Problems in Problem-Based Design Engineering Education : Towards a Multidisciplinary Designerly Educational Approach

Abstract

Modern industry faces complex and 'wicked' problems that require engineering professionals to go beyond traditional natural sciencebased linear problem-solving approaches and adopt collaborative, multidisciplinary, and iterative problem-solving strategies. To tackle these kinds of problems, organizations are increasingly turning to design problemsolving methods based on the designer's way of thinking, acting, and doing. Designers have a distinctive ability to deal with poorly de ned, ambiguous, or "wicked" problems by emphasizing iterative exploration of both the problem and the solution spaces. ey do this through design reasoning patterns that involve constant iteration and temporary solutions. is shi towards designerly ways of problem-solving has, in turn, had an e ect on engineering education, where there has been a signi cant shi towards educational models that utilize design methodologies to engage students in immersive problem-solving experiences. One challenge for educators who utilize models based on designerly thinking is to create structures that actually support the learning objectives, and the development of student skills that are rooted in design reasoning and acting, and not merely in design tools. Another challenge is to support collaboration across multiple areas that traditionally had clear boundaries.