Techne Series - Research in Sloyd Education and Craft Science A

Crafting meaningful motifs and products

Marja-Leena Rönkkö — 2025-06-19

This article reports the implementation of a crafting process aiming to enhance personal significance during the ideation phase of a nature-themed fabric motif. The ideation phase of the motif was implemented in a garden setting, and it consisted of several arts-based activities such as Dance'n'Paint, River of Experience, and creative writing. In this study, the crafting process of one participant was investigated via semiotic phenomenological analysis, leveraging the diverse materials provided by the participant. This analysis aimed to ponder how the crafting process with arts-based activities progressed from ideation to fabric motif and product creation. The findings revealed that arts-based activities significantly influenced the participant's creative process by giving the participant materials, motivation and meaningfulness for the fabric motif designing. In the study, the crafting process became meaningful for the participant as a positive experience of participation in an arts-based workshop, as a learning experience in motif designing and as a personal experience of memory work. These experiences became deeply embedded in the fabric motif and the ready-made tunic. The arts-based activities chosen for this study might apply to different contexts and themes. However, the nature theme chosen for this study might also be relevant from the sustainability perspective.

Keywords: fabric motif design, arts-based activity, ideation, memory, meaningfulness, semiotic analysis

Varför ska man ens ha den?

Annika Nordahl — 2025-06-18

Denna studie undersöker hur slöjdelever i årskurs 5 utvecklar sitt skrivande i loggbok med stöd av anpassningar i undervisningen, utifrån frågeställningen: Hur kan stöttning utformas för att utveckla elevers förmåga att i skrift reflektera kring sin arbetsprocess? Studien är lärardriven och praktiknära, samt använder tematisk innehållsanalys för att undersöka 34 elevers loggböcker från en tidsram om 23 lektionstillfällen under vilka den övergripande uppgiften var att brodera en utsmyckad kranieform, med inspiration från en traditionell mexikansk skelettfigur, samt sedan sy fast huvudet på en så kallad slöjdpåse, tillverkad enligt instruktion. Undersökningen bestod av tre (i-iii) steg, med en forskningsdesign som var utformad så att eleverna mötte två skilda sätt att skriva slöjdlogg; traditionellt i slutet av varje lektion utan direkt stöd i det första (i) steget och därefter betydligt mer stöttning i det andra (ii) steget. I det tredje (iii) steget undersöktes utvecklingen av elevernas skriftbruk om slöjdprocessen, med grund i en individuell skriftlig reflektion. Resultatet visar att eleverna blev bättre på att skriva slöjdlogg. Loggtexterna utvecklades generellt och blev mer innehålls- och omfångsrika. Ett centralt resultat från studien var samtidigt att beskrivningar av görande dominerade i det första (i) steget, samt att elever i alla lägen framhåller görande som det centrala i slöjden. I det tredje (iii) steget blev dock en betydligt större repertoar av beskrivningar mer frekvent, däribland om vad som hade kunnat göras annorlunda. Artikeln problematiserar och diskuterar på vilka sätt ökade kunskaper om att skriva om slöjdprocessen förhåller sig till traditionellt slöjdkunnande.

