Unit 3 Outcome 3 | assessment task | Published: October 29, 2024 | Revised: June 27, 2025
VCD UNIT 3 AOS 3 V2 2025
…4.3.2.1.
Zero.
Lift Off!
In this Area of Study, students will frame and investigate a human-centred design problem. They will conduct extensive research into stakeholders, audiences and users and review past and existing designs that have been made to satisfy similar design problems. Students will synthesise their insights and write a detailed design Brief to support the visualisation and development of design ideas and concepts. Later, they will create mock-ups or prototypes to present and test their ideas in a design critique, where they will both give and obtain feedback from their peers. To complete this Area of Study, students will incorporate their feedback and develop their design concepts by exploring the characteristics and properties of design elements and principles, and methods, media and materials.
This Area of Study will use the first three phases of the Double Diamond Design Process: Discover, Define and Develop. It will refer to Components 1 – 6 on the Target Learning SAT possible workflow diagram. Please note: This page, Part A, will refer to Components 1 - 3.
outcome
What students need to do
ON COMPLETION OF THIS UNIT THE STUDENT SHOULD BE ABLE TO
-
identify two communication needs for a client, prepare a brief and develop design ideas, while applying the VCD design process and design thinking strategies.
(VCE VCD Study Design 2024 – 28 p.35. )
CAUTION
Good to know
Learning and assessment tasks
Please note: This page is a combined Learning Tasks and Assessment Tasks page. It is organised into a sequence of stages. Target Learning refers to each stage as a component. Each component has an explanation based on the Key Knowledge, examples and tasks for students to complete to enable them to demonstrate the Key Skills for the Area of Study. Teachers may refer to these tasks or use them as a base for their lessons.
Introduction
This Area of Study is one of three, in the School Assessed Task, the major design project in Year 12 VCD. The image below shows a sequence of steps students take to learn and demonstrate their understanding of the Key Knowledge and Key Skills for this Area of Study.
This Page is Part A
This page includes:
- Component 1
- Component 2
- Component 3
This image illustrates a typical workflow for Unit 3 Area of Study 3. (Updated 20 March, 2025).
Model answers
Shown below are a range of examples to illustrate the flow of the folio for Area of Study 3.
Design Problem. Olivia Willsher
Mind map. Zane Kneebone.
User survey. Olivia Willsher.
User survey. Olivia Willsher.
Primary research. Eve Wells.
Secondary research. Harry Tinker.
Design Brief. Raphael Nichols.
VCD Design process
The VCD design process is a framework that illustrates the process designers use. It is based on a model conceived by the UK Design Council in 2003. There are four stages to the VCD double diamond design process. Discover, Define, Develop and Deliver. Each uses different kinds of thinking. Sometimes designers need to think outside the box. Thinking outwards is called Divergent Thinking. At other times, they are trying to narrow and refine their ideas. This is called Convergent Thinking. The Design Process structures everything a designer does, from generating their first inspiration to delivering a design solution to their client.
Areas of study in Target Learning VCD emphasise different stages of the VCD Design process.
The VCD double diamond design process. Note the positions of Divergent and Convergent thinking.
Discover
Use Divergent Thinking to challenge assumptions and explore design problems and opportunities.
Define
Use Convergent Thinking to analyse, evaluate and present information for Human-Centred design.
Develop
Use Divergent Thinking to challenge assumptions, test and explore ideas with unexpected results.
Deliver
Use Convergent Thinking to evaluate, refine, resolve and present design solutions to meet audiences and users' needs.
Graphic indicators representing each stage of the design process used in Target Learning VCD.
Jump to
Component 1
Component 2
Component 3
Component 1
Identify
& empathise
In this section, students will consider problems in their world and how design could be used to create a positive outcome for people by identifying and investigating a design problem. They will use divergent thinking to analyse and explore the design problem and then use Human-Centred Design research methods to understand the perspectives of stakeholders involved.
key knowledge
What we will learn about
key knowledge points for this outcome
- the Discover, Define and Develop phases of the VCD design process
- the role of convergent and divergent thinking in the VCD design process
- ethical research methods to identify and analyse a design problem
- legal and ethical obligations relevant to the designer’s work
(VCE VCD Study Design 2024-28, p. 35)
Discover
Use Divergent Thinking to challenge assumptions and explore design problems and opportunities.
