UD Education Project Sweden

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1 UD Education Project Sweden Notes on strategies in UD education and reflections on the core, the breadth and the future of the subject Paper for the BAS International Meeting, HISTORICAL AND HERITAGE BUILDINGS AND ACCESSIBILITY Budapest, June 29 30, 2006 Architect, PhD, senior researcher coordinator of the UDEP S project 1 The Universal Design Education Project Sweden (UDEP S) was launched because of the considerable, widespread and unnecessary failure of architecture and design to comply with the diversity of human needs. There was consensus that something had to be done. A beneficial and sustainable way to act would be through the architectural and design schools. The project was carried out during Nine education programmes were involved. The schools developed the Universal Design/Design for All (UD/DfA) perspective within the framework of the standard educational syllabus. The long-term goal is that UD/DfA approaches, perspectives and competences shall be comprehensive, natural and sustainable in the design professions in the future. The schools have made considerable progress using earlier experiences as well as developing new paths. To provide the best possible introduction to the subject in order to attract the interest of the students is a main strategy. To place user knowledge and user experiences in the foreground is fundamental. Users have been involved in courses, project assignments and evaluations. Function and beauty are integrated and inter-dependent characteristics of all artefacts and environments. Generally speaking beauty is almost exclusively elaborated from visual points of view. The issue of what beauty is for people with sensory limitations has been dealt with a lot in this project. Insight training and design evaluation exercises have been commonplace with regard to mobility, vision and hearing and have even been tested regarding the experiences of intellectually disabled persons. Participation and sharing observations in activities provide basic knowledge for design. In the evaluation of project assignments, experts and users have been engaged again to examine qualities and shortcomings. The evaluation the criticism provides response to the endeavours of the students and is a guarantee for the quality of the education. The great idea of UD/DfA is a society for all, not only barrier-free but basically one empowering all people and securing equal opportunities and participation. Education is one of the cornerstones in realising this vision. Knowledge about humans must be enhanced. There must be well informed and committed teachers within all schools. The UD/DfA subject must be given a clear position at the universities so that teaching chairs, basic education programmes, research education, research schools and centres can be established in the same way as other subjects in the sustainability sector. 1 NHR, The National Swedish Association of Persons with Neurological Disabilities, has been the economic and administrative body of the project. The abstract is based on the final report of the project; Universal Design Education/Design för Alla Utbildning, which is in production and will be published bilingual in English/Swedish. Contact with coordinator: [email protected] or [email protected] 1 (9)

2 UD Education Project Sweden; Introduction The obligation of the schools in the Universal Design Education Project Sweden was to develop the Universal Design perspective with regard to ideas and approach and in the development of knowledge and project assignments, within the framework of the ordinary education. The following notes are intended to give an idea of the work at the schools and reflect the discussion about the future of the subject. At the meeting in Budapest I will provide illustrations from the work. STRATEGIES IN EDUCATION The Positive Introduction Education in design and architecture dealing with the disabled, handicap, access and usability problems has a reputation for being boring. Teachers in the field are quite aware of it. So, a lot of efforts are made to provide the best possible introduction to the subject in order to attract the interest and involvement of the students. The task is to provide knowledge about humans and human diversity, in interaction with products and environments. The task is to make a considerable step forward so that the models for education in design and architecture will not only be immediately visible in the education; students, teachers, staff and visitors at the university environment. Users with disabilities, user representatives, access consultants, experts, medical and paramedical specialists etc. are often engaged in the introductory courses. The contacts meetings with people are regarded as being highly important. At the five design schools in this project, the introduction to UD/DfA, the initial focus on the problem area, has been carried out in slightly different ways, but primarily through a course in the second year: Inclusive Design at Umeå, Function Studies at Konstfack, Design with care at HDK, Product Development needs and requirements at Chalmers IDE and Universal Design at IDE in Lund. The design schools already had or soon found suitable paths to take in the curriculum. The introduction