Keywords: loggbok, textilslöjd, skriftbruk, stöttning, undervisningsutveckling

Det å gi form til noe skjer aldri i et vakuum

Liv Mildrid Gjernes — 2025-06-18

I dette essayet fokuserer vi på oppgaver vi gjennom sirka 10 år har gjort med lærerstudenter. Arbeidet har gått ut på å skape kniv og slir. Som et analytisk grep har vi koblet inn nymaterialistisk og posthumanistisk teori og «lest dette sammen» med studenters knivarbeider og eksamenstekster. Ved å identifisere og etablere seks handlingsskapende agenter som sterkt påvirker studentenes knivskaping, forsøker vi å konkretisere innholdet i deres besvarelser. Ved hjelp av denne teorien har vi oppfordret studentene til, i en utforskende og undersøkende prosess, å fabulere fram sine egne tradisjoner og tolkinger av muligheter og uttrykk. Vi har åpnet opp for at de kan trekke inn elementer og meningsbærende uttrykk fra sine egne liv, slik menneskene i de førindustrielle folketradisjonene gjorde det i utformingene av sine artefakter og ornamenter. Det diffraktive tenkesettet er essayets bærende element. Den danner en rhizomatisk struktur bestående av de konkret handlingsskapende agentene som får noe til å skje. En underliggende tilleggspåvirker, spesifikk for oss som er i dette undervisningsarbeidet, er en uro for alt dette levende som omgir oss. Den berører et ubehag knyttet til den retningen det naturnært menneskeskapte synes å ta i vår tid, der teknologiens makt synes å overstyre alle verdier.

Keywords: knivskaping, handlingsskapende agenter, rhizome, uro, førindustrielle folketradisjoner

Student Craft Teachers’ Choices During the Garment Design and Making Process

Marja-Leena Rönkkö — 2024-12-20

This study aims to identify the choices made by university student craft teachers during the garment design and making process. The research utilises a theoretical framework centred around the clothing design and making process, employing the functional, expressional and aesthetic (FEA) model and Papanek’s function complex model. Two research questions were set: 1) Related to their garment design and making process, what kinds of choices did students outline in their posters? 2) How did student teachers utilise garment analysis models (FEA and Papanek’s functional analysis)? The methodology involved a qualitative content analysis of 23 posters that combined visual elements and textual descriptions created by the participants. The posters highlighted the emphasis on participants’ pragmatic considerations, such as usage intention, making methods and expressional and sustainable choices. Additionally, the studied posters showcased the participants’ satisfaction with their garments, as these garments provided them with a means to express their personal clothing styles and experiences. The findings suggest the need for an increased focus on sustainable practices in teaching clothing courses, as well as design-focused tools that specifically aid in craft product analysis in craft teacher education programmes.

Keywords: clothing, garment design and making, garment construction, higher education, poster analysis

Three approaches to multi-materiality through co-taught learning projects

Tellervo Härkki — 2024-12-20

Three approaches to multi-materiality through co-taught learning projects

This study examines the implementation of multi-material crafts in Finnish basic education from the viewpoint of utilizing co-teaching to enhance craft education. With the removal of gender-segregated craft subjects and the merger of textile and technical subjects into a common craft subject, room for new pedagogical strategies has emerged. The study involved 17 teachers who had participated in a national development program aimed at integrating multi-material and co-teaching methods into the learning process in crafts. Data were collected through interviews, focusing on how these teachers planned and executed multi-material craft projects in a co-teaching setup. The results showed that teachers adopted diverse approaches to multi-material crafts, depending on their pedagogical aims and the resources available. Three major categories of multi-material, co-taught learning projects were identified – fixed, teacher-directed, and open choice – each offering varying degrees of material and technological integration and pedagogical freedom. The study also found that newly acquired technological skills significantly influenced the roles and collaboration dynamics between co-teachers, positively affecting the division of labor and the overall teaching and learning experience.

Keywords: co-teaching, craft teaching, multi-material crafts, material technologies, co-regulation