Introduction
Students commence the SAT by considering and identifying a problem. The graphic below shows how the problem is conceived, analysed then elaborated into communication needs for a brief.
This infographic illustrates the relationships between a design problem, research and investigation, a client, communication needs and the brief.
Identify & Describe design problem
Fuzzy Front End (FFE)
There are many ways to identify a design problem. Students may already have a strong idea about how to use design in the community or environment. However, many need to investigate the possibilities and think about them first. One key to understanding the Double Diamond Design Process is to realise there may be no clear beginning. This concept of unclear and ambiguous beginnings is called the Fuzzy Front End. (FFE). Students and their teachers must realise that everyone will have a different way of identifying a design problem. In saying that, there are ways to support the beginning of ideas. One collaborative method includes asking members of a class to use the following steps:
- Hand out five Post Its per student
- Ask them to write down one problem in the world on each note. (Explain that problems can range in size and importance, from global to local, from climate change to a messy pencil case)
- Share one idea per student with the class
- Students bring the Post Its to a front table
- Ask them to sort them, but don’t give any advice about how they should be sorted
- Ask each student to choose one problem and complete the following task
This task is similar to Task 1.3 on this page.
Identifying design problems on Post Its.
FRAMING A design problem
Question or statement-based framing
A design problem can be framed (identified) as either a question or a statement. For example, the problem shown in the illustration above is framed as a question; ‘How might we make riding an electric bicycle safer and more appealing?’ It could just as easily be framed as a statement: Design ways to make riding an electric bicycle safer and more appealing.’ Students may use whichever model is more suited to their investigation.
Components of a design problem
A design problem itself isn’t going to be as specific, as it needs to be to inspire a broad investigation. There are many ways to elaborate on a design problem. Target Learning recommends using the following headings:
- What needs to be done
- For whom
- Context
- Goals
- Crux
Each of these subheadings helps focus a specific part of the investigation.
You can find additional information here.
Design Problem. Raphael Nichols.
Design Problem. Harry Tinker.
Good to know
Thanks for that
Two communication needs. One Design Problem
Excellent and not-so-great design problems
A true human-centred design problem can be framed in the abstract. (By abstract, I mean without reference to a solution being offered in any particular field of design). An example of a good, human-centred design problem is ‘How might we make Year 9 more engaging for boys?’ This is a great question that can be investigated and analysed in many ways before assigning it to a field of design. It’s adaptable because it could be answered equally well with a solution in each of the four fields of design. I’m sure you can imagine how we could provide a design solution in messages, objects, environments and interactive experiences. The thing is…we have a problem, and we have no idea what a solution might be. That’s exactly how we love it – an open-ended problem that needs investigation before we fully understand it.
But what if I already know what I want to design?
Many Year 12 students begin with some idea of what motivates them in design. Maybe they think they want to design a record cover, a beach house or a music festival poster. The bad news is that we can’t really start like that anymore. The good news is that if we go about it correctly, we can. Students need to get inside what these designs do. Once they find out what they are for and understand their function, they can write up their design problem. Take the record cover, for example. What does it do? It depicts a particular style of music and promotes it to an audience. Change ‘I want to design a record cover’ to ‘How might we express a particular style of music or artist and promote it to a wider audience?’ For the beach house example, its function is to house a family in an informal setting beside the beach. Write the problem as ‘How might we design a house with an informal aesthetic quality to serve a family in a coastal town?’
How many design problems do I need?
One. Students may know they will be called upon to create two design solutions for one client in the SAT. Typical pairs of design solutions that students make include an interior design for a café and a menu, a short-stay beach house and a flyer to advertise it and a library and wayfinding system for their college.
