As I reflect on the work I have produced over the course of the two modules, I feel as if I have learned a lot about the design process, research methods and also a lot about myself as a practitioner.

For example, with the two modules I found myself questioning my own methods like I have never have before. I found it very helpful to mindfully analyse my own working methods and how