DE6020 - Critical Design Evaluation

You will learn via studio discussions and the creation of a Critical Design Evaluation document. The focus of this document will follow the research, design development and outcomes created as part of the Major Design Project module. The exact nature and priorities of the document will therefore be determined by, and appropriate to, the subject matter tackled in your self-initiated project. For example, if you have designed outcomes intended for high-volume production by a flat-pack furniture manufacturer, you might evaluate the technical details of your proposals against existing designs and communicate with professionals in that industry to benefit from their insights and appraisal. If you have explored the potentials of an unusual manufacturing process to create limited-edition pieces intended for gallery exhibitions, you might evaluate the work with reference to that of similar practitioners and communicate with curators to clarify the value and potential of the project. Whatever the specifics of your project and evaluation, however, you will learn through your attempts, in studio discussions and in writing, to contextualise and position your work according to appropriate references, precedents and/or engagement with professionals.


The document planning and drafting process is supported through tutor and peer feedback, and encourages on-going personal reflection and critical analysis. As you develop the document and further explore the ideas developed in your Major Design project, you will also be asked to consider your post-graduation and professional aspirations.

This module is supported via peer review sessions, tutorials with academics and a series of studio sessions. Module contact time provides the opportunity for you to receive on-going tutor and peer feedback and to use the views of others in the development or enhancement of your work. This is also an opportunity to clarify and discuss assessment criteria.

Tutor Guided Independent Learning/Student Independent Learning will help you make constructive use of feedback received in the studio sessions and encourage you to direct your own learning needs. Such learning may include a range of activities such as; contextual reading; photographic practice; consultation with external subject specialists regarding your Major Design Project.

The module is supported by a specific virtual learning environment ((eLearning Portal) where you will find all the relevant documentation (module brief, module guide, assessment requirements etc.) The digital submission of interim works for tutorial guidance and formative assessment allows for expedient communication and the effective review of work whilst also utilising industry standard practices.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. The reading list for this module can be found at: http://readinglists.northumbria.ac.uk
(Reading List service online guide for academic staff this containing contact details for the Reading List team – http://library.northumbria.ac.uk/readinglists)

On successful completion of this module, you should be able to:

Knowledge & Understanding:

? Demonstrate a sophisticated understanding of your practice in relation to a self-identified real-world context.

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:

? Evidence a clear, precise and scholarly approach to writing and structuring documents.
? Evaluate your design decisions using reasoned judgement and with reference to the work of others.

Personal Values Attributes:

? Independently and critically evaluate decision-making; exercise self-criticism; and show a comprehensive awareness of the relationship between your knowledge, skills and interests and professional design practice.

Regular staged tutorials will provide formative feedback as part of the learning and teaching strategy of the module.

The module is summatively assessed via the submission of the Critical Design Evaluation document at the end of block 3 (100%). The Critical Design Evaluation is an illustrated document of approximately 3,000 words.

Summative feedback is written and provided at the end of the module.

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As students reach the end of the Furniture and Product Design programme, this module will enable them to enhance their understanding of how their level 6 work responds, and contributes, to the wider world of design practice. Upon graduation, the self-reflection and evaluation prompted by this module will allow students to confidently articulate the value of their design portfolio, and the personal knowledge, skills and interests that underpin it.

This module’s learning is structured via the creation of a Critical Design Evaluation document which reflects upon, contextualises and expands the work completed through the Major Design Project module. The Critical Design Evaluation module represents the culmination and consolidation of the contextual and theoretical studies aspects of the degree. The intention is for students to finesse and demonstrate their comprehension of how design knowledge and principles can be applied in practice. They will reflect upon the ways in which their practice has been guided by reference to its intended context. Students will learn how to consider, position and discuss their creative practice with respect to relevant precedents, and come to better understand its potential value and audience.