The example at the top of this section, ‘How might we make Year 9 more engaging for boys?’ is broad enough to power a sustained investigation because the student has no preconceived ideas about what potential solutions might be. However, the later example, ‘How might we design a house with an informal aesthetic quality to serve a family in a coastal town?’ is a different kind of problem because it contains the solution within it – the house. This is not bad, as there is plenty of scope to investigate and develop designs with an ‘informal aesthetic quality’. However, it will not support the students’ requirement to design two different solutions for one client. Students are encouraged to broaden this design problem to include two distinct objectives. It could be rewritten as, ‘How might we design and promote a house with an informal aesthetic quality to serve a family in a coastal town?’
Students don’t need to know all this yet. That’s the thing about the ‘fuzzy front end’; everyone begins their design process differently. In fact, students are not required to determine what they will design or which field of design they will work within until they write communication needs for their brief. The purpose for bringing it to students’ attention now is because they will need to conduct research in the next step. So, it might be good to know the kinds of designs they want to do.
Exploring & analysing design problem
Mind maps, brain-dumps and other visual organisers are Divergent Thinking strategies that help students engage with and tease out different facets of a topic. When using Divergent Thinking to challenge assumptions students need to be open to all possibilities for how a design problem can be found and framed.
A mind map exploring design’s relationship with mental health. Maddison Hull Warren.
A mind map exploring ways design fields could relate with the topic of libraries. Spencer Au.
RESEARCH TOPIC ARTICLES
Students will suggest two communication needs in the next section of the task. This means they will decide the design fields they are going to work in and suggest the kind of design they will work towards. For example, they might decide to solve a problem to do with carrying lunch to school by working in the fields of Object or Environment design. So, before they decide exactly on how and where they will work, by writing two the communication needs, students need to do a pre-investigation around the problem itself. They need to uncover some answers to the questions they identified in the ‘crux’ section of the design problem: ‘What needs to be investigated, figured out or understood to solve the problem?’ Only when students understand the background, the context and the causes of the problem, will they be able to propose which fields of design are best placed to solve it.
This image shows the beginnings of a pre-investigation aimed at finding out everything that contributes to the design problem.
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Human-Centred Design Research
There are three main phases for research in the VCD SAT. The first involves finding out about the people involved in a design situation, the second is finding out what designs have already been made in response to similar problems and the third takes place after a design brief has been written. This involves, deeper, targeted research aimed at gathering more specific information. In this component we will begin the first phase of research – understanding stakeholders needs and perspectives.
Gaining insights about stakeholders involved in a Human-Centred Design problem means asking, collecting and analysing information from people on topics such as their preferences, values, beliefs, experiences, wishes, habits and abilities.
However, teachers and students should be aware that in our contemporary society, there are rules around asking for and holding personal information. To this end, VCD 2024 has several principles of Ethical Research. Students are obliged to follow these four principles when conducting research:
- Consent
- Confidentiality and anonymity
- Respect
- Transparency
Further details on Ethical Research can be found here. Find out more about research here.
On investigation & Research
Investigation and research play considerable roles in discovering an appropriate and engaging design problem and defining and understanding stakeholders, audiences, users, and designs made previously in similar or different spheres.
Students may use various research and investigation methods during the Discover and Define phases of the Design Process. In addition, the same research method can reveal different insights before and after a design problem has been framed. Below are suggestions about the kinds of other information research methods can yield during these stages.
Research method
Discover
Define
Suspend judgement and challenge assumptions:
- Perspective shifting
Am I framing the problem inclusively? Does everyone face the same challenge?
How might different people view a solution in this space?
Understand perspectives:
- Stakeholder analysis
- Stakeholder workshops
- Stakeholder mapping
Who might be involved in the (…) sphere?
Who might benefit or be put to a disadvantage through design in the (…) sphere?
Who is involved in the (…) sphere?
Who are the primary and secondary stakeholders?
What are the stakeholders' interests?
What are the stakeholders’ needs in the (…) problem?
