APPLYING SERVICE-LEARNING METHODS IN DESIGN EDUCATION TO IMPROVE THE QUALITY OF THE MASTER'S PROGRAM

ABSTRACT

In the current context, the service-learning method applied in design education has received a lot of attention, especially at the master's program. This training method contributes to enhancing social responsibility for the generation of young designers. Teaching and learning methods combined with schools and stakeholders might equip students with the proper knowledge, skills and experiences to be able to grasp career opportunities. Moreover, they can have a better understanding of each individual's responsibility in the community where they live. As a result, this method is suitable for the challenges that exist in master's level training in design professions. For that reason, the purposes of this study are: (1) to clarify the environmental and social challenges that affect design education; (2) to determine the role of designers in the new context; and (3) to explore the potential of applying service-learning models in postgraduate design education to improve training quality and achieve sustainable development goals.

АННОТАЦИЯ

В современных условиях большое внимание уделяется методу социальных проектов, применяемому в обучении дизайну, особенно в магистратуре. Этот метод обучения способствует повышению социальной ответственности поколения молодых дизайнеров. Преподавание и методы обучения в сочетании со школами и заинтересованными сторонами могут дать учащимся необходимые знания, навыки и опыт, которые позволят им воспользоваться возможностями карьерного роста. Кроме того, они смогут лучше понять ответственность каждого человека в обществе, в котором они живут. В результате этот метод подходит для решения задач, возникающих при подготовке магистров по дизайнерским специальностям. По этой причине, целями данного исследования являются: (1) прояснение экологических и социальных проблем, влияющих на образование в области дизайна; (2) определение роли дизайнеров в новых условиях; и (3) изучение потенциала применения моделей обучения в сфере услуг в последипломном образовании в области дизайна для улучшения качества обучения и достижения целей устойчивого развития.

Keywords: service-learning, sustainable development, design education, master's program.

Ключевые слова: обучение методом социальных проектов, устойчивое развитие, дизайн-образование, магистерская программа.

1. Introduction

We are living in a digital era with constant changes related to the knowledge economy and technology. Along with that, the challenges related to ecological and social crises on a global scale. When industrial economies replaced agriculture-based economies, industrialized nations were created, while causing negative impacts on the sustainability of human life on our planet. The capitalist values that fueled the industrial age are no longer relevant and need to be replaced by values of social trust and interdependence (Drucker, 1993). These issues reveal new challenges, requiring changes to the education system to meet the needs of learners and society. One of the most promising models known is service-learning. This model upholds the core values of social trust and stakeholder engagement in teaching and learning, supporting students to have practical experience with relevant social issues and the concept of sustainability in education (Stuteville et al., 2009). To build a sustainable future, each individual should be responsible to the community and respect the ecological environment, taking into account the needs of future generations when making decisions for the current system in the world (United Nations, 1987). The service-learning model is implemented in classroom-based projects that aim to link community service with school curriculum to enhance both the characters and skills of learners. Moreover, the concepts of service-learning have been expanded, with the integration of new technologies as proposed by two educators Dailey-Herbert and Donnelli (2010) on an integrated pedagogy between the service-learning method and online training (eLearning). This theory has been effectively applied during the Covid-19 pandemic in recent years.

In the current context, a master's program in design education has the task of equipping and improving professional knowledge and skills, raising career awareness for learners. Besides, this training level also participates in the process of enhancing students' experience in community activities, promoting the core value of interdependence between individuals and society. The existing research shows the need to equip learners with knowledge and skills so that they can apply them flexibly in constantly changing environments (Stuteville et al., 2009; Spearman et al., 2012; Herranen et al., 2018). This preparation might help them practice professional activities in multicultural environments and advanced technology systems worldwide.

Service-learning connects academic studies with community involvement, emphasizing respect, reciprocity, relevance, and reflection. This approach has gained significant traction as a method of active teaching and civic education in higher education. It is part of a broader community engagement movement that includes practices like civic engagement, community-based research, public scholarship, and participatory action research. This movement aims to effectively bridge classroom learning with community experience, enhancing students' academic performance, cultural understanding, and contributing to a more equitable and inclusive society (Butin, 2010, p. xiv). The service-learning (SL) method is described as an educational model closely associated with society and stakeholders, ready to respond to changes on a global scale. This is considered a potential teaching method, supporting new educational models associated with the three basic pillars of sustainability: environment-society-economic, especially in areas facing challenges such as the field of fashion design education (Lai et al., 2018; Eike et al., 2018). Service-learning can match the requirements in the current situation, contributing to improving the awareness and practical experience of the generation of fashion designers sitting in school, by its ability to integrate the priorities of the fashion system (i.e. environmental and social sustainability). The service-learning approach can promote core values, through out-of-school interactions, making students more responsive to challenges and responsibilities. This plays an important role and orientation for the sustainable development of the fashion industry in the future.

