TDDE38 Thinking with representations

Course information

Aim

The student shall develop theoretical and experiential knowledge about the role of external representations for thinking, including knowledge about choosing, using and developing tools and methods for representations based on purpose. After the course, the student shall be able to:

• Understand, describe and apply foundational concepts from distributed cognition
• Apply knowledge about how to represent alternatives in a design space and reflect on the value of those representations
• Use and develop tools and methods for representations, and reflect on what the tools enable and confine
• Systematically reflect on and show knowledge about how to represent complex situations on a detailed as well as holistic level

Course content

The students of this course develop their ability and knowledge about what the roles of external representations are in design, including the ability and knowledge to use different tools to plan and use external representations, by conducting a series of assignments and reading literature from design and cognitive science to reflect on their process. Emphasis is put on reflecting in- and on action to further the understanding of mechanisms for learning with the help of external representations and the connection between the built representation and the knowledge it makes available. The more general implications for design of placing representation at the center of the design process is also considered in the course.

Assignments

The course consists of an individual and a group assignment. More information about the assignments can be found under Resources, where you will also find all the lecture slides.

• A combination of theoretical and practical activities support the learning process in the course. There is no course book, instead we will read research articles. All literature is available through the university library.
• The group assignment can change from year to year and will be revealed at the start of the course.
• The individual assignment is based on a series of texts in relation to seminar texts and individual design work with external representations.
• Three seminars will be conducted during the course. Texts and instructions for the seminars can also be found under Resources.

Teaching and working methods

The course revolves around a sequence of assignments and design work that are concluded with seminars and examination sessions. Individual feedback on design work is given to support students' development beyond the basic level. Seminars and presentations are mandatory, see Examination for instructions on what to do if you miss a mandatory session.

Page responsible: Johan Blomkvist
Last updated: 2020-02-18