Surveys and interviews
What are peoples’ present opinions, experiences, values, beliefs or abilities in (…) sphere?
What are peoples’ wishes in (…) sphere?
What are peoples’ opinions, experiences, values, beliefs, preferences or abilities regarding (…) problem?
What are peoples’ wishes in a solution in (…) sphere?
Audience Persona
What do audiences or users currently lack or are unable to do?
What are the demographics, psychographics, habits and behaviours of key audiences or users of a potential solution?
Journey Mapping
What positive and negative experiences do users have regarding present systems that might inform a usefully framed design problem?
What positive and negative experiences do users have regarding present systems that might inform a usefully designed idea, concept or solution?
Empathy Mapping
Has the problem already been solved? If so, how?
What sort of factors influence designs in (…) sphere?
How can understanding previous designs help build a better one?
How can dissimilar designs be used to inspire new ones?
How do certain factors influence designs in (…) sphere?
Past and existing, similar and dissimilar designs
Has the problem already been solved? If so, how?
What sort of factors influence designs in (…) sphere?
How can understanding previous designs help build a better one?
How can dissimilar designs be used to inspire new ones?
How do certain factors influence designs in (…) sphere?
Competitor analysis
Has the problem already been solved? If so, how? Should I enter (…) sphere at all?
How do competitors solve a similar problem economically?
How can I find a new niche in the market?
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Identify & understand stakeholders
As designers, we are in the middle of a large group of people, many of whom have different and sometimes competing ideas and interests. How can we keep them all happy? A multi-lane freeway to the city is wonderful for outer-city residents but an environmental nightmare for inner-city dwellers. Do we design it or not?
The first thing that needs to be done is to find out exactly who the people who stand to benefit or be put to a disadvantage or have any kind of direct or indirect interest in a problem and a potential solution are.
Methods that can be used to identify and describe stakeholders and their perspectives include;
- User survey/ interview/ focus-group
- User journey/ empathy map
- Stakeholder analysis
- Stakeholder workshops
- Stakeholder mapping
- Audience persona
- Mood-board
Further information about stakeholders can be found here.
This stakeholder map visualises differences between stakeholders’ interest and influence on the design problem. Zane Kneebone.
An audience persona made with an Ai generated image of a member of the target audience. Harry Tinker.
A mood board is a cool visual way to depict the interests and character of users. Olivia Willsher.
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Fields of Design Practice
Discover
Divergent Thinking Strategies
Human Centred Design & Ethical Research
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key skills
How I will demonstrate skills and knowledge
key Skills points for this outcome
- apply the Discover, Define and Develop phases of the VCD design process
- use divergent and convergent thinking strategies when defining problems and developing ideas
- use design research methods to define communication problems
- apply legal and ethical obligations relevant to the designer’s work
(VCE VCD Study Design 2024-28, p. 36)
task
Show I know ...
1.1 Identify area
Following your teacher’s directions, use an individual or collaborative strategy to identify a sphere or area in which a design problem could be framed.
1.2 Frame a design problem
Frame and write a design problem in the area identified in Task 1.1. Use a question or statement to express the design problem. Elaborate with the five-point structure shown above.
1.3 Mind Map
1.4 Pre-investigation
Conduct a thorough pre-investigation of the background, context and causes of the problem you identified in Task 1.2. Read, collect, print and reference articles about the topic. Create several pages in your visual diary for this task.
1.5 Understand your stakeholders
Use a range of Human-Centred design research methods to determine the stakeholders for your identified design problem. Then, research the attitudes, beliefs, values and habits of your target audience or potential users. Process your findings and present them to make the results and information you have gained visible. Depending on your design problem, you could use any of the following research strategies;
- User survey, interview, focus group
- User journey map, empathy map
- Stakeholder map
- Audience persona
- Mood board
1.6 Legal and ethical
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Component 2
Understand & Evaluate
design problem
In this component, students evaluate the scope of their design problem, choose the field/s of design they want to explore, then undertake some broad research, uncovering everything people have already done or designed to satisfy similar design problems. They will conclude by considering and evaluating their research against appropriate conceptions of Good Design.
