Problem-finding as a research strategy connecting undergraduate learning with staff research in contemporary education institutions

While ‘problem-solving’ is defined as a research method based on a number of givens in a linear process, ‘problem-finding’ is an open-ended mode of design, actively engaging participants in a reciprocal discourse. This method of learning by doing is implicit in design education. To examine problem-finding in the context of undergraduate study a collaborative staff–student research project is presented in the form of a case study. By continuing to find ‘problems’, design educators and students alike are challenged to push the boundaries of the discipline and frame it more centrally as an agent of change in society and culture. In a development of my Ph.D. and HEA Teaching Fellowship the design process is framed as a bridge between academic research and student employability. In this context I suggest that research strategies developed through doctoral study can extend and substantiate teaching and learning in design.