Abstract

In 2010, concrete effort in the area of introducing “local, more relevant and contextual” design education in school curricula in India had started. In 2019, design education exists in very few Indian schools, in the form of an optional specialization subject from grades 9 to 12. On examining the nature of design awareness in “basic education” and the existing design education practices at school level in India, this article establishes that the need for design education in schools is evident. At the same time, it is also evident that design education has not been able to permeate into the Indian school curriculum. To understand and identify the problem, the authors do a literature review to determine that the primary purpose of introducing design education in the school curriculum is to provide learning experiences through processes in design education in order to develop abilities and attitudes that strengthen decision-making and connect the student to real life. This article intends to explain the existing educational structure in terms of the physical conditions and curriculum in relation to design education at the school level in India through field visits to five schools across different cities in India. The authors employ a qualitative research approach to study the facilities in which the design educators “experience, conceptualize, perceive, and understand” the phenomena of imparting design education in the limited schools in India. The purpose of the study is to establish the contextual significance of design education at the school level in India for the subject to flourish and achieve its purpose. The article also presents the authors’ experience with design education at the school level in India. The research study is limited to schools in India across the three major boards, Central Board of Secondary Education, Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, and International Baccalaureate.