Design Decolonial
Contribuições ao Pensamento Crítico e Projetual no Ensino de Design no Brasil
- Name
- Lorena Oliveira
- Year
- 2022
- Institution
- Lisbon School of Architecture Universidade de Lisboa
- Supervisors
- Marcos Braga, Rita Almendra
- Discipline
- Design
- Scope
- Design Education
- Taxonomy
- Epistemology
- Type
- Theoretical
- Language
- Portuguese
- Wordcount / Pagecount
- 105,601 / 299
- Joint supervision
- Yes (Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo da Universidade de São Paulo)
Decolonial design education and critical pedagogy in Brazilian design schools
Research Process (11 methods)
x
Influential community leaders (a priest and a pedagogical coordinator) and local artists
Students from the UFRN Cultural Anthropology class and various community members (children, adults, and the elderly)
Students from the "Oficina de Modelos e Materiais II" course
Using photography to document residents' perceptions of positive and negative points within their neighborhood
Community members, local artists, and design students
Students from the "Design de Serviços" course
Groups of design students and community residents
UFRN students who participated in the Cultural Anthropology and Service Design classes
Design students from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN)
Design professors from various public Brazilian universities (USP, UEMG, UFMA, UFPE, and UERJ-ESDI)
| # | Name of Method | Research Phase | Research Approach | Researcher Role | Object of Study / Participants | N |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Literature review | Exploratory | Qualitative | x | x | x |
| 2 | Interview | Exploratory | Qualitative | x | Influential community leaders (a priest and a pedagogical coordinator) and local artists | 4 |
| 3 | Workshop | Exploratory/Generative | Qualitative | Participatory | Students from the UFRN Cultural Anthropology class and various community members (children, adults, and the elderly) | 30 |
| 4 | Critical incident technique | Exploratory/Generative | Qualitative | Participatory | Students from the "Oficina de Modelos e Materiais II" course | unspecified |
| 5 | Workshop | Exploratory/Generative | Qualitative | Participatory | Using photography to document residents' perceptions of positive and negative points within their neighborhood | 11 |
| 6 | Workshop | Exploratory/Generative | Qualitative | Participatory | Community members, local artists, and design students | unspecified |
| 7 | Critical incident technique | Exploratory/Generative | Qualitative | Participatory | Students from the "Design de Serviços" course | 24 |
| 8 | Workshop | Exploratory/Generative | Qualitative | Participatory | Groups of design students and community residents | 24 |
| 9 | Interview | Generative/Evaluative | Qualitative | x | UFRN students who participated in the Cultural Anthropology and Service Design classes | 37 |
| 10 | Experiment | Generative | Qualitative | x | Design students from the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) | 36 |
| 11 | Oral history | Generative | Qualitative | x | Design professors from various public Brazilian universities (USP, UEMG, UFMA, UFPE, and UERJ-ESDI) | 6 |
Knowledge Transfer & Exchange
Knowledge Exchange (PhD Process): Exchange with Academia
| IK&T | Academia | Design Practice | Society |
|---|---|---|---|
| Context | No | No | No |
| Vision | Yes | No | No |
| Means | No | No | No |
Recommendations (6)
Ensure the presence of transgressive educators who can challenge dominant epistemologies and pedagogical routines in design education.
- Scope:
- Macro
- Time Horizon:
- Long
- Evidence Strength:
- Indicative
- Feasibility:
- Medium
Embed pedagogical actions directly within design project practice instead of separating critical reflection from project-based learning.
- Scope:
- Meso
- Time Horizon:
- Medium
- Evidence Strength:
- Indicative
- Feasibility:
- High
Start from projects that are explicitly linked to local context, community realities, and lived conditions rather than abstract or imported problem framings.
- Scope:
- Meso
- Time Horizon:
- Medium
- Evidence Strength:
- Indicative
- Feasibility:
- Medium-High
Seek other epistemological directions in design teaching by incorporating non-hegemonic references, Latin American thought, and plural ways of knowing and making.
- Scope:
- Macro
- Time Horizon:
- Long
- Evidence Strength:
- Indicative
- Feasibility:
- Medium
Teach design through historical understanding that values collective memories and resistance movements as sources of design knowledge and critical positioning.
- Scope:
- Macro
- Time Horizon:
- Medium
- Evidence Strength:
- Indicative
- Feasibility:
- Medium
Affirm Brazilian decolonial design education as a political utopia that orients teaching toward transformation rather than mere professional adaptation.
- Scope:
- Macro
- Time Horizon:
- Long
- Evidence Strength:
- Exploratory
- Feasibility:
- Low-Medium