Which visualisation tools and why? comparing perceptions of student and practicing designers toward digital sketching

Abstract

Different design tools offer a variety of different benefits to designers at different stages in the design process. Yet, as digital design tools develop, providing more nuanced utility, we observe a challenge for design educators in teaching as per both how and when to apply said tools. This paper contributes to the discussion around digital tools in design education by comparing student perceptions of digital sketching with those of practicing designers. We do so from the perspective of the characteristics of digital sketching that are referenced by participants when describing its application in a typical design process. Results show how characteristics relating to representation of ideas and usability are widely referenced by both groups; however, we found a difference in practicing designers referencing of time characteristics more so than students. Based on this difference in the way digital sketching is perceived, we conclude that greater consideration how different tools influence the time taken to create a visualisation, and thus speed of iteration, is the key to educating students on how to consider and select different design tools.