PgCert

Students perceive the differences between undergraduate and master’s study to include a shift of responsibility from the teacher to the learner – lecturers provide direction, with students following up on this with their own studies and research (QAA Scotland, 2013).

Figure 1. The characteristics of Mastersness (QAA Scotland, 2013)

It can be a hard shift for students going from undergraduate to postgraduate studies which involves taking responsibility of their own learning in terms of self-organisation, motivation and acquisition of knowledge.

Fig. 2: Vectorstall, Noun Project 

Lars Lindström explores how vocational knowledge is acquired in creative education, emphasising different ways learners engage with the arts. His framework outlines four key dimensions of learning: Learning About, In, With and Through the Arts (Lindström, 2012).

Figure 3. The Four Forms of Aesthetic Learning (Lindström, 2012).

The graphic design undergraduate programmes I am involved in often employ project-based learning as a pedagogical approach to deliver vocational knowledge, fostering practical expertise and aligning education with professional practice. This reflects what Lindström describes as learning ‘in the arts’, where knowledge is developed through artistic processes and the making in a context that mirrors real-world practice (Lindström, 2012).

Postgraduate study in graphic design tends to emphasise aesthetic learning about and with the arts, encouraging critical reflection and engagement with artistic practices as part of the research process (Lindström, 2012). Billett places a strong emphasis on the learner’s agency, suggesting that identity and engagement are crucial to how vocational knowledge is acquired and applied (Billett, 2011).

I encounter the studio setting aids as a space where these different teaching dimensions and approaches blend by fostering both technical advice as well as giving gudiance for vocational knowlege (i.e. how to start primary and secondary research, synthesising ideas, exploring them visually, but also how to be professional and an proactive thinker), but mainly strengthen their confidence and ask them to reflect on where they situate themselves as critical practictioners based on their lived experiences and identity. 

References
Billett, S. (2011) Vocational Education: Purposes, Traditions and Prospects. Dordrecht: Springer.
Lindström, L. (2012) ‘Aesthetic Learning about, in, with and through the Arts: A Curriculum Study’, International Journal of Art & Design Education.
QAA Scotland (2013) What is Mastersness: A Discussion Paper from ‘Learning from International Practice: The Postgraduate Taught Student Experience’. UK: Scottish Higher Education Enhancement Committee.

I started a new position as a Unit Lead at the newly established UAL Online. While I embark this new chapter in my teaching career, I am reflecting on how the vibrant feeling of the physical studio space within art and design studies could be translated to the online sphere.

Orr & Shreeve postulate that “ideally the studio is an active, busy and social place where learning is visible and open to discussion through active participation” (Orr & Shreeve, 2017). This sentiment comprises perfectly the main aspects I encounter when spending on a weekly basis time with a student cohort in the studio – it is loud, it is messy, it is fun and full of isible exploration which are covering more and more wall space over time.

Padlet, Miro and Blackboard as equivalents of that physical studio space where most of the learning in creative studies takes place feel comparably sterile, ordered and quiet. The online space will desparately need to be humanised and instilled with elements which create a sense of belonging by using available online platform and its specific workings to the best of their abilities. It will be vital to include human imperfections and messiness to those digital spaces to create an authentic feel where students are encourage (rather than scared) to try idea, are open and show vulnerability sharing draft ideas.

Ross & Lewis suggest simple tricks like uncovering course content together, playing studio music in the background and dancing on your chair during the limited synchronous studio to help to fill the online space with the much needed sense of human connection and collaboration (Ross & Lewis, 2022).

The new courses at UAL Online will predominantly be taught asychronously with one 60 minutes live session per week. The online studio space to upload work for crits will be open 24/7. As there won’t be the real-time experience of coming into a physical studio the students will need create a mental shift whereby “being in a studio” will need to become more a mindset rather than a physical act. Again Orr & Shreeve lent a great perspective whereby the see the “Studio as a state of mind demands that learners engage in collaborative and community learning, using available spaces, whether physical, online, inside or outside the university. The shared experiences, linked by attitudes expected in the studio, of risk taking and experimentation, may be demonstrated by learners and teachers as an evolving space” (Orr & Shreeve, 2017).

References
Orr, S. & Shreeve, A. (2017) Signature Pedagogies in Art & Design. Abingdon: Routledge.
Ross, A. & Lewis, M. (2022) Belonging & engagement in online spaces. London: University of the Arts London (UAL).

My name is Antonia Huber, I am an Associate Lecturer at BA and MA Graphic Branding and Identity since 2016. Last month I also took on the role of Unit Lead for the new MA Graphic Design (online). Alongside being an educator I am running a one-woman eponymous graphic design studio.

I am hoping to see the PgCert as a space to reflect on my teaching practices which so far have mainly been acquired by colleagues and as I am going along.