Design is a central activity within Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. Within enacted practice, design can feature within intended learning outcomes, for example in learning to design, and it can feature within pedagogical methodologies, for example by learning through design. Often holding differing disciplinary interpretations such as design as cyclical problem solving, iterative design, conceptual design, or design with or without make, understanding the educational merits of the ill-defined and open nature of authentic designerly activity is paramount. This Research Topic sets out to gain a more nuanced understanding of the value and role(s) of design within STEM educational contexts.
This Research Topic focuses on design within STEM educational contexts, particularly in terms of teaching, learning, and assessment. The aim is to contribute to the evidential basis which can be used to guide the incorporation of design into educational practice. The topic has two central research objectives. The first is to generate evidence regarding what design is in STEM education. For example, is the ability to design a singular or manifold construct? Is the capacity to design, or are factors of this ability, both learnable and teachable? How transferable is designerly knowledge between contexts? How do different disciplinary contexts influence the interpretation of design? The second is to further our understanding of how best to incorporate design within STEM education contexts. For example, how much emphasis should be placed on learning to or through design in school? How should design be assessed within formal education? Where and when is design best incorporated into education? In posing these questions, the goal of this research topic is to provide scholarly discourse which supports critical reflection and the challenging of assumptions regarding design in education.
Contributions of all article types are sought for this research topic which offer and advance current understandings of design in STEM educational contexts. Such articles may, for example, take the form of a perspective article in which the authors offer their view on future directions for research or practice on design in education. They may also include original research articles which address the questions, such as an investigation into the transferability of designerly knowledge between contexts, e.g., subjects, topics, or tasks. In original research articles particular focus should be placed on validity, such as the valid interpretation, modelling, or assessment of design. Accordingly, conceptual analysis articles which provide a critical examination of design or related constructs are also welcomed, especially those which offer critique through different lenses.
Design is a central activity within Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education. Within enacted practice, design can feature within intended learning outcomes, for example in learning to design, and it can feature within pedagogical methodologies, for example by learning through design. Often holding differing disciplinary interpretations such as design as cyclical problem solving, iterative design, conceptual design, or design with or without make, understanding the educational merits of the ill-defined and open nature of authentic designerly activity is paramount. This Research Topic sets out to gain a more nuanced understanding of the value and role(s) of design within STEM educational contexts.
This Research Topic focuses on design within STEM educational contexts, particularly in terms of teaching, learning, and assessment. The aim is to contribute to the evidential basis which can be used to guide the incorporation of design into educational practice. The topic has two central research objectives. The first is to generate evidence regarding what design is in STEM education. For example, is the ability to design a singular or manifold construct? Is the capacity to design, or are factors of this ability, both learnable and teachable? How transferable is designerly knowledge between contexts? How do different disciplinary contexts influence the interpretation of design? The second is to further our understanding of how best to incorporate design within STEM education contexts. For example, how much emphasis should be placed on learning to or through design in school? How should design be assessed within formal education? Where and when is design best incorporated into education? In posing these questions, the goal of this research topic is to provide scholarly discourse which supports critical reflection and the challenging of assumptions regarding design in education.
Contributions of all article types are sought for this research topic which offer and advance current understandings of design in STEM educational contexts. Such articles may, for example, take the form of a perspective article in which the authors offer their view on future directions for research or practice on design in education. They may also include original research articles which address the questions, such as an investigation into the transferability of designerly knowledge between contexts, e.g., subjects, topics, or tasks. In original research articles particular focus should be placed on validity, such as the valid interpretation, modelling, or assessment of design. Accordingly, conceptual analysis articles which provide a critical examination of design or related constructs are also welcomed, especially those which offer critique through different lenses.