This study was carried out based on an interdisciplinary approach and secondary data analysis to evaluate and discuss the results obtained and to clarify three research objectives: (1) to clarify the environmental and social challenges that affect design education; (2) to determine the role of designers in the new context; and (3) to explore the potential of applying service-learning models in postgraduate design education to improve training quality and achieve sustainable development goals. The results of the study show that, although there are some barriers related to the conditions and human resources of design institutions, the biggest challenge for design education today is to develop a sustainable pedagogical model, linked to environmental and social issues. Since the traditional education model might hardly meet the new requirements. Therefore, applying service-learning and integrating sustainable principles has great potential to bring social and stakeholder engagement along with learners. This study also discusses the possibility of applying service-learning models at the master's level of design education to enhance students' learning ability, empathy for issues in the community, practical experience and career goals in the design field. Besides, the study points out the issues that design education is facing and clarifies the role of the next designers' generation. This can help prepare for a future where the next generation of young designers will write their own stories and go their own way, with the knowledge and skills already equipped and guided by the core values of social responsibility and sustainability goals.

2. Methodology

To achieve the three research objectives mentioned above, secondary data analysis methods are used to evaluate and discuss the current problems of design education and the applicability of the new method of teaching and learning in Vietnam.

After analyzing secondary data, a focus group research was also conducted. The participants of this research are educators, educational managers, design experts, policy managers, and business owners operating in the field of design (Table 1). The purpose of the focus group research is to discuss the essential elements of a collaborative training model between universities and the local business community. In addition, group discussions also focused on issues affecting design education in Vietnam and sought answers on how to successfully bring win-win approaches through a service-learning model. At the same time, initiatives from relevant stakeholders are also synthesized to figure out solutions to improve the quality of design education in the current context.

Table 1.

List of members participating in the research focus group

3. Results and discussion

2.1. The status of design education in Vietnam

The development of design has a long history, from the arts and crafts movements to the industrial revolution of the mid-nineteenth century, from Art Nouveau in France to the Bauhaus movements in Germany, all of which promote beauty. The beauty of the product's appearance and aesthetics are pushed to the max, sometimes ignoring both price and functionality. Many products of this period became works of art for decorative purposes such as furniture, fabrics, kitchen utensils and lighting.

Meanwhile, design in Vietnam appeared in the 50s of the twentieth century, the predecessor of the first Design school was the Fine Arts School established in 1949. Today, that school developed into the University of Arts and Design. Vietnam's development after two wars with France (1945) and The United States (1975) opened up opportunities for the development of the design profession. Many design education institutions have been established, contributing to raising both the competition and innovation in design curriculums. In the long period in Vietnam, only three higher education institutions (HEIs) have a design programme. From 2000 to the present, the number of HEIs offering training in the design field has increased more than 10 times. Due to this rapid development, design programmes, facilities and human resources have not reached the required standard. This had a significant impact on the quality of training in recent times (Le, 2022).

To support design education in seizing opportunities and solving challenges in the current context, applying new training models will open up possibilities for cooperation and improve training quality. “Foreign universities (for example, UC Cincinnati University) have hundreds of partners who are large corporations. Students will be sent to practice at those businesses (Co-op and Internship semesters) to work full-time in the right field and receive a salary. However, the actual entry model (or graduation internship) in Vietnam is not necessarily the Co-op model. The difference between Vietnamese HEIs and the world's is that Vietnam HEIs have too much emphasis on school learning and focus on theory, while the world's HEIs focus on practice" (EdM2).

In practical contact with learners at the workshop of a fine arts company, it has been shown that they need to have a better understanding of the character applicabilities of materials in design and production. Although some of the students' designs are visually interesting, they are not suitable for production. Therefore, students should to participate directly in the production stages to shorten the gap from theory to practice (Ap; Ar).

One of the common reasons why the training process is difficult is that second and third-year students can participate in the job market in the field of design. This proportion is quite large and mainly spontaneous, according to contracts between individual learners and businesses. This leads to a phenomenon that learners have difficulty balancing their time, affecting their study results (EdM1, EdM2 ). Although practical experience is very important for young designers, insufficient professional knowledge will lead to low study results. In some cases, these students have to stop their study paths.

For master's degrees, design education has also grown rapidly to meet social needs. In recent years, these HEIs have begun to focus on cooperation models with different participants, especially service-learning models. Cooperation between universities and the community is considered an inevitable trend to improve the training quality of HEIs, support businesses in making development decisions, and improve the learner's responsibility towards the community. HEIs also consider the above things as an important strategic task to orient design education, closely touch social needs and provide high-quality human resources for the labour market (Ed2, Bu, De). This also contributes to creating practical experience for learners, shortening the gap in applying theory to design practice.