takes place in the second study year, when basic knowledge about design tools and methodology has been acquired. At the four architecture schools developments have been more trial and error; at the landscape schools through courses, at the architecture school in Lund through education days and workshops and at the Chalmers school through a first year introductory course, a second year more applied course and in later years through project integration. Furthermore, many of the schools have carried out teacher training in different ways, which can also be regarded as efforts to enhance the subject. Users, User Knowledge and User Experiences in the foreground Users, user representatives and user experts, for instance access consultants, are frequently engaged in lectures and exercises in the introductory courses. As a rule these contribute to problem-oriented projects. To put users, user knowledge and user experiences in the foreground, is a basic and widespread concept. There are no short cuts. If products and environments shall be accessible, usable, attractive and beautiful, it is absolutely necessary to involve the users in the training of architects and designers as well as in professional work with products and environments. User Involvement and Design Processes The basic standpoint that users, user knowledge and user experiences are crucial, leads to an increased interest in methodologies for user involvement. In which ways are the users engaged in design work and how can architects and designers take care of and develop the knowledge and the experiences of the users? Furthermore, there is an increased interest in the work procedures of architecture and design work the design process. How shall work procedures be organized and carried out to secure good 2 (9)

3 UD Education Project Sweden quality products, for instance, concerning the conditions and desires of the users. There are many examples how methods for user involvement have been put into action at the schools. There are examples how conventional work procedures have been enforced as well as how departures and experiments have been carried out. Function and Beauty Products and environments that have been made accessible, usable and well adapted for disabled people have a reputation for being unattractive and seedy looking. There may be historical reasons for this. The early technical devices for invalids some fifty years ago were made in small numbers to fulfil functional requirements from small groups of individuals. They were sometimes poorly designed as entities. However, even today the arguments may come up that function and beauty are contradictory, that architecture and design is artistry and that user oriented architecture and design is of another and lower dignity. These arguments mostly come up in the battle for space and financial resources in the educational and professional fields. The UD/DfA strategic standpoint is quite clear. Function and beauty are integrated and interdependent characteristics of all artefacts, industrial products, landscapes, buildings, etc. The simple dichotomy is generally not a good basic model to start from. Instead, Monö s (1997) model with three basic entities is used: the ergonomic, the technical and the communicative entity, or the Paulsson (2002) model with four basic aspects: the practical, the social, the communicative and the existential, are more relevant. It is always possible to design for good function and visual attraction at the same time. That is the task and profession of architects and designers. The interdependence and significance of function and beauty has been dealt with comprehensively by the schools in this education project. Demands on student projects are always broad: they include functional aspects and appearance, identity, relations to the user, etc. The search for good examples or best practice in this respect has been general at all the schools and a recurrent point for discussion at the common halfyearly meetings. At the same time, it may be unavoidable that function practical, ergonomic and communicative aspects in relation to the user attracts the prime interest and gets priority in the UD/DfA field. A lack of function is often disastrous and not possible to compensate with something else when dealing with people with functional disabilities. On the other hand, if beauty is not there, the example or the project work is not acceptable and sustainable in any way. In philosophical terms, the functional qualities are a necessary variable but not a sufficient variable. Function, Beauty and Sensory Limitations A further aspect of this issue is of great strategic interest and has been discussed on different occasions in this project. The beauty of architecture and design is almost exclusively elaborated from visual points of view. What is beauty for people with sensory limitations, for instance impaired vision or blindness? What aesthetic values are experienced and appreciated? How shall one expand knowledge, education and practice in architecture and design in these areas? There are no simple answers to these complex questions. The relations and interdependence between function and beauty certainly need to be enhanced and figured out even more. This is an area for further development. Work is going on. The Limitations of Education Architect and design educations are often termed vocational. A completed training does not imply that you have complete knowledge, rather that you are qualified as a journeyman you have got a green card and you can continue your education in combination with professional work. This is of course the case with many other educational programmes and professions. 3 (9)

