Hailey Reel

Daveena Tauber

Design and Society

November 28, 2007

Reflection Essay

            When walking into a class called Design and Society most people wouldn’t know what to expect.  When I first signed up for the class I imagined a class where we would simply learn about what roles design has in our society today. While this is the main subject I have learned so much more such as, common misconceptions in everyday used objects, how to analyze an advertisement in much detail, and what goes on during the process of building a bridge. Entering this class I knew I was a hands on learner and knowing there was a large building portion of this class really boosted by confidence as a student. As time has passed over the course of this term I realized that as a hands on learning is not the only way I grasp a subject but having interest in it plays an enormous role.  I’m not learning about something I’m forced to learn, but a subject  that interests me and that plays a role in everyone’s everyday life even if they know it or not.

    Today there are many ethical issues in the world of design. One major issue is slave labor. What companies do is they make their factories in poor countries so that they can afford to employ hundreds of people at a low cost. This has a role in design because companies are having their employees make and design the products. Many large companies have been notified of their bad ethical behavior admit to employing cheap labor but say that moving the factories or increasing wages for their employees would be too much money. Before reading “Design Class: Ikea and Democracy as Furniture” by Kimberly DeFazio, and “How Ikea Designs Its Sexy Price Tags” by Lisa Margonelli, I was oblivious to the slave labor that was happening with most large corporations today.  (see attachment “Log Assignment 6”)

    Through my years of high school I have had a lot of experience with group projects and have gained a pretty good sense of accountability. I am a hard diligent worker who always shows  up on time and stays on task. Being held responsible for any portion of a group project is a large task. Making a contract in the beginning of a group project is a great way of being able to hold people accountable for their end of the work.  Throughout the group project this term I have been fortunate to have team mates who are as hard workers as I am. They all understand how important it is to get work done on time.

Some of the things designed today are extremely difficult to figure out.  A certain Far Side comic exhibits traits of human experience and design. The comic is of a boy pushing on a door that clearly says pull. Though this happens on a regular basis this comic is still funny.  Over the year I have realized just how difficult some things that are designed are hard to understand, such as something as simple as a door. In this comic there is a sign in the front of the building that says “school for the gifted”. I believe this puts a certain stereotype on an ability of a certain class. My paper that is attached explains how I see class and ability being impacted. It explains how not only “gifted” people make these mistakes, but all people in general. (see attachment “Log Assignment 1”)

My career goal in life is to work for a large advertising firm. This will force me to become a critical thinker in many ways. I will have to understand what my clients are wanting and figure out the best way to sell this to the world. Throughout Design and Society there have been a few challenging reading assignments that have been hard to understand but have forced me to work hard to grasp the ideas being portrayed. This has enhanced my reading skills greatly. I feel that I am more capable of making and supporting arguments and writing analysis of any topic thrown at me. One reading assignment that was difficult for me was an article by Richard Buchanan called “ Human dignity and Human Rights: Thoughts on the Principles of Human-Centered Design”. Even though it was a difficult read I did some investigating on the author and researched more on his views and beliefs which made it easier to understand.( See attachment “Log Assignment 9”)

Media that was used mostly throughout group work was mostly oral and some computer. We used the computer for making our bridge, using excel for scaling our bridge, and taking quizzes on the internet. If we needed to get a hold of each other for a question or a time to get together we used the phone. Before this term I was somewhat confident in my writing skills, but now that I have experienced more analytical writing I feel a lot more confident in papers I write now. An area of communication that I would like to keep working on is oral. I am not secure with public speaking which is a hard area of communication to work on. Not only is it learning certain techniques but also learning to overcome a fear. (See attachments “Women In Today’s Advertising World, Bridge spreadsheet, and chair sketch”)