Foundations of Design Thinking

This unit introduces human-centered design thinking practices—empathy, observation, problem definition, team formation, and planning—to enable students to frame and prepare design projects. Students will learn to conduct user research, define project goals and tasks, organize teams and communication, and prepare experiments and tests that feed into prototyping and evaluation in subsequent units.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze user needs and contextual observations to define a clear, well-scoped design problem and measurable project goals
• Apply human-centered research techniques (empathy interviews, structured observation, and persona development) to identify and prioritize target users and design criteria
• Demonstrate effective team formation and project planning by assigning roles, creating work packages, and documenting communication protocols
• Evaluate and select appropriate evaluation methods and test plans, and prepare experimental procedures to iteratively refine solution concepts