Crafts and learning – as seen through Embodied cognition

Rune Johansen — 2025-06-18

This article aims to provide insight in the research area of embodied cognition and shows how it can emphasize how we understand the skills taught in sloyd education and thus create new arguments for the didactic relevance of sloyd. This is relevant since the practical competence in the Danish public school has diminished over the past 20 years, on behalf of an increasingly theoretical public school. We need strong scientific arguments for the maintenance and further development of craft as a school subject. The article is a theoretical contribution without practitioner empirical parts, and the method used is a review of embodied cognition research, put in perspective to the author´s experience with sloyd education and general woodworking. As such, it should be read as an essay. Embodied cognition differs from traditional brain research, in the understanding that the brain is plastic: cognition is shaped by the brain being embodied in our body, embedded in our surroundings, extended through tools, and enactive through the necessity of human movement. The fundamental structures of wood and tools are highly functionally coded. Therefore, techniques and working methods in sloyd are taught, learned, and stored through repetitive practice and training, corresponding to the design of the tools and materials. At the same time, the way our brain governs our actions with the tools, is highly dependent on the surroundings in which we learn. The background and prerequisites for embodied cognition as a research field are pointed out, explaining why the neurological hierarchy of amodal thinking demands that tools and techniques in sloyd must be gradually introduced and learned, so the pupils can use them in the best conceivable way in a free, creative design processes. Simultaneously, our modal perceptual impulses in the neural network are inextricably connected to our body’s earlier experiences. This perspective review shows that hierarchy of amodal and modal learning processes in sloyd is extremely dependent one another. Therefore, the teacher must take into consideration that every time we introduce a tool or technique to a student or pupil, we consider, and take notice of, the impact of the corporeal learning environment. Further research in the field of sloyd, as seen through embodied cognition, can contribute to understand the importance and necessity of a thorough and precise introduction of tools and materials to pupils in the public school.

Keywords: Sloyd, Embodied Cognition, Craft and Design, Brain plasticity, Practical Competence.

Digitala inslag i slöjdämnet

Åsa Jeansson — 2024-12-20

Under 2017 reviderades samtliga kursplaner i den svenska grundskolan utifrån regeringens beslut att tydliggöra skolans uppdrag att stärka elevers digitala kompetens. Då kursplanerna ligger till grund för lärarutbildningarnas utformning fick förändringarna betydelse för slöjdlärarutbildningen. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur digital teknik kan förstås som en del av ämnesinnehållet i det svenska slöjdämnet, vilket får betydelse även för slöjdlärarutbildningen. Frågeställningar: Hur beskriver slöjdlärarutbildare sin förståelse av digital teknik i relation till ämnesinnehållet i slöjdämnet? Vilka fördelar och nackdelar med digital teknik beskriver slöjdlärarutbildarna, i relation till sin ämnesuppfattning om slöjd? I samband med ett utvecklingsprojekt rörande digital teknik har en intervjustudie genomförts med deltagande slöjdlärarutbildare. I studien definierades digital teknik som digitalt styrda maskiner mot bakgrund av att teknik inom slöjdämnet innefattar metoder, redskap och maskiner. Resultatet visar att en digital produktionsprocess kan förstås som en möjlig arbetsprocess inom slöjdämnet och därmed ingå som en del av ämnesinnehållet. Studien visar också att förståelsen av digital teknik som del av slöjdämnet är föränderlig och att uppfattningar om implementering av digitala inslag kan påverkas av fortbildning.

Keywords: digital produktionsprocess, digital kompetens, kursplan, slöjdprocess, utvecklingsprojekt, slöjdlärarutbildning

Å utvikle eit fagleg repertoar i kunst og handverk

Elin Austbø Simonsen — 2024-11-14

This article is based on an in-depth study from grade 5 within the Norwegian primary school subject Arts and Crafts (KH). The study seeks greater knowledge about what professional repertoire of shared resources students in a specific community of practice practice practice and establish as a basis for their own deep learning through three observed task periods in the subject. Data was collected from participant observation, 12 individual student interviews and documents in the form of assignment texts. Thematic content analysis of visual and written data shows that the community of practice primarily practices and establishes a skills-based action repertoire. This is in line with the current formal curriculum and connected to the premises for the practice. Considering the Making Knowledge concept and the Rise Above principle, it can be said that the community develops its knowledge base. It turns out that the students to a limited extent reframe their own learning outcomes and link their learning to various aspects of the practical creative work. The tension in the material provides a basis for problematizing in-depth learning in art education in the early years.

