together to form a new graphic representation of the whole, and assisted in judging the value of a physical setting for a given purpose based on definite criteria.

A Comparison of Competency Requirements for Housing and Interior Design Professionals

Introduction and PurposeThe trend in university curricula is toward a reduction in the Housing major, and a parallel increased focus on Interior Design. As this educational shift takes place, it is important to determine whether those students intending to seek employment in the housing industry can benefit from the interior design curriculum. The specific objective of this study is to determine whether any overlap exists in the competencies needed by professionals in housing, and by professionals in interior design.

Community Service Projects in Interior Design Curricula

This paper discusses the role of community service projects in interior design curricula, describes the theoretical context and benefits of experiential learning, and explores the relationship of community service projects to objectives of interior design curricula accredited by the Foundation for Interior Design Education Research (FIDER). In addition, the paper identifies and discusses problems and benefits related to including community service projects in interior design curricula, as well as project management, implementation, and evaluation issues. A case study of a successful community service project involving the rehabilitation of a multistory building into women's transitional housing is included to illustrate the theoretical, curricular, evaluative, and logistical issues related to community service projects.

Parallel Content: Social Science and the Design Curriculum

Introduction Current concerns about the education of designers coincide with broader issues in the curricular content of professional education in general. Design educators, and those responsible for other professional programs, have begun to focus on the liberal arts component of undergraduate education. These educators share both a growing appreciation for the role of the liberal arts in professional development and a concern with strategies for integrating them into the curriculum.3 Design education today includes those studies that focus on complex systems or environments for living, playing, working, and learning.4 Such education must find common ground between the technical training and the liberal arts component of design curricula. Among the liberal arts, the social sciences, in particular, can help establish this common ground in undergraduate education by expanding the basis of the future designer's professional expertise. This paper will argue that the social sciences can contribute to professional expertise, thus enabling designers to play a more active decision-making role in the design project. Playing a more active role requires an increased professional competence that involves not only technical know-how but also knowledge of the social causes and consequences of design. The crucial question is how to ensure that the social sciences are meaningfully integrated into the undergraduate education of design students. We will first discuss the role of the social sciences in professional programs, then offer a model for developing a core curriculum that establishes a relationship between social science subject matter and interior design courses. In conclusion, we will present an interior design curriculum based on the parallel content concept, which will provide examples of how the social sciences can help inform design practice.

Research in an Undergraduate Interior Design Curriculum

Research is an important component of the design process and should be incorporated into undergraduate interior design curricula. As potential designers, students need to become cognizant of the necessity of systematically seeking information for design solutions and to increase their awareness of the behavioral impact of design through observation. This article describes an undergraduate research experience which focused upon the development of a team research project using a simulated environment as the research laboratory. Because of the success of this project it became the nucleus of a required research course for interior design majors in which students work with a variety of research methods and projects. The goals of the course are to develop an understanding of the relationship between research and the practice of interior design; to develop research skills; to design, develop and implement research projects utilizing primary sources; and to become acquainted with the body of research applicable to interior design. The ultimate goal for incorporation of research methodologies at the undergraduate level is to establish a respect and understanding for research that students will carry into their professional activities.

Professional Viewpoints of Competencies for Interior Design Entry–Level Positions

Sixty–three professionals in the field of interior design were asked about the importance of competencies for interior design entry–level positions and the importance of learning the competency at school or work. The forty competencies were chosen from areas that the Foundation of Interior Design Education and Research (FIDER) suggested for inclusion in a comprehensive interior design curriculum. Professionals in this study indicated that oral communication skills, furniture arrangement, space planning, and color theory were more important for entry–level positions in interior design than the technical competencies of lettering and line drawing, elevation drawings, use of technical drafting equipment, and freehand sketching. The respondents also indicated that history of architecture, perspective drawing, color theory, and lettering and line drawing were competencies which should be learned at school rather than in work experience.

Importance of Inclusion of Business Competencies in the Interior Design Curriculum

Importance of Inclusion of Business Competencies in the Interior Design Curriculum