Reimagining The Future of Design Education: Nurturing Mindsets and Skillsets in Students

Abstract

This paper reveals the outcomes of an investigation to develop a radical manifesto for the future of creative design and media higher education. The result was the development of a manifesto (Mindsets and Skillsets) that sought to profoundly redefine how creative design and media education could be delivered. At its heart, the manifesto attempts to create the optimum environment for students to thrive in education, careers and through life. Ravensbourne University began a review of its portfolio of courses and academic delivery in May 2016. This provided a unique opportunity to evaluate the existing programme delivery philosophy along with the practices and models of a range of international creative educational contexts, and to review relevant literature and practice. Using a combination of the Double Diamond design-thinking approach and a grounded theory-light research methodology this study gathered data from international college visits, pedagogic conferences, literature reviews around student learning, delivery modes and learning spaces, and a hosted symposium anchored by an international educational panel and a creative industries professional panel. The five resulting principles emerged from the analysis of the data and materials were identified as: Cultivate / where the whole person thrives; Collaborate / where disciplines evolve; Integrate / where education engages industry; Advocate / where purpose informs practice; and Originate / where creativity harnesses technology. This paper attempts to position the Mindsets and Skillsets Manifesto as a visionary, pragmatic and deliverable new model of creative higher education.