4 UD Education Project Sweden; However, at several schools it has been emphasised in the UD/DfA context, that the field of knowledge about humans and diversity is quite comprehensive, complex, dynamic and still partially unexplored. This field can be regarded as a system with many areas, parts and details. Modifications in one area cause changes in many other areas and parts. This means that professional work in architecture and design where the focus is on the human must be carried out free from preconceived ideas, and with great accuracy and care. In professional practice one experience can be added to another. However, reconsiderations are often necessary. It is vital to follow the progress of other sciences and professions working with humans and diversity. It is often crucial to cooperate. To Catch the Opportunities Architecture and design education is a complex and dynamic process. It is the art of eye opening in order to attract the interest of students. It is also the art of putting together the long-term experience among teachers and experts with the interests and thoughts of young students. It is the art of catching the opportunities of the moment in and around the schools and in the community. To follow actual trends of events in the community and to contribute in the front line is a strategy that arouses interest and increases the commitment among all the parties involved. Teachers and students have made this obvious in many ways in this project. THE CORE AND THE BREADTH OF UD/DFA Reality and User Focused Projects The predominating work method in education is problem based assignments. This is the case at the design schools as well as at the schools of landscape architecture and architecture. UD/DfA has a natural relationship to reality and user oriented problem areas in everyday life. All categories of users, from those with strong or average physical and intellectual abilities to those with considerable disabilities, are included. However, interest in people with disabilities is the dominating one. There are lots of current, complex and challenging problems. In several educational programmes, there is an emphasis, clearly expressed as well as embodied in the work, that UD/DfA concerns the interaction and the interface between humans and artefacts/environments. To find the right course in the problem orientation, humans users have to be involved as well as specialists working longterm with interaction and interface problems, companies working with design, manufacturing and the sale of products. When dealing with people with disabilities, it is natural to involve organisations and groups among the disabled, where there is interest as well as users near at hand, and to involve medical and paramedical specialists to gain basic knowledge and experience. UD/DfA Disabled People... Universal Design or Design for All means including all people. In this UDEP S project, as in many other situations, there has been a discussion whether there is or should be some delimitation. Design for All and Universal Design became generally used concepts in the Nordic Countries in the 1970s and in the USA a bit later. It became natural to link the efforts of the disabled groups so that functionally retarded persons or people behaving and acting differently could be able to live a more convenient everyday life on equal terms with other people; equal opportunities and participation. There has been and there still are today plenty of problems needing development in this dynamic field. There is a strong demand for contributions. Thus, it is stimulating for students and teachers to take part in this work. From an educational perspective, there are lots of problems to tackle and great educational options; contacts with users and specialists are required, tackling the problems means 4 (9)

5 UD Education Project Sweden practice in methodology, problem solving, the handling of professional tools, etc. A large part of the work in this project is within this field. However, this problem field and the world around it is dynamic and in constant development. The WHO:ICIDH (1980) developed into the ICF (2001) changing the perspectives from the disease/disorder impairment disability handicap focus into a new focus on body function & structure, activity, participation and personal factors. In the medical field the salutogenic perspective is gaining ground parallel to the pathogenic. Functional disabilities and capabilities are different sides of the same occurrences. For the design sector, human capabilities and personal intentions are increasingly viewed as the most important factors for the development of products and environments.... Athletes and All the Others The concept of all people may lead on to other areas. It may on one extreme lead to the problems and needs of development concerning quite strong, mobile and physically competent people, for instance in connection with demanding work tasks. In