Using Makerspaces to enrich Design and Technology education

Manuela Barbara — 2024-12-20

The studies of Vourikari et al. (2019) and Walan & Gericke (2022), show that a significant amount of research on makerspaces focuses on how these community spaces provide an informal approach to learning that promotes cross-curricular Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics (STEAM) education without considering how this could enrich design and technology education. Limited exploratory research has been conducted in the Maltese context on how makerspaces can enhance the professional development of design and technology teachers, supporting students' transition into the workforce, particularly in design, engineering, and technology-related occupations. By conducting an exploratory case study at a makerspace located in the Valletta Design Cluster (VDC) in Valletta, Malta, using observations and interviews as key methods, this study aims to understand the culture of makerspaces, the knowledge and skills exchanged by users, and how these align with engineering and technology literacy requirements (ITEEA, 2020). It also examines the teaching strategies employed, with particular focus on student-centred approaches. Four key themes emerged from the observations and interviews conducted at the makerspace: "teaching and learning methods," "opportunities within makerspaces," "knowledge and skills," and "makerspace users." These themes not only provided a deeper understanding of Malta's makerspace culture, but also highlight the educational potential of makerspaces. This study concludes with a suggestive interpretive account by the researcher, based on the results and literature findings, detailing how makerspaces could enhance formal design and technology education in Malta.

Keywords: design and technology, makerspaces, education, opportunities, teaching and learning.

Föreställningsförmåga som kommunikativ resurs

Elisabet Jagell — 2025-01-20

Multimodal kommunikation kring estetiska aspekter i ett slöjduppdrags idéutvecklingsfas är fokus i den här artikeln. Kommunikativa aspekter vid undervisning i slöjd har tidigare undersökts ur olika perspektiv: hur läraren förmedlar hantverkskunskaper och att elever lär av varandra. Även materialets roll i skapande processer har varit av intresse: hur materialet inspirerar, samarbetar eller ger motstånd i hantverksprocesser. Empirin som ligger till grund för artikeln kommer från en videodokumenterad forskningslektion i slöjd med 8 ̶ 9 år gamla elever. Intresset riktas mot hur lärarens inledande undervisning, materialet, rummet och elevernas estetiska erfarenheter bidrar i idéutvecklingen. I analysen används begreppet collaborative imagining, att föreställningsförmåga är en gemensam resurs för kommunikation vid utveckling av idéer. Vi kunde se att föreställningsförmåga gav eleverna både imaginära och konkreta kommunikativa resurser i idéutvecklingen. Resultatet visar att eleverna använde föreställningsförmåga kollaborativt när de i samarbete utvecklade idéer i handling genom samspel med materialet och med inspiration från egna och gemensamma estetiska erfarenheter.

Keywords: slöjd, idéutveckling, embodied learning, kollaborativ föreställningsförmåga, estetiska erfarenheter, multimodal transkription

Pedagogical Outdoor Project in Nature Sloyd

Jostein Sandven — 2024-08-07

This study investigated the pedagogical value of a nature sloyd project. The assignment was to create the interior of and add decoration to one of the domed caves in a snow hotel dedicated to newlyweds. The theoretical understanding that led to solve the design assignment was derived from experience-based teaching. The students were interviewed during the process, and three months later, the interviews emphasised the students’ experiences, cooperation, and learning and understanding of significant subjects in the process. The Nordic context added value to the project. To support the interview data, the researcher’s memos and photos of the process were included in the analysis. The collected data were analysed in accordance with the constructing grounded theory method. The results show that feedback from supervisors and outsiders is important for maintaining motivation for a demanding outdoor project. They also show that the students were absorbed in the joy that various parts of the work process brought them, and it was new to them that ice can be processed with almost all types of tools found in a workshop for woodworking. Collaboration in lifting and constructing large structures using snow and ice made it possible for students to think in terms of a holistic design methodology. In such a way that the students reflected on didactic issues that may face them in their future profession as teachers. The results contribute to the understanding of the educational possibilities of pedagogical nature sloyd.

