Utilising digital design and rapid prototyping tools in design education

Abstract

This paper presents a formal framework for utilising different digital design and rapid prototyping technologies in design education. The framework has been applied in a studio created for a mixed cohort of tertiary students from architecture and industrial design. A comprehensive survey was conducted at the end of the course as a means for evaluation, and for student self-reflection. This paper reports the experiences in conducting the studio and the student perceptions of their design processes and outcomes whilst confronting these tools. The paper provides insight into the application of digital design and rapid prototyping tools in design education, supported by a qualitative analysis of the survey result. ©2010, Association for Research in Computer-Aided Architectural Research in Asia (CAADRIA).