DE6003 - Advanced Academic and Professional Practice

‘Advanced Academic and Professional Practice’ is a lecture theatre, and where appropriate, tutorial and virtual space based module with learning taking place through lectures, presentations, research and writing. This allows you to build confidence and develop skills prior to summative assessment. Peer learning is encouraged through the interaction of the student group during delivered lectures and small group seminars. We refer to this subject delivery approach as follows;

Northumbria X-Studio (Extended Studio):
The School of Design operates an extended studio approach (X-Studio) that embraces our physical studios and making workshops as well as our virtual spaces to create a flexible and rich environment that is responsive to our learners’ needs.
This dedicated approach has been developed over many years of continuous teaching innovation, research and industry collaboration. It has created a supportive extended studio culture that encourages our students to learn flexibly, dynamically blending their learning and University experience between physical and digital interactions both in real-time and online at their own pace.
We believe that this extended studio culture not only helps our students to become more confident autonomous learners but also prepares them for a dynamic design industry in which an extended studio philosophy is current practice.020

Project brief/s will be introduced through a briefing session/s where the brief can be fully explained and you will have the opportunity to ask questions. The module is delivered via a combination of lectures, tutorials, seminars, tutor guided independent learning and student independent learning. Informal studio-based feedback will support student’s progress through the module. Where appropriate, external visits will support the students understanding of the design process.

The module is report-based and you will submit 3 written documents for summative assessment for which you will receive feedback from staff, this will promote enquiry based/problem-solving learning methodology and reflect the accumulation and integration of knowledge accrued over the module.

Support and feedback will be provided by a variety of methods throughout the module, starting at the briefing and concluding upon submission of each design project. Support includes;

Staff Contact
• Module tutors who provide academic support based upon industrial experience.
• Individual staff-student tutorials inform design project direction.
• Group tutorials enable staff to interact with students and encourage peer learning and support.
• Project briefs are normally introduced via a briefing session, where the brief is fully explained and explored by both staff and students.
• The eLearning Portal will be utilised to communicate all relevant module information.

Studio Contact Time
• Modules are delivered through a combination of lecture supported group tutorials and studio activity, practical demonstrations, studio teaching, guided and independent learning new skills are delivered through workshop activities.
• Studio feedback takes place to facilitate students’ development in the areas being studied, to allow formative feedback and the identification of examples of good practice and development areas to be considered.
• Independent study hours will be utilised to continue the development and progression of studio activity.

Peer and Independent Support
• Students are encouraged and expected to maintain a personal development plan (PDP) and are encouraged to take responsibility for their own learning.
• Studio based activity also supports the development of appreciation and evaluation of peers work.

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:
• (WRITING) 1 - Identify, review and critically discuss professional practice design and appropriate research related topics in a scholarly manner as evidenced through your ability to produce critically relevant illustrated research documents.
• (RESEARCH) 1 - Undertake sophisticated comparative analysis of design, products and markets through the synthesis of information in appropriately researched documents.

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:
• (COM) 1 - Apply business and enterprise strategy to personal practice as evidenced through the production of suitably illustrated professional research documents.


Personal Values Attributes (Global / Cultural awareness, Ethics, Curiosity) (PVA):
• (FLEXI) 1 - Engage employability skills including leadership, enterprise, flexibility and resourcefulness.
• (PERSONAL) 3 - Demonstrate highly effective and professional organisational skills as evidenced through the organisation and production of written documents.

The module features 2 components;

• Design Proposition, Site Model and Feasibility Study (6000 words) 60% in Semester 1.
• Research paper (4000 words) and Module Presentation 40% in Semester 2.

Grades will be given at the submission of each project. At the end of the module grades will be collated to provide a final mark for the module, which is a 2D and 3D written and presented document.

The assessment and feedback strategy is;

a. Formative Assessment
Reviews with tutors and peers will provide an opportunity for review at key points and formative direction. This will allow students to reflect upon their own work and act upon feedback prior to final submission. Verbal feedback is designed to help students to identify areas of success and/or further development to be considered.

b. Summative assessment?
The project brief/s driving the module will identify the assessment criteria and submission requirements (deliverables) appropriate to the topic of the project. The assessable elements will consist of 3 written assignments.

c. Feedback strategy
Feedback will be delivered verbally at the point of each tutorial, where discussion will clarify future direction. Upon receiving summative assessment students will receive a grade reflecting achievement against the learning outcomes of the module. Students are encouraged to take ownership of their learning by recording feedback in order to reflect upon it as they engage in subsequent learning.

Prior modules or equivalent experience

N/A

‘Advanced Academic and Professional Practice’ provides the platform for you to build your research and professional practice knowledge base in readiness for your self-directed final major project. It will deal with establishing or identifying the final project proposition and selecting and researching an appropriate site. It will also enable you to build upon current knowledge of employability, critical design analysis, site, materials, finishes, detailing, customer etc. upon finalising the proposition. Ultimately it will result in the development of the brief for the main design project and in turn establish parameters or agendas to work within.

Furthermore you will prepare for professional design practice, from design brief through to construction stage, by building upon your experience of project management to date. You will cover the main areas of professional practice, which include: Management of a construction project, needs of the client, administration of contract and the impact of projects on the management of a practice.

Learning will be based in our industry standard lecture theatres, seminar rooms and virtual studios, to give you the practical and observational skills and subject knowledge required for placement or employability in industry.