Syllabus

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The student will recognize the intrinsic features, methodological opportunities and the multidisciplinary and multimethodological nature of design disciplines. The student will have a basic understanding of the research field and basic skills to follow the research scene and apply research methods and results critically and independently in their thesis work and professional practice. The course will introduce the student to some key resources to develop one's knowledge- base, argumentation skills, and knowledge of good scientific practices.

Credits: 3 - 6

Schedule: 04.09.2023 - 03.12.2023

Teacher in charge (valid for whole curriculum period):

Teacher in charge (applies in this implementation): Anni Vartola

Contact information for the course (applies in this implementation):

Contact via email: anni.vartola@aalto.fi.
Drop me an email and book a Zoom meeting; I’m available for consultation by appointment and happy to help you with any issues concerning this course.

CEFR level (valid for whole curriculum period):

Language of instruction and studies (applies in this implementation):

Teaching language: English. Languages of study attainment: English

CONTENT, ASSESSMENT AND WORKLOAD

Content

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  The course gives an overlook to architectural and design research, their methods and core ideals. We will analyse a selection of research textbooks and research papers from the field of architecture, landscape architecture and interior architecture, and discuss doing research in the light of topical examples and some exercises. We will also meet scholars, designers and other professionals who have recently completed their Master's or Doctoral theses and learn about their projects. The course has two versions to choose from: a 3 ECTS version (students in interior architecture) and a 6 ECTS version (students in architecture).
  

• applies in this implementation

  The course classes are held remotely in Zoom. The classes consist of discussions of course literature, analyses of research papers, and Q&A sessions with visiting scholars. There will also be regular homework such as position point preparations and a few small hands-on exercises at class such as concept definitions and information retrieval drills.

  The course literature consists of textbooks and papers (or excerpts of books) related to architectural and design research. The course literature is studied in a collective and discursive way. The book reviews are done in groups; paper analyses are done individually as written reviews (summaries) and then discussed at the classes.
  

  After the course, the student should:

  • comprehend the inherently multidisciplinary and multivalent nature of architectural research and its rich options
    
  • be able to distinguish between professional and scientific domains in the field of architecture
  • understand the basic concepts used in research and academic argumentation
  • be keen to apply critical research thinking to their own academic and professional activities.
    

   
  It would also be nice if the student would:
  

  • have an idea of how research and design can contribute to one another in a productive manner
  • be able to compose a credible research plan for their own research projects
  • be able to and be keen to use architectural research publications for knowledge acquisition according to their interests.
    

  
  

Assessment Methods and Criteria

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  The course is assessed pass/fail; accepted coursework requires that the student has completed all the exercises and been present at all the 7 classes; any absence must be compensated with individually negotiated extra coursework.

• applies in this implementation

  The completion of the course (pass) entails attendance at all the classes and completing all the coursework. In case of absence, the student must contact the teacher and negotiate substituting work and its deadline. These substituting assignments are usually a short essay or an oral presentation about a book, a journal issue, a research topic or equivalent. 

  To compensate a missed class attendance with an essays, the requested length of the paper is c. 600 words / 1 absence; for an oral presentation, the requested length is 15 minutes / 1 absence.
  
  

Workload

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  The workload amounts to 6 ECTS which entails an estimated amount of 165 hours of work: 18 contact hours, 30 hrs group work, and 117 hrs of independent work. Participation at classes is mandatory. In order to have enough time to read and reflect on the course material and do the exercises, the classes are every 2nd week. The course comprises of a discursive series of classes, reading, critical analyses of texts, book reviews and presentations as groupwork, and online quizzes. The course applies digital online tools, remote participation is possible.

• applies in this implementation

  • 7 Classes à 2,5 hrs every 2nd week (18 hours of contact learning)
  • Book Reviews as groupwork; entails also individual work such as reading and preparation for the group meetings (estimate c. 85 hours)
  • Homework as listed in the course programme (entails some preparatory work and reading and analysing scientific papers) 
  • 6 online Quizzes on MyCourses.
    

  As the course language is English and the course material is written in English, the workload depends greatly on the individual student’s language skills and experience in reading scholarly English.
  
  

DETAILS

Study Material

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  The study material will be available either as pdfs or electronic publications accessible on the course's MyCourses platform or at the Aalto Learning Centre collections. The full list of readings will be announced on the course's MyCourses platform at the start of the course.

• applies in this implementation

  Full literature list will be available on the MyCourses course site.
  

Substitutes for Courses

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  Substitutes for Courses

Prerequisites

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  Prerequisites

FURTHER INFORMATION

Further Information

• valid for whole curriculum period:

  Teaching Language : English

  Teaching Period : 2022-2023 Autumn I - II
  2023-2024 Autumn I - II

  Enrollment :

  Min 5 students, Max 60 students
  

  Registration for courses: Sisu. Priority order to courses is according to the order of priority decided by the Academic committee for School of Arts, Design and Architecture, https://www.aalto.fi/en/services/registering-to-courses-and-the-order-of-priority-at-aalto-arts

  Study methods: The workload amounts to either 3 ECTS (students in interior architecture) or 6 ECTS (students in architecture) which entail an estimated amount of 83/166 hours of work: 18 contact hours, 30 hrs of group work, and 59/118 hrs of independent work. Participation at classes is mandatory. To have enough time to read and reflect on the course material and do the exercises, the classes are every 2nd week. The course comprises of a discursive series of classes, reading, critical analyses of texts, book reviews and presentations as groupwork, and online quizzes. The course applies digital online tools, remote participation is possible.
  

Details on the schedule

• applies in this implementation

  The detailed course schedule will be available on the MyCourses course site.
  

Description