Keywords: pedagogical value, sloyd, design art and crafts, nature sloyd

Preface

Marie Koch — 2023-09-22

In the spring of 2022, NordFo and University College Copenhagen organised the conference Make It Together. The conference was aimed at Nordic researchers and educators within craft, design/sloyd and related subjects and was divided into three main categories: Research, development and workshop with the following perspectives that participants were encouraged to follow, material, learning, didactics or sustainability. The overall thematisation focused on collaboration. Through the exchange of knowledge and experiences, the participants explored together how collaboration can develop new paths towards learning and experiences in pedagogy/didactics and education.

Ingrid Holmboe Høibo's article Learning perspective in the maker movement literature (Læringssyn i skaparrörslelitteraturen) describes the rapid growth of the maker movement and points out how the creative processes together with the creative person are key players in the digital development. The aim of the study is to investigate how researchers internationally and nationally have described and analysed learning in the literature of the maker movement with a special focus on arts and crafts. The Maker Movement insists on creating a fundamentally human playful activity and that the Maker Space provides a framework for the most important value attribution in learning in 1. the encounter between people and 2. the encounter with materials and tools. Maker Spaces are also integrated into the formal and informal learning environment in Norway.

Lena Kramer Pedersen's article From professional wondering to problem statement in a BA project (Fra faglig undren til problemstilling i et BA projekt presents) an example of how a teacher's textile wondering created inspiration for a development project with knitted furniture fabric as the product frame. Through an account of and reflection on her own research, the article argues how it is possible to implement research-based teaching in a processual way. The article is intended for teachers and students as an example of how a research project can form the basis for the development of new knowledge within a subject area. Theories of learning processes, with a particular focus on embodied learning, underpin the article's knowledge sharing. In the final part of the article, based on theory and case studies, an argument is made for how practical skills performed with the body can be acquired and thereby lead to learning.

Anne-Mette Liene and Monica Klungland's article Visual images in movement-to create space and time in kindergarten children's play and movement with nests, (Visuelle bilder i bevegelse-å skape ruimte og tid i barnehagbarns lek og bevegelse med nøster) is based on the research project Å nøste, partly to develop interdisciplinary teaching methods in art subjects and partly to promote developmental quality in the kindergarten teacher training programme. How can a performative approach to the subject of shaping in the preschool teacher training programme open up interdisciplinary potential? The performative approach focuses on the student's activity and the role of the material when playing with the material. The authors explore the possibilities for interdisciplinarity to emerge if attention is shifted from object to action. The research method is practice-driven (Haseman, 2006) and involves researchers working with preschool children and preschool staff to explore play and movement with yarn balls. The project is theoretically anchored in the concept of space-time-materialisation (Barad, 2007) and Rudolf Laban's theory of space 'choreutics' (Laban & Ullman, 2011). The study's findings open up an interdisciplinary potential in the meeting between the subjects of design and drama in the preschool teacher training programme, through the understanding that a form is created with both the material and the body's movements.

Sissel Isachsen and Janne B. Reitan's article Students' background for choosing fashion design as an education and their future career (Studenters bakgrunn for valg av motedesign som utdanning og deres fremtidige karriereplaner) plans is based on a concern about the lack of prior knowledge of future students when they start their fashion design education. Will the students not be able to meet the demands of the industry after graduation? The question is: What impact does prior knowledge have on the choice of fashion design education as a future career path? The research method is focus group interviews with five students about their background for choosing a fashion design programme where design and production are central. The empirical data is discussed in relation to the theory of communities of practice (Wenger) and the theory of design development in a career context (Papanek). The discussion touches on how fashion and design students can be better prepared to face the reality of the fashion industry after graduation. Work is linked to ethical and socially relevant themes.