Define
Use Convergent Thinking to analyse, evaluate and present information for Human-Centred design.
Evaluate Design Problem
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Fields of Design Practice
As we have seen, we have been working on a design problem in the abstract. By this, we have investigated the problem and who it affects, but we have not yet determined which of the four Fields of Design is best placed to offer a solution. Teachers should ask their students to create the following table to tease this out. They will enter the design problem and then describe how each field of design could participate in solving the problem. In this stage, they are drafting a set of possible communication needs. (This table has been populated with sample information).
Fields of design Practice contribute
Design problem
How might we make riding an electric bicycle safer and more appealing?
Messages
Design a series of safety signs that can be seen in bad weather to warn drivers about the potential hazards of coming close to bikes
Objects
Design an all-weather electric bike
Environments
Design safer ways for bikes to use roads
Interactive Experiences
Design an app that guides bikes to the safest pathways at different times and in different weather
Understand designs & inspirations
All designs are products of their contexts. Effective research helps establish deep and stable roots and ensures a design's authenticity and success. Quite simply, designers are highly informed about trends, styles, past successes and failures.
Typical foci of research are competitor analysis and sources of inspiration and influence. However, students are encouraged to delve into any areas that may help enlarge or clarify possibilities for innovative ideas.
Competitor analysis
Competitor analysis is a broad term that means examining designs equivalent to the ones the student envisages as potential solutions. Students aim to explore any previous designs that have solved a similar problem. They should try to suspend judgment about how they may have solved it and collect designs that, nevertheless, achieve their aim. For example, if a student is researching logos, they should consider a broad range of motifs such as heraldry, flags and iconography.
Designers really have to know stuff! Click here and take a look at the projects on Marc Newson’s, Australia’s most famous Object designer site. Pick one or two of the designs and consider what they might have needed to know and how they would have found it out to make a design that would become so memorable.
Inspiration and influence
Students use Divergent Thinking within their research. They are encouraged to seek inspiration from outside the spere of the designs they are considering. Inspiration means something that is motivating someone to create a design or artwork. For example, the issue of gender inequality might inspire someone to make a poster that would help equalise rights and pay rates for women. Influence means an art, fashion or design style that is incorporated into a new design. The pictures of cars below show the new Tesla Cybertruck (left). Tesla was inspired to build a car that would compete with other dual cab utes such as the Ford F250 (centre). When Tesla conducted competitor research, they examined trucks like the Ford to ensure they designed a car of equivalent performance and capacity. However, the designer Franz von Holzhausen, has said that he was influenced by the shape of the Lamborghini Countach, an Italian supercar designed by Marcello Gandini of Bertone and produced from 1974 – 1990. It was, indeed, influenced by the front-heavy, wedge styling of the Countach.
Telsa Cybertruck
Los Angeles, California, United States of America, June 23, 2024: Tesla Cybertruck parked on a street in the City of Los Angeles. (Image: Angel DiBilio / Shutterstock.com).
Ford F250 Pickup
Fishers, United States of America, May 2023: Ford F-250 Crew Cab display at a dealership. (Image: Jonathan Weiss / Shutterstock.com).
Lamborghini Countach
Turin, Italy, 25 September 2021: Lamborghini Countach. (Image: Guido Bissattini / Shutterstock.com).
Contexts for designs
Research is strengthened when students examine designs from a range of different contexts. We have the internet now…, so we can examine designs from any part of the world! Context refers to several variables, including designers' different work situations, cultures, locations and periods in history. Students are encouraged to research widely to uncover unexpected sources of inspiration and influence.
Primary/ file and secondary/ desk research
As students begin to explore competitors’ designs and their inspirations and influences, they will realise they can do so in a range of different ways. The easiest way is to search up examples online. Going a bit deeper, students can find out about designs in books and magazines, perhaps even watch them on YouTube. Images, text, reports or vision that someone else has written, shot or produced, is called secondary or desk research. Students who score well in this section will undertake their own original research. They will go out and shoot their own photos, make their own sketches and take their own notes. This kind of research is known as primary or field research. Students should conduct primary and secondary research for the SAT.
