par Dobre, Catalina ;Aragone, Andrea
Référence STS Conference Graz 2022 Critical Issues in Science, Technology and Society Studies(2-4 May 2022: Graz, Austria)
Publication Non publié, 2022-05-02
Abstract de conférence
Résumé : Since 2015, the Faculty of Architecture (Université libre de Bruxelles) organises the ‘Sémaine d’Innovation Pedagogique’ (SIP) (En. Pedagogical Innovation week). The format proposed is an intensive one-week long design workshop for architecture and landscape architecture students (2nd and 3rd year Bachelor and 1st year Master). During this week teachers, researchers or practitioners are invited to propose a workshop on the theme of their choice. The particularity of this pedagogical setting lies in the variety of workshops that emerge each year with their specific methodological approach. Two common aims can be perceived: (i) to develop the capacity of students in having a reflexive approach to their practice and (ii) to confront students with real-life settings in relation to various actors (e.g. scientists, academics, artists, public authorities, civil society or users of the city). Thus, a co-creational pedagogical setting emerges that offers the opportunity for students to tackle societal challenges related to sustainability. Based on participatory observations by the author in organising workshops each year, the paper looks at the extent to which this specific pedagogical configuration can foster a better understanding of the role of designers and design researchers in answering complex contemporary challenges by relating research, teaching and societal engagement. The paper explores two types of interactions that emerges in this pedagogical setting: the role of the designer in relation to the object of study and the micropolitics behind the process. Firstly, the paper emphasises that the roles of the designer and design researcher and their boundaries with the object of study are intertwined. The paper is based on the work of Ever and Louis (cited in Louis, Reis, and Bartunek 1992) to make a distinction between different roles: an insider, as a designer who produces knowledge while being an actor, and an outsider, as a designer distancing him or herself from the study. Even though, the distinction between insider and outsider is rarely made in practice, it can guide students in understanding their different roles in designing for a world that is under transition. Secondly, the paper draws from action research literature, to define micropolitics as the ‘behind-the-scene negotiations’ that are carried out inside organisations (Herr and Anderson 2015, 78). Within a process of action research, researchers (and also designers) collaborate with a wide variety of actors, because sources of knowledge exist in different places and organisations.From this perspective, the SIP becomes more than a pedagogical setting, but a place of experimentation for developing innovative ways on how designers and design researchers can contribute to a sustainability transition either by designing, by carrying out action research or by developing a research by design approach. Louis Reis, Meryl, and Jean M. Bartunek. 1992. “Insider/Outsider Research Teams: Collaboration Across Diverse Perspectives.” Journal of Management Inquiry 1 (2): 101–10. https://doi.org/10.1177/105649269212002.Herr, Kathryn, and Gary Anderson. 2015. The Action Research Dissertation. A Guide for Students and Faculty. 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, Inc.