2.2. Responsibilities of design education and the role of designers in the new context

In the industrial age, we were concerned with profits, despite the depletion of natural resources, including irreversible resources. However, in the recent context, sustainable development proposes new socio-economic models, concerned with the integrity of nature and social justice. To achieve the above goals, education needs to play a decisive role in equipping learners around the world with the knowledge and skills to address environmental and social challenges. Education should revolve around the central goal of teaching learners how to live and work on the path of sustainability, find a way to minimize issues of equality and justice in society and comply with the principles and regulations of the law. Indeed, this needs to be done at all levels and all fields of education, in all regions and territories around the world, and education is key in supporting these goals toward sustainable development (Buckler & Creech, 2014).

As mentioned above, the responsibility of design education comes from the fact that the impact of social demands on well-trained and advanced design human resources, especially at the master's level. Integrating service-learning teaching methods in design training encourages the achievement of sustainability goals that benefit the environment and communities. Design education at the master's level will achieve its goals when HEIs make changes in teaching and learning methods. This might equip learners with the ability to perceive social issues and accumulate experience through activities related to their study in order to connect with the community. Students might improve their design awareness and skills through collaborative design projects with local communities (EdM2, O). Designing a good product or service can be identified as a sustainable product from the designer's first decisions, such as using eco-friendly materials, reducing and minimizing waste and excess materials (zero-waste design), optimizing functionality and being used in many situations (multifunction design), or products made by local communities and supporting jobs for those people (Bui et al., 2024).

2.3. Service-learning and Sustainability

It must be emphasized that, in a rapidly changing world, there are unchanging values that are social trust, interdependence and sustainability (Stuteville et al., 2009). Applying the service-learning model will contribute to promoting these values by engaging schools and society, connecting individuals with communities and promoting local experiences with the global community. Furthermore, the service-learning approach incorporates the broader community and connects learners in a serving relationship with that community (Lovat & Clement, 2016). According to this perspective, service-learning can create mutually beneficial experiences and support engagement between learners and other stakeholders. This can make the learner's path more meaningful since it engages learners to better understand and enhance each individual's responsibility to society and the living environment (Barnes and Caprino, 2016; Alonso et al., 2020).

However, to achieve effectiveness and sustainability in applying the service-learning method, it is necessary to have the participation of all parties, especially the initiatives of educators and students in the HEIs.  Some researchers have suggested that using service-learning as an approach to develop social capital, instil core values, and create a new model of sustainable education based on knowledge (Stuteville et al., 2009). Unesco also identifies two important approaches to promote education for sustainability in all levels of education and fields, which are: (1) to support the education community in the transition to sustainable development; (2) to stimulate stakeholders working on sustainable development to incorporate education into their work (Buckler & Creech, 2014). Based on these fundamental approaches, HEIs need to make the following key points: to reorient existing educational programs to address sustainability; to increase public understanding and awareness of sustainability; and to provide training to enhance sustainability in all education fields. Therefore, in parallel with applying service-learning pedagogy, first of all, HEIs should integrate knowledge related to sustainability in teaching, to equip learners with a foundation of knowledge and problem-solving skills, in order to solve challenges and grasp opportunities in real-life contexts.

2.4. Applying service-learning in design education at the at the master’s degree

Related to the process of “learning by doing” and “learning by sharing”, service-learning is a pedagogical method that strengthens learners' understanding of community values and each individual's relationship with society and the ecological environment (Pearce, 2009; Barth et al., 2014). This creates opportunities for learners to engage in meaningful activities in their local community to understand their role in determining their own future. Each learner's action contributes to creating effects and impacts local and global socio-cultural, politico-economic and environmental issues at different levels and scales. For example, students can work with traditional handicraft communities (Figure 1) to find a way to integrate sustainable design theories in reusing/recycling surplus materials to create a new product toward sustainability.

In addition to inheriting techniques from traditional craft villages, the service-learning method also suggests new combinations to achieve optimization in design. Students have created a breakthrough between technological advances and traditional techniques. When teaching subjects related to majors such as graphic design and fashion design, applying the SL method to teaching has created excitement for learners. They have time to learn more about traditional craft villages and communicate with artisans to gain and seek inspiration from traditional culture.  It can contribute to creating diversity in design thinking and help them gain more experience in creating products that integrate cultural and sustainable values (Ed1, Ed2, Ap).

    a                                                                                            b       

Figure 1. a) The outcome of the students' project combined with handicraft artists, based on the research of traditional embroidery and fabric grafting techniques, as well as the use of waste materials (Phuong Cong Huan-2022) b) The outcome of the student's project combined with bronze casting craft and 3D printing technology, based on the research of metal recycling (Tran The Vinh - 2023)