Range of sources
As students gather primary and secondary research, they should ensure that they get their inspiration from a wide variety of sources. Sources for research include;
- Internet sites that detail designs and designers’ names – not Google images alone
- Social media posts and feeds from designers and trend watchers
- TV shows and movies
- Books and magazines
- Visits to sites and shops
- Around your house or neighbourhood
- Museums and galleries
- Holidays
Recording research
Keeping a record of your research is the most important thing. If you take pictures from the internet, visit the actual site an image is on, save the file and record the URL of the page the image is actually on. Do not use a Google search as the address. If you gather images from magazines or books you have to record the title, author, publisher and date of the publication. For primary research, take your own photos, make sketches and write notes about what you are seeing.
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Analyse research insights
Sorting, analysing, synthesising, evaluating and presenting research findings
Research itself amounts to nothing. There are no points for students who have found heaps of pictures. The purpose of research is to learn; to investigate, expand, clarify and understand the design problem. Therefore, students need to demonstrate what they have learnt from their research. Ways to demonstrate students learning include;
- Sort and categorise and present using visual layout strategies like a Four Quadrant Matrix. Ways to sort and present include:
- Old to new
- Simple to complex
- Black and white to colour
- Useful to decorative
- Cheap and expensive
- Exotic, creative, innovative and mundane
- Any other ways
- Analyse visual language with descriptions and sketches
- Copy and combine in sketches
- Deconstruct layouts or structure in sketches
- Evaluate with reference to the design problem at hand
- (later) evaluate with reference to design criteria in the brief
- Use a Convergent Thinking routine such as:
- Describe what I have learnt about designs relevant to my design problem from my research
- I used to think, now I know (about my topic)
- See, Think, Wonder (on individual images)
Using your research? Well, that’s a whole other problem…
A great page of research made with observational drawings. Amy Nguyen.
A great page of secondary research showing ways the student has synthesised their learning by applying styles they found to their own logo. Alyssa Ngo.
In this page, the student has sketched different game controllers. This gave him firsthand engagement with the subject. Shyam Mahendran.
A nice page of the analysis of magazine page ads from the 1950s. Notice how the structure of each ad has been deconstructed to learn how designers create layouts. Catriona Thompson.
In this page, the student has sketched different game controllers. This gaveA page of secondary research. Note the use of image source URLs below each picture. Shyam Mahendran.him firsthand engagement with the subject. Shyam Mahendran.
Primary research involves making visits to shops or other locations and taking notes or shooting photos, firsthand. Harry Tinker.
Secondary research is finding and collecting research found on internet sites, books or magazines. Harry Tinker.
A Four Quadrant Matrix is a great way to sort, analyse and present research findings. Raphael Nichols.
This student has used the Four Quadrant Matrix and also make additional annotations by referring to conceptions of Good Design. Olivia Willsher.
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Evaluate with notions of Good Design
Here the student has evaluated a range of objects found in their research against Dieter Rams’ Ten Principles of Good Design. Harry Tinker.
A page showing how the student has evaluated their research for its suitability against the design evaluation criteria in their brief. Raphael Nichols.
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Address Legal obligations for research
In addition to using the principles of Ethical Research, students must also demonstrate an understanding of the legal obligations of designers when collecting and presenting any material that the student did not generate. This includes but is not limited to images, typeface designs, text, colour swatches, patterns, etc. Each instance of non-original material must be referenced by placing the source beside the resource.
Further information on how to cite references can be found here.
Legal and ethical
The Study Design for VCD 2024 - 28 requires students to adopt professional and academic practices regarding collecting, storing, and presenting copyright information during their study. This means they must:
- Reference and cite images correctly
- Use Principles of Ethical Research
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task
Show I know ...