Peter Haakonsen and Laila Belinda Fauske's article Textile activity in 1960 in the light of responsible creativity - Between creative forces and realistic assignments, (Tekstilaktivitet anno 1960 i lys av ansvarlig kreativitet - Mellom skapende krefter og virkelighetsnære oppdrag) first examines the background to the creation of the subject of moulding in Norway. Forming was created in 1960 as a merger of the subjects of needlework, woodwork and drawing and was called an experimental programme. The main aim was to cultivate creative powers and aesthetic sensitivity. The article is based on the idea of responsible creativity, where students' work is linked to ethical and socially relevant. The research question: To what extent does textile activity in moulding from 1960 correspond to the concept of responsible creativity and how is this expressed, if at all? Methodologically, assamblage is used to analyse the 1960 experimental plan with a focus on textile activity. The experimental plan does not use the concept of creativity; instead, creative forces and realistic tasks are used. This means that while the subject of shaping was then focused on one's own life and future scenarios, today it is global perspectives and scenarios that are actualised through responsible creativity. The article highlights the historical material as a lever for arts and crafts in the encounter with sustainability issues themes.

Teachers’ Perceptions of the Maker Mindset and its Facilitation

Mariam Aljabaly — 2024-02-07

The maker mindset has been identified as one of the focal elements in maker education, and in formal education, teachers have a key role in nurturing it in their students. The maker mindset has been examined mainly theoretically and in relation to students. The present, empirical study explores teachers’ maker mindsets and investigates how teachers perceive this concept and describe its facilitation when implementing maker activities. The concept is approached with four constructs identified in previous maker mindset literature: resilience/growth mindset, creativity, collaboration orientation, and willingness to tinker. Data were collected using an adapted maker mindset instrument administered to 58 pre- and in-service teachers and via semi-structured pair interviews with experienced teachers (N=10). Both data sets were analyzed with qualitative content analysis combining theory-driven and data-driven approaches. The results revealed that the teachers emphasized all four constructs of the maker mindset. They perceived the maker mindset as a complex and multidimensional concept and highlighted the constructs willingness to tinker and resilience/growth mindset. In terms of facilitation, the teachers underlined the constructs collaboration orientation and creativity. In addition to student collaboration, the teachers emphasized collaboration among teachers as a means for the successful implementation of maker-centered activities. The findings highlight the critical role of teachers’ own awareness of maker mindset constructs when promoting students’ maker mindsets.
Keywords: Maker mindset, maker education, K-12 formal education, in-service teachers, pre-service teachers

The connection between practice and in-depth learning in art and craft education Arts and Crafts

Lise-Kari Berg — 2024-06-28

In this ongoing project, we aim to explore the role of practising (‘øving’) in the Norwegian school subject Arts and Crafts. Through qualitative interviews we seek to gain insight into how teachers in Arts and Crafts experience practising. Traditionally, practising is linked to the repetition of technical skills, but we base ourselves within the concept of deep learning; as connected to embodied, relational, creative and affective forms of learning (Aggerholm & Standal, 2021; Dahl, 2021; Dahl & Østern, 2019; Engelsrud, 2021; Winje & Løndal, 2020; Østern & Bjerke, 2021; Østern et al., 2019). More specifically, we are interested in exploring what practising is in Arts and Crafts and how the teachers arrange for students to practise over time and in depth. For this purpose, we frame our analysis in terms of practising (Bollnow, 1969, 1978; Brinkman, 2012). Practising as an educational phenomenon is characterized agency, content, goal-directedness, verticality, effort, uncertainty and repetition. The perspective thus emphasizes the pupils as being actively involved in creative and performative activities where they improve their practical knowledge(Aggerholm et al., 2018). The project has a phenomenological approach as we seek insight into primary school teachers’ personal teaching experiences (Gill, 2020; Kvale & Brinkmann, 2021). In the autumn of 2021, interviews were conducted with a total of 9 teachers who teach Arts and Crafts at various primary and secondary schools in Norway. Data is analyzed and discussed in the theoretical perspective shown above. Through our analysis we explore how practising, embodied learning and practical knowledge are enacted in the teachers’ pedagogical practice. For example, the teachers are concerned with the meaning of practise, time constraints as a limiting factor, and exemplify how pupils develop practical knowledge such as craft skills and the ability to work in practical contexts within Arts and Crafts. The project contributes to the further development of practical didactics

Self-employment in craft making – a career change towards personal sustainability.

