PPP // Module Evaluation

1. What skills have you developed through this module and how effectively do you think you have applied them?

I guess the main skill I have maybe not learnt but enhanced over this year,is the skill of self analysing, and finding the importance of really searching yourself and asking yourself questions that you wouldn't normally think to. This I have found is always changing the more I learn and see my interests have switched several times over the course of the year, but I have found knowledge from one area can assist and be mixed with another, as your skills and knowledge grow so do your design abilities.
Indesign is a piece of software I have learnt to use efficiently during this module, it was a program I was not familiar with apart from using quark express on my BTEC 5 years ago, so it was a very useful workshop, as were all the software workshops.

2. What approaches to/ methods of design production have developed and how have they informed your design development process?

Really analysing every decision you make as I say above has effected my design process. it has made me think more about all aspects of a design to try and limit the amount of elements that do not fit specifically with the brief. before i don't really think I analysed anything about my work apart from weather i thought it looked good. Where as now each aspect of my design process is selected more precisely to fit with whatever brief I am working on at the time.
I have also found that by doing this it often aids design development, more good ideas are processed the more and idea is thought about, by taking a good idea and working on it you can make it a great idea, this practice is always continuing and I hope to to improve on it as i have struggled this year to answer some of the questions as it is a lot harder to self analyse yourself than I thought it would be, however the more that I am learning the more I am finding specific areas of interest.

3. What strengths can you identify in your work and how have/ will you capitalise on these?

Thinking outside my comfort zone, whereas my experience of design before this course was limited, I have had a lot to take in this year and some areas have been harder than others but I have tried to push myself more towards the end of the year and think of design ideas that I have never thought about before, the lunch box for example in the 'Speaking from Experience' brief i was tempted to go for a safer 2D printed option, some kind of publication for example, but by trying to think outside the box a little bit more my designs no longer are structured by my fear of experimenting with different products. I may have not created the perfect final product in some cases, but I am pleased with my progression in concept development and can see how forcing myself outside my usual design boundaries really helps aid knowledge and creativity.

4. What weaknesses can you identify in your work and how will you address these in the future?

As I say above, my fear of experimenting with different products and materials has been a weakness for most of the year, I don't think I have had the confidence to take my designs to the next level, and I feel I have nearly always settled for acceptable, instead of aiming for phenomenal, my aim to address that is to carry on experimenting, i might make a rule for myself next year; In each individual brief i will ensure I incorporate atleast one new element of design that I have never used before, whether that be production and i choose a different printing process, or visual development, using different materials to experiment with shapes and designs to widen my options as well as create things that cant be created on computers, i would like to incorporate more photography into my designs, well at least experiment more with it as it has always been an area that interests me. 

5. Identify five things that you will do differently next time and what do you expect to gain from doing these?

- Take advantage of the different facilities at the college to experiment more with design production and development. By doing this I will be pushing myself to learn more and improve my skill level.


- Experiment with photography in my designs, there is some fantastic pieces of design which are entirely based on photography but every time we get a brief i never actually think about what i could do with a camera, i usually limit myself to what I can produce my hand but mainly what I can produce on the computer.


- Ensure I always have a piece of work i am 100% happy with when it comes to module hand in day, this comes down to time organisation but I want to do this to build my confidence up with my designs.


- Blog more interesting designs I see while out and about, i often see and appreciate pieces of design around the country but always forget to document it, and it annoys me as it would help with inspiration and design knowledge in general.

- Spend more time developing or experimenting with design concepts before choosing one, I intend to do more design sheets that are purely focused on initial ideas and sketches, I have found when I have done that in the past i have produced a piece of work that I am much more confident with.

6. how would you grade yourself on the following areas? 

Attendance - 4

Punctuality - 4

Motivation - 3

Commitment - 3

Quantity of work produced - 3

Quality of work produced - 3

Contribution to the group - 4