2.1 Evaluate design problem
Revisit the design problem you presented in the previous section. Now you have conducted your pre-investigation and understand your stakeholders and their perspectives, evaluate the scope of your design problem. Consider if it is large enough or maybe, too small for a sustained investigation. Use the convergent thinking routine: ‘I used to think … (describe your design problem), but now I know … (reframe your design problem) to write a reflection statement.
2.2 Consider fields of design Practice
2.3 Understand competitor designs and inspirations
Research a broad range of designs that have solved similar problems to the design problem you have framed. Don’t forget, you are going to pursue two different design processes so research designs to support both halves of your design problem. Consider and complete the following approaches to research:
- Primary/ field and secondary/ desk competitor research
- Potential inspirations and influences
- Diverse contexts for competitor research and inspirations and influences
- Use a range of sources
*Don’t forget to record the sources of all images. You will need this to demonstrate you are working legally.
2.4 Analise, synthesise, evaluate and present research insights
Following the collection of images and associated material, use convergent thinking strategies including informative annotations, to analyse, sort and present it to show what you have learnt about the design problem and existing designs found in your search. Refer to the methods of synthesising, sorting and presenting shown above.
2.5 Evaluate research with Good Design
Using another convergent thinking routine such as the tables shown above, evaluate key designs from your research against conceptions of Good Design relevant to the field/s in which you are examining. Don’t forget, these can be personal, contextual or political conceptions of Good Design.
2.6 Legal obligations
Finally, attribute all images correctly. This is an authentication requirement for the SAT.
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Component 3
Communication needs, brief & evaluation criteria
In this section, students complete the Define stage of the Design Process by defining two communication needs, writing a formal Brief, conducting further, targeted research and explaining the design criteria that will be used to guide and evaluate the development of design ideas, concepts and solutions in the following steps and in Unit 4.
key knowledge
What we will learn about
key knowledge points for this outcome
- the role of the brief in defining communication needs
(VCE VCD Study Design 2024-28, p. 35)
Reframe design problem
Students once again reconsider their design problem in the light of the analysis, synthesis and presentation of research findings in the last step. They should evaluate and rewrite it, thinking about the communication needs they will generate for their brief.
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Suggest communication needs
Referring back to the table above, where students described how each design field could be involved in creating a solution for the problem they identified, they elaborate two descriptions of potential designs as communication needs. Design needs, as they are also known, are descriptions that suggest what needs to be designed to solve the problem. Whilst a communication need is not as broad as the problem itself, they do not detail the exact description of a design solution. Consider the example information below;
- Design problem: How might we ensure high school kids stay hydrated during the day at school?
- Communication need: Design a vessel to hold water, using sustainable design practices that can be carried by students during the day at school.
- Design solution: A painted, cylindrical aluminium bottle with a fixed straw and screw top lid.
Did you note the difference between these three levels of description? Try to frame a design problem then write a communication need for these three examples of design solutions;
- A laptop computer
- A skateboard
- A make-up kit
Students will use this strategy to define two communication needs for their brief. Teachers and students should be mindful that the two communication needs must be ‘distinct from one another in purpose and presentation format’ (VCD Study Design 2024 – 28 p. 35).
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The Brief
A brief for the SAT summarises design parameters for two communication needs. Often called a ‘return brief’, a designer writes up notes from conversations they have had with a client and returns it to them to ensure that they have correctly interpreted the client’s wishes and needs. The SAT in VCD requires students to develop a brief that identifies the following information;
- Client: Name, location, nature, scope and mission values of a business
- Two communication needs: Descriptions of the design challenge. Rules state that they must be ‘distinct from one another in purpose and presentation format’ (VCD Study Design 2024 – 28 p. 35). Ways to ensure difference include using two different Fields of Design and using two and three-dimensional methods and presentation formats
- Audience or users: Demographic, Psychographic and behavioural information
- Purpose: the purpose or function of the design solutions
- Context: the location where the design will be seen, used or experienced
- Constraints and expectations: Physical and functional limits and aesthetic considerations
- Presentation formats: Deliverables for the client. (See note regarding difference in Communication needs)
Further information on the brief can be found on the Define page and on the Brief page.
