Graphic Design Essay

3233 Words7 Pages

As the profession of graphic design continues to evolve, there is much discussion on what today’s graphic design education should consist of in order to prepare students for professional employment. Graphic design pedagogy in higher education has seen shifts throughout its history from the master-apprentice model to the addition of fundamental courses introduced by Bauhaus to curricula based on formats of prescriptive learning. The current shift in the graphic design profession for designers to find new ways to solve highly complex problems has caused many in the professional and educational realm to call for additional courses to meet new competencies. This has caused some educators in graphic design academia to call for a five year-year design degree program.
In a survey sent to 274 design schools in the U.S. and Canada conducted by PRINT magazine (1995) faculty respondents reported on issues in design education. The design departments consisted of varying disciplines that included Communication Design, Visual Communication, Advertising Design, and Design Arts. Issues that concerned some faculty members included the need for more time to better prepare students for professional work. Of the institutions that responded to the survey three were considering an additional year to their four-year programs (Lewis).

Introduction of Early Graphic Design Education
Graphic design education in its early forms was based on the atelier method, a master-apprentice model wherein craft skills were passed down from one person to another (McCoy). Much of this early type of education took place in typesetting foundries or print shops. When graphic design was introduced into formal education it was viewed as a subset of fine arts and deemed a ...

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...cusses is that of Deep and Surface Learning-wherein students who are taught in current models are taught that “surface design” will be rewarded. In other words there is lack of research or background knowledge on the subject. The second concept discussed is the Cycle of Learning where students experience learning through doing, feeling, watching, and thinking. The third concept discussed is Planned learning Outcomes wherein an educator can assess a students work based on some key points that the work should reflect such as theorize, generalize, hypothesize and reflection versus the describe, list, and combine method. Briefly covered are the history of design education, and teaching methodologies that are no longer viable in preparing students. This paper was selected because it suggests a different model of design education necessary to produce effective designers.

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