ABSTRACT
Recent changes to communication design practice and thinking have seen an increased emphasis on the valuing of the social impact of design over formal and aesthetic aspects related to the designed object or output. Consequently, the idea that communication design, as a practice defined by the production of physical objects, visual and material forms, and technical skill, is no longer feasible. This shifting emphasis necessitates a broader education for designers that prioritizes social practices and focuses on developing competencies like evaluative and reflective thinking, research, and the ability to position and present convincing arguments; however, design education has been slow to respond, likely due to influences and understandings of design that are embedding in those more traditional practices and models of doing design. As a means to explore how design is understood through discourse, we examine the judging criteria, rules, and procedures for a student design competition. We hypothesize that design competitions expose a fragile nature that is part of a professional practice that values and emphasizes aesthetics and design outputs above social impact, and which perpetuates traditional and elitist master-apprentice models of education and practice.
