Translation, interpretation, disfluency and discovery: amplifying design cognition in our graduates

Cultural awareness is one transferable skill that is gaining importance in a world with high mobility both in person and through technology. Our classrooms, clientele and the audience are ever more diverse in attitude, culture and perspective.

My PHD research focuses on cultural complexity, with a proposition that through specific pedagogical activities and project design, we can set our design graduates up with a more confident, culturally aware mindset. This paper shares some insights from my research as well as examples of my work in lesson and project design as Course Leader for Design at SAE Creative Media Institute. I recount classroom activities in international remote practice contexts whereby students encounter both cultural friction and cultural expansion. I believe that working through the challenges of translation, interpretation, disfluency and discovery allows us to emphasise designerly competency and enhance graduate confidence to engage with the complexities of industry today.