Design as Relational Discipline

Today, more than in the recent past, each branch of knowledge has developed and continues to experiment with specific models of the relationship between knowledge and society. In particular, in their roles as “producers” of education, the various disciplines act in line with the rationale of supply and demand. They try to carve out specific identities on the “market” of education and research. According to this aim, the main academic efforts of the present day seem to be focused on new didactic approaches, innovative programs, and new fields of knowledge. Design is highly involved in these efforts, and it shifts its attention from the results of education to the processes of learning and teaching.