Motivation by Design

Like research, design is an activity. Its learning, unlike the fact and method absorbing process in engineering science subjects, involves developing a way of problem solving where the task as given is often ill-defined, with many influencing parameters and no unique solution. This paper outlines the design process, with reference to a representative bibliograpy, and summarises the approach to teaching Mechanical Engineering Design used at the University of Canterbury. There is a focus on final year Design, looking at how students can be better prepared for industry, and how Design can be better integrated with other engineering courses. Examples are given of projects which have increased student motivation.