this overall view of the project at Konstfack about the equipment for the MAX-performance force, especially the protection of the head is a case in point. Other projects in this overview are the two assignments at the Chalmers School of Architecture: the new maternity unit at Oshakati in Namibia and the patient room at a Swedish hospital. The Oshakati example is primarily a health centre supporting mothers and children at the critical time of birth. The patient room is designed to support the individual patient recovering from an operation. The target groups are not disabled people, but they may be impaired for a short time as far as mobility is concerned. All the more, accessibility, usability and convenience in the environment are important qualities. There has been a discussion among teachers and students as to whether architecture and design for those who are not disabled or those that are strong, mobile and physically competent should be termed UD/DfA. Or, shall UD/DfA be confined to the traditional disability sector? There may be different opinions concerning the details, but there is a general consensus that the areas, represented by the health centre, the hospital and the MAX-performance projects, include a lot of problems of major educational value. This is exactly about the interaction and the interface between humans and artefacts/environments. The meaning and validity of the concepts as well as the core and the breadth of the UD/DfA field will be discussed even in the future. This is an essential part of the dynamic development. UD EDUCATION IN THE FUTURE The Great Idea Universal means to embrace all and everything people as well as artefacts and environments. For all means to take all humans into account, and inclusive means to include all humans in the thinking and doing. Universal Design, Design for All and Inclusive Design are metaphors, expressions of a great idea; a society which is not only barrier-free but basically enabling and empowering all people, that is providing equal opportunities and participation. This great idea has developed dynamically over the decades. Efforts to bring about this idea are going on continuously and focusing on different parts of the community; artefacts, environments, systems and processes. As is the case up to now, there will also be resistance and failures as well as successes in the future. Education is one of the cornerstones to achieve this great idea. Then, how shall UD/DfA Education be able to develop and contribute even more to this great idea, now and in the near future? Four requirements seem to be fundamental according to this educational project: 5 (9)

6 UD Education Project Sweden; Promote the subject at the schools and colleges! Keep in good contact with long-term and multi-disciplinary developments! Put the focus on knowledge about humans! Support sustainable professional cultures! To Promote the Subject at the Schools and Colleges Since the Rio declaration 1992, it is often pointed out that the social dimension is vital in a future sustainable society. All people must have opportunities to participate and contribute according to their capacities and intentions. Thus, the UD/DfA concept is a part of the sustainability movement. The scientific as well as practise-oriented sustainability programmes have been developed and given priority in the universities. Sustainable development has been integrated in most fields. There are today basic educational programmes, research centres, research schools and teaching positions. However, the UD/DfA substance in these programmes is very weak so far. It must be pointed out that the UD/DfA field is as crucial as any other sector for the welfare of people and communities in the future. It is a developing sector. It is about people of all ages; large, young and middle-aged populations in developing countries as well as large ageing populations in the western world. The UD/DfA programmes must be enhanced to a similar and specific position in the same way as other subjects of the sustainability sector. There is a need for carefully prepared UD/DfA programmes for education and research as well as the development of products, environments and building design. The Long-term and Multi-Disciplinary Development The considerable, widespread and unnecessary failure of architecture and design to comply with the diversity of human needs led to the initiative to form the European EIDD network in What was missing, and still is to a great extent missing in the design professions, is the essential basic interest and knowledge about humans and the dynamic long-term and multi-disciplinary development around human-beings. Social, ethical and scientific approaches change continuously and there has been substantial progress in the social and medical sectors as well as in supportive technology. Design is too often and often unconsciously based on careless and spineless average concepts. Other ingredients in design work than knowledge about humans attract more interest, as they may be easier to snap up and may be more profitable to elaborate on. This is where education in universal design has one of its great missions. In design work, particularly in the context of design and disability, the human senses are fundamental. Impairment or a disability connected to one sense