Soffía Valdimarsdóttir — 2024-02-14

Contemporary crafts are experiencing a vigorous revival not only as bearers of cultural heritage and meaningful leisure activity, but increasingly as a career choice. According to UNESCO, the creative economy is now one of the world’s most rapidly growing sectors. Recent statistics show that this is apparent in the Icelandic economy. With the rise in precarity of work and challenges in career development, people are seeking meaningful and sustainable careers, as is evidenced by an increase in self-employment and micro-entrepreneurship. The main research question of this study was: How do contemporary craft makers in Iceland make sense of taking up and maintaining financially risky self-employment? Data collection and analysis was therefore focused on motives and shared meaning. The primary empirical data consists of fifteen semi-standardized interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis was conducted. The constant comparison method was also applied. Needs for authenticity, autonomy, and self-determination, along with passion for creating, were important motives. Negative career shocks were an unexpectedly common motive. Three main themes were developed to describe how participants reasoned their career choice: a second chance, a natural choice, and an act of agency. The analysis revealed craft knowledge as a valuable resource for participants seeking personal sustainability through self-employment. The study adds to an understanding of the value of crafts and craft knowledge in contemporary society.
Keywords: craft knowledge, self-employment, personal sustainability, career sustainability, career shocks

A Friend to Milli Mörriäinen

Marja-Leena Rönkkö — 2024-02-07

Arts-based and creative learning processes should be utilised more in craft education. With the NaCra approach, craft processes are connected to other creative content, mainly narratives. This NaCra study explored pupils' holistic craft processes that incorporated stori-fied elements and the aim was to clarify the key elements of individual craft processes supported by storification. The study involved 12 pupils from the second grade (7–8 years old) in Finnish primary education. Despite the novelty of the holistic approach, all pupils successfully planned, created and evaluated their soft toys. The storification method permeated every stage of the holistic craft process, aiding not only the ideation and design phases but also motivation and increased concentration in the making and evaluation phases. The findings suggest that pupils' holistic craft processes incorporating storified elements work well together as a means for pupils to express their thoughts and imagination into assignments. Furthermore, storified elements make pupils' experiences come to life in the creative crafting process. Pupils should have more opportunities with holistic craft processes where the outcome is uncertain at the beginning of the process.
Keywords: pupil, holistic craft process, crafting, storification, storified elements, soft toy

Creating inspiration by developing digital mood boards in student teams

Anniliina Omwami — 2024-02-15

Mood boards have notable potential to serve as inspirational tools in design. However, we still do not fully understand how mood boards are created utilizing material found online in collaborative educational settings. The purpose of our study is to deepen our understanding of both team design and the creation of shared digital mood boards through a qualitative analysis on how three student teams created shared mood boards using computers, and how they gathered inspirational material from the Web. We discuss how the creation of a shared mood board is a complex process, including deepening and broadening cycles, where a key idea is either explained more thoroughly, or then expanded with additional, related ideas. In relation to mood board ideas, the teams decided the specific keywords to be used to gather images online, balancing the design constraints, with an intuitive yet systematic way of working. We encourage to acknowledge a digitally created mood board as a collaborative method for creating meaningful starting points for designing, and for finding inspiration outside the direct design problem. Our study provides information which is beneficial for developing pedagogies that include collaboration and the use of online inspirational material.
Keywords: team ideation; mood board; sources of inspiration; online material; metaphor; design education