In addition, product design that enhances the value of local products and spreads national cultural values is also one of the potentials when applying service-learning methods. Traditional identity values are an issue always promoted by each nation, creating integration between tradition and modern life, creating core values of traditional aesthetics, and contributing to cultural sustainability (Bui et al., 2018, Dang et al., 2021). Students participated in product design projects based on traditional crafts in areas inhabited by ethnic minorities (Figure 2a); in other cases, students can cooperatively work with traditional craft village artisans to learn about history and traditional techniques (Figure 2b). This brings professional experience and creates opportunities to apply it to their design.

a

b

Figure 2. a) Students participated in practice in Che Cu La commune, Mu Cang Chai district, Yen Bai province. Practising the traditional craft of beeswax painting and indigo dyeing of the H'mong people (2022) b) Students have practical experience at rattan and bamboo craft village, Bao La, Thua Thien Hue (2022)

Through practical experience and participation in solving complex problems through the service-learning method, students can come up with solutions to solve difficulties at the community level, by applying their knowledge and skills with creativity and flexibility according to each specific situation. Incorporating reflection on practical results might help students understand the nature of environmental issues, as well as instil core values of social trust and interdependence while working together. Find solutions to tackle several issues related to sustainability, and prepare for future higher-level strategies on a national or international scale.

Promoting the application of the service-learning model in teaching is a potential approach to improving practice effectiveness and engaging with the community. The collaboration between the parties offers an interdisciplinary and practical training perspective, contributing to preparing students with a better understanding of cultural and community values. To improve the quality of master's level training, some solutions proposed by research group participants are below.

Strengthening training cooperation between HEIs can support them in terms of human resources and curriculums. This is also a leverage solution in education. It can shorten the training gap between domestic and international universities, facilitating learning and academic exchange (EdM2, Bu).

The second solution to strengthen training cooperation between HEIs and businesses is an activity that can improve professional skills, shortening the gap from theory to practice for learners. This is a popular cooperation model in the world since it has a positive impact on teaching and scientific research activities, as well as improving the quality of knowledge and practical skills for learners (EdM1). This process might help students have a better understanding of the creative industry and gain practical application design experience. These activities also encourage creativity and help learners access new technological techniques, as well as take advantage of the opportunity to experience the infrastructure and equipment of businesses effectively (EdM2 ). This collaboration thoughtfully prepares students for professional practice in professionally interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary environments (Ed1, Ed2).

The third solution is to strengthen training cooperation between HEIs and the community. Design education is not only the task of equipping learners with professional knowledge and skills but also participating in the orientation process and improving students' experience in the community movement, promoting the core value of interdependence between individuals and society. As a result, researchers and educational managers believe that applying the service-learning model will be a potential solution for design education at master's programs in the current context.

Therefore, it can be affirmed that solutions to enhance cooperation in teaching and learning, combining HEIs and stakeholders might equip learners with knowledge, skills and experience. This also can help students to grasp career opportunities as well as understand the responsibilities of each individual in the community. These solutions are consistent with the challenges that the design field is posing to design education and support learners to be exposed to a multicultural environment and advanced technology systems.

3. Conclusion

The results of the study show that there are still some barriers related to the conditions and human resources of master's programs in HEIs. However, the biggest challenge for the master's level in the design field is to develop a pedagogical model that is sustainable and linked to social issues. Applying service-learning and integrating sustainability principles has great potential to bring the engagement of society and stakeholders in implementing sustainability goals and improving quality in design education at the master's level.

Applying the service-learning approach and integrating sustainability principles has great potential, bringing social and stakeholder engagement along with individual learner development. This helps prepare for a future where individual learners will write their own stories and follow their own paths. They are equipped with knowledge and skills and guided by the core values of social responsibility and sustainable development goals. In particular, education plays a key role and takes the lead in initiating and guiding future generations, including the new generation of designers who hold master's degrees in design.

It is easy to see that the challenge for design education today is to develop a pedagogical model that embraces sustainability and engages with environmental and social issues. Traditional educational models make it difficult to meet new requirements, while service-learning will become an important educational model, strengthening personal connection with social responsibility. If done systematically and appropriately, the HEIs can make optimal use of external resources, and students can learn and be enriched by practical experience and practice skills which will be necessary to succeed after leaving school. However, besides the widely discussed advantages of service-learning, we should consider the conditions and human resources of design education in HEIs in Vietnam. These factors are different and uneven in each locality and each field. Not all educators agree on the benefits of integrating SL in the curriculum. Indeed, service-learning learning projects often require more time and resources from both the institution and the instructor than traditional classrooms. A study by Cooper pointed out the challenges for instructors in using the service-learning method, including three main factors: (1) limitations of the teaching schedule; (2) lack of institutional support; and (3) lack of a faculty reward system to support this type of pedagogy (Cooper, 2014). In fact, to effectively achieve and maintain service-learning as a part of the curriculum, design education institutions should pay attention to their human resources who directly practice this type of pedagogy, especially when integrating service-learning to teach each particular field with the general sustainable goals.

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