enforces the enhanced use of other senses. The WHO: ICF model reflects the changing approaches. Environmental factors/artefacts can be regarded as parts of a system. Health conditions, body functions and structure, daily living activities, participation and personal factors are the other main parts of the system. Body functions and structure focus on human senses and capabilities; in the cognitive and intellectual meanings as well as in the physical meaning. Personal factors focus on interests, intentions and ambitions, according to the WHO: ICF. The diversity in human requirements, preferences and intentions interacts with body functions and structure as well as activities and participation. The diversity encompasses ethnic/religious background, living culture, gender and sexuality as well. There have been substantial changes in many sectors. Good design must be based on knowledge about human (cap)abilities more than disabilities. It must be based on innovations and progress in the human-oriented social, medical and technology sectors. It is vital to keep in good contact with long-term and multi-disciplinary developments. 6 (9)

7 UD Education Project Sweden Knowledge about Humans in Focus Enabling and empowering design can only be carried out with a pretty good knowledge background about human diversity. Knowledge is a key concept in this discussion. What is knowledge and how is knowledge disseminated among students and professionals in design and architecture? Now the focus is on the content, the objectives and purpose of design work; the interaction between man and environment/artefacts. It is not on design knowledge in itself; the procedures, skills, evaluation and reflection issues developed in design training. The concept of knowledge can be explained in many different ways. It is essential that teachers and students discuss and come to some consensus about what knowledge is, or might be, in design education. An introductory step may be the following explanation of knowledge (the four F:s in Swedish, which is FUSF in English): Facts, information, data can be disseminated by teachers/experts in lectures combined with the reading of selected texts in papers and books. Understanding, comprehension, that is insight in facts with motives and explanations in a real life world context of persons and daily life: can be contributed by persons/consumers/consultants with relevant experiences. 'Insight training' can contribute to understanding. Skills, proficiency, practical attainments: can be obtained by applying facts and understanding in problem solving, trial and error, project assignments. Familiarity, deep and long term experiences of a problem area, is obtained by being a part of and working continuously with in the problem area. Most students starting design studies 2 may have only slight knowledge about the diversity of humans; regarding body functions and structure, cognitive abilities, health conditions, activity/repertoire, personal factors, interests, intentions, ambitions, etc. For these students a reliable way is to provide a combination of facts and understanding. For instance, considering impaired vision/blindness, this can be accomplished by way of lectures by vision experts from the Health Care Vision Centers, combined with individuals/users /consumers explaining their daily life endeavours and experiences. The Vision Center experts are academics and they can contribute evidence based facts about the background/ causes of impaired vision, what abilities are used instead of the normal vision or with the remaining vision, what rehabilitation/training might be, what technical devices are available, etc. The visually impaired individuals are experts in describing the life world ; the strategies and practicalities of daily life activities. Insight training may enhance the understanding of the disability; students trying different everyday activities with glasses resembling vision impairments. Even more important for design students are 'design evaluation exercises'; where they test different environments to find out how design and materials may provide support and security. Facts and understanding can then be applied in design projects and slowly skills can be built up. It is important to provide insider response and evaluations of designs to secure the quality of the knowledge development. On the other hand, there are sometimes one or more students who already know the facts and have understanding, skills and familiarity with the problem area. They may be disabled themselves in some way, they may have experience of disabilities from their childhood and family life, they may have been working with disabled and elderly persons in the domestic service sector or in independent living groups. It is a major 2 In general, students today have a much better knowledge than some years ago, as they have attended schools where disabled children have become increasingly integrated. 7 (9)