Student teachers' attitudes to materials in the contexts of crafting and consuming

Tarja Kröger — 2024-02-07

The purpose of this study was to explore the kinds of attitudes student teachers have towards materials in the contexts of crafting and consumption. The practical aim of the study was to encourage students to explore the materials of the crafts they make and the products they buy. The data were collected via semi-structured inquiries conducted as part of the course Experimental Textile Crafts. In addition to the questions, the elicitation method was used, that is, the students were asked to choose one of their own craft objects and one purchased object and take photographs of them. The final sample consisted of 39 students. Data were analysed using thematic analysis focusing on affective, conative and cognitive components. The findings of the study highlighted three different ideal types of students: (1) Superficially Oriented, (2) Safely Mediocre and (3) Conscious. Superficially Oriented Students have little interest in materials. Safely Mediocre students did express interest in materials but ended up using familiar materials in both crafting and consumption. Conscious students expressed sustainability concerns, which crossed a wide range of topics from valorising waste to naturalness in materials. The results can be valuable for developing craft teacher education and for future research.
Keywords: attitudes, crafting, consuming, ideal types, materiality, materials

Sy ihop

Camilla Gåfvels — 2024-02-07

This article explores assessment actions – as an aspect of classroom communication – and how they are expressed in sloyd teaching; with a formative aim centering on pupils’ learning and (the teacher’s) own teaching practice, respectively. In this context, the teacher holds a central role, mediating sloyd knowing through (communicative) verbal and physical actions, acting as an authoritative guide for pupils’ learning, by making perceptually tacit knowing discernable thanks to pre-established confidence for the teacher in question. Besides authoritative guiding, another theoretical starting point of the article is sociomateriality; a perspective considering physical objects as resulting from connections and activity, hence influencing on the (more) social sphere of actions and activity. The method used is multimodal interaction analysis of three video-recorded sequences of teacher/pupil interaction in a sloyd-classroom setting. To sum up, the findings of the article display how formative assessment in the sloyd context consists of the teacher adapting questions posed to ascertain the knowing of the pupil, then waiting to see how/what/if the pupil performs, whilst being provided – gentle but ample – authoritative guiding to help in the process. The main contribution of the study is establishing the role of formative assessment within sloyd education. The research project has been conducted within the framework of Stockholm Teaching and Learning Studies (STLS), entailing the active involvement of the teacher in question as co-author of the article.
Key words: assessment actions, formative assessment, sloyd teaching, authoritative guiding, sociomateriality, communicative resources

The role of aesthetics in design education

Astrid Maria Heimer — 2023-03-21

Design education has undergone transformations over time, although less emphasis has been placed on developing core areas such as form and aesthetics. Learning processes in design education are creative and comprehensive, but to an extent, learning has become a mission with a large focus on relevance and societal benefits. The designer’s role has become somewhat more instrumental, and designers’ function more often as facilitators than creators. Nevertheless, form and aesthetics are important competences that enable students to work creatively with both processes and results. As creators, design students need to develop their personal comprehension of forms and aesthetic expressions. This article demonstrates how aesthetics are activated through assignments and exercises that leverage awareness and experiences of concrete forms and abstractions. The assignments and exercises were given to bachelor’s degree and master’s degree students in Product Design at Oslo Metropolitan University, Norway, and to students from all levels (bachelor’s, master’s and PhD) at UNESP, Bauru in Brazil. Aesthetic awareness relates to perception and abstract form principles demonstrated through assignments and exercises, including various dramaturgies, results, and reflections. Examples demonstrate how haptic experiences change the way students perceive forms and spaces, particularly when the visual senses are muted or removed. Based on the students’ reflections and the results of the exercises, knowledge achieved through their explorations is equally valuable beyond the actual properties of forms and the engagement of personal affect from the creative processes.
Keywords: aesthetic awareness, abstraction, comprehension of form, creativity, design education