Knowledge-Building Environments

Despite the innovative features that many sophisticated products offer, they seem to have created new challenges instead of simplifying people's lives. Neophytes or people with cognitive deficiencies, for example, seem particularly uneasy when facing complex user interfaces. Designing for people involves getting to know the user and his perception of the environment of use, which necessitates a broader perspective and extended knowledgebase. The paper will discuss how design education attempts to address the need for teaching interdisciplinary skills and systemic thinking. A case study will illustrate an experimental teaching framework and the implementation of an interdisciplinary learning environment that merges researchers, graduate and undergraduate students from different disciplines in a joint project. The paper will conclude with an assessment of this teaching experience and offer recommendations for future consideration.