8 UD Education Project Sweden; issue in education to give these students opportunities to develop their knowledge. They can also be a resource in education, in the group or studio. Sustainable Professional Cultures The design field contains different professional cultures. We may talk about an artistic model, a management model, a business model, an all-round model and a consumer oriented model. These models constitute different, interrelated and competing approaches in this socio-cultural field. There is no consensus around these terms. The field is to a great extent autonomous it develops dynamically according to internal trends, rules and powers. The relations and ways of working in the field are complex. On the one hand, there are architects and designers, who claim that artistic design is the all-determining area of knowledge (artistic model). Other kinds of knowledge; about briefing, contents, objectives and purposes of a specific work task, should be provided by other experts in the design process. This implies there is no reason to go deeper in teaching facts, understanding etc. of human capabilities in the architecture and design schools. On the other hand, there are user-oriented architects and designers claiming the very opposite. And there are different approaches in between. Architects and designers are often striving for success and fame in the eyes of architects and designers in their own field, or for instance by the commissioners of their work in related fields. Their attitudes are sometimes elitist. Internal cultural capital and economic capital is generally of prime interest. The assessments by common users, the disabled and elderly people are often of minor interest if not too outstanding in a negative light in the public media. The disability and the consumer sectors are cultural fields at some distance from the design profession field. Architecture and design education is characterised as being vocational for each respective profession. The schools are to a great extent autonomous. They live with their own traditions, ideologies, specialities etc. and they develop mainly through internal factors. The educational curriculum develops over a long time. New teachers bring new ideas, but these have to be adapted to the mainstream of the school. The school cultures are considerably influenced by the prevailing professional cultures. Teachers are recruited from the professions; often being distinguished representatives of such. This means that the disability and the consumer sectors are cultural fields some distance away from the architecture and design school fields. However, there are mediators, architects and designers with a strong commitment to the disability, health care and consumer sectors at the same time as being prominent teachers at the architectural and design schools. The contact persons in this UDEP S-project are representatives of this category. Without these teachers, the Swedish UD Education project could not have been carried out. There is a consensus among the participants in and around this project that there must be well-informed and committed teachers within all schools to make universal design approaches comprehensive, natural and sustainable in the design professions in the future. In the same way there has to be well-informed and committed professional architects and designers within all fields of the community in order to attain the sustainable society. SELECTED LITERATURE BSi, 2004: Draft for Public Document, Design management systems. Guide to managing inclusive design. 9 March London Christophersen, Jon (editor) 2002: Universal Design. 17 ways of thinking and teaching. Husbanken. Oslo Clarkson, J., Coleman, R., Keates, S. & Lebbon, C. (editors) 2003: Inclusive Design. Design for the whole population. Springer 8 (9)

9 UD Education Project Sweden Dilani, Alan (editor) 2001: Design and Health the Therapeutic Benefits of Design. Svensk Byggtjänst. Stockholm Dujardin, Marc & Dua, Inez (editors) 2002: Universal Design Education. Scientific Contact Forum, Brussels, 17 May Vlaams Kennis- en Cultuurforum. Brussel Harker, M. & King, N., 2002: Designing for Special Needs. An architect s guide to briefing and designing options for living for people with learning disabilities. RIBA Enterprises Ltd. London Imrie, Rob & Hall, Peter, 2001: Inclusive Design. Designing and Developing Accessible Environments. SPON Press. London and New York Mace, R., Hardie, G. & Place, J., 1991, Toward Universal Design. In Preiser, W. Vischer, J. & White. E. (editors): Design Intervention. Toward a More Humane Architecture. Pp: Van Nostrand Reinold. New York Monö, Rune, 1997: Design for product understanding; the æsthetics of design from a semiotic approach. Liber. Stockholm Preiser, Wolfgang F. E. & Ostroff, Elaine, 2001: Universal Design Handbook. McGraw-Hill Ostroff, Elaine, 2001: Universal Design: the new paradigm. In Preiser, W.F.E. & Ostroff, E.S. (editors): Universal Design Handbook, McGraw-Hill Ostroff, E., Limont, M. & Hunter, D. 2002: Building a World Fit for People. Designers with Disabilities at Work. Massachusetts. Adaptive Environments Rahe, Ulrike (editor) 2004: DESIGN. With Focus on Human Needs. Industrial Design Engineering. Chalmers. Göteborg Regnier, Viktor, Design for Assisted Living. Guidelines for Housing the Physically and Mentally Frail. John Wiley & Sons, New York Siré, Elena, 2001: Varsam tillgänglighet vid ändring av byggnader och byggd miljö. (Considerate Accessibility in the Renewal of Building Environments). Svensk Byggtjänst. Stockholm Welch, Polly (editor), 1995: STUD: Strategies for Teaching Universal Design. Edited by Polly Welch. Adaptive Environments. Boston 9 (9)