A brief for the conservation of native Australian plants with a book and a portable greenhouse. Olivia Willsher.
A brief for a cable organiser and its package. Harry Tinker.
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Design evaluation criteria
Design evaluation criteria are points that describe targets that must be achieved when producing design ideas, concepts and solutions. They are usually found in the constraints and expectations in the brief. A useful convergent thinking strategy is to use a PUGH matrix to organise design criteria and evaluate different design ideas or concepts.
Further information on Design Evaluation Criteria can be found here.
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Conduct further targeted research
Once the communication needs and design criteria are all set it’s almost time to get started on designing! Whilst this step is explained here, it is not expected that it happens at this stage. As students get going on generating design ideas, questions will emerge about the designs they are visualising. Questions might require the student to seek clarification on aspects such as layout, structure, operation, aesthetics or any other considerations that come to mind during drawing or prototyping. Answering these kinds of questions requires further targeted research. Students conduct further research at appropriate points in the Develop stage of the Design Process.
A page of secondary research exploring page layout structure for a brochure. Raphael Nichols.
A page of primary research with photos shot by the student during site visits exploring structures for a portable greenhouse. Note the ways the students have highlighted annotations referring to design elements, principles and conceptions of Good Design. Olivia Willsher.
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Annotations
Students should continue to describe and evaluate their research in informative annotations. Annotations are written in real time, not at the end of the folio as describing, explaining and evaluating are reflective thinking strategies that improve the student’s understanding of how designs have solved similar problems.
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Explain Design Criteria
Finally, students explain their design criteria. They should analyse how their design criteria will guide their design concepts and solutions towards Good Design.
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Define
Convergent Thinking Strategies
Brief
key skills
How I will demonstrate skills and knowledge
key Skills points for this outcome
- document a brief defining two distinct communication needs and presenting design criteria including purposes, contexts, audience or user characteristics and design constraints
(VCE VCD Study Design 2024-28, p. 36)
task
Show I know ...
3.1 Reframe design problem
Reconsider your design problem for the last time before you write your brief. Make a new heading in your folio for ‘Reframed Design Problem’. Write out your design problem again, incorporating any changes that have emerged from your explorations in the Discover stage.
3.2 Suggest communication needs
Using the strategy, we explored above, define two communication needs. Remember they have to be different in purpose and intent. Be intentional in your choice of fields of design and if they use two or three-dimensional methods. Write them down. You will incorporate them into your brief.
3.3 Write brief
Draft, edit and resolve a written brief. Your teacher will indicate the format and due dates to be followed. Refer to the directions shown here, on the Brief page. A typical process for writing a brief includes;
- Open a document in a word processing program
- Write out the headings you need
- Draft content under each heading. Take care to define each one fully
- Submit draft to your teacher for feedback
- Act on feedback and rewrite your brief
- Add spaces for names, signatures and date
- Submit brief for sign-off
- Print and place in folio
*Tip for formatting your brief. Many students like to format their brief in a program such as Illustrator. Target Learning suggests, do steps 1 – 5 in a word processing program like Word or Google Docs. Once your brief has been edited, place the copy (text) into Illustrator and style it as you want. Complete step 6 only, in Illustrator.
3.4 Design Evaluation Criteria
3.5 Further research
You don’t have to demonstrate this now, but as the need arises in the next component, conduct further primary/ field or secondary/ desk research to find out answers to questions that emerge in relation to visualising design ideas and developing design concepts.
3.6 Annotations
Ensure that you annotate further research carefully identifying, describing, explaining and evaluating the designs you find. Don’t forget to attribute images correctly.
3.7 Explain design criteria
Make a separate table and explain your design criteria. Show how creating designs that are guided by your design criteria will lead to Good Design within the solutions.
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This Page is Part A
This page includes:
- Component 1
- Component 2
- Component 3