THE DIDACTICS OF COMMUNICATION DESIGN BASICS: MULTIPLE APPROACHES AND WAYS OF KNOWING

Abstract The thesis of this paper is focused on the didactics of Communication Design Basics within first year courses of the BA in Communication Design and it aims to outline a plurality of approaches as a consequence of the intrinsic nature of the discipline, its relationship to scientific method of investigation and the complexity of the system of learning and teaching. The author will reflect in particular on results of doctoral studies (a comparative research developed from 2002-2005), but also on teaching experiences at Politecnico di Milano (first year courses in Communication Design). Through the description and comparison of different teaching and learning experiences analysed through an empirical work of investigation in different geographical-cultural contexts, the paper will show the multiple factors that contribute to the plurality of approaches: different conceptions of the subject of study (Communication Design), the peculiarities of teaching and learning system, the complexity of the process of building knowledge through analogies, metaphors and models (in other words the scientific method of investigation). The transition from an arts and craft approach to a theory-based design requires a communication design education that improves the quality of the process of knowledge- building beyond technologies and in favour of reflection and subjectivity; we need to built a system of knowledge that challenges the “transition from an education in crafting things to an education in understanding things” (Friedman, 2009), that involves students not only on a rational cognitive stage but also on a personal and intuitive level.