Teaching Cultural Understanding to Undergraduate Graphic Design Students
Abstract
Despite the global, multicultural environment that many graphic design professionals are expected to work in today, design students are often provided little educational training on the topics of cultural understanding and global awareness. This article describes a semester-long undergraduate course that examined these topics, highlighting key readings and areas of discussion as well as class projects. The course was structured using the three-pronged approach of Intercultural Design Competence. This article argues for the inclusion of a similar course in future graphic design curriculum in order to better prepare young designers for successful, long-term careers in the discipline and offers suggestions for how to effectively do so.