Content and Global Objective

What will the information society of the next millennium be like, and how will individuals and organizations behave? While it is clear that the future will be different from the past, at the present there is really no consensus as to how technological innovation in information and communications will affect the shape of our society in the next millennium.

The pursuit of these concerns is the objective of the course. Focusing on the concepts of learning and design and their integration with technological innovations, the course will frame and seek resolution to questions such as: What will the physical and information spaces defining communities be like? Can we design them? What role can education play in their design? How should we view learning and its role in the design and evolution of both technological change and societal outcomes? The course will investigate themes such as: design in physical spaces (e.g., cities) and in informational spaces (software) and the relationship between them; (virtual) communities of practice and it will explore fundamental concepts such as: evolution, design and sustainability, descriptive and prescriptive elements in design, and the role of breakdowns and symmetry of ignorance.

Approach and Audience

The course will represent an opportunity to rethink learning and the framing of problems through new approaches. It will allow students to engage in authentic, self-directed learning activities, and embed learning and design activities in the context of real world activities. To account for the interdisciplinary nature of real world problems, we encourage students with different background knowledge, from a variety of disciplines and from different educational backgrounds to participate.

Prerequisites and Requirements: Permission of Instructors

You do not have to be a computer expert to join. If you are interested in the role of technology in our society, and if you are a creative, critical and self-motivated graduate or undergraduate student who believes in interdisciplinary learning and is concern with the shape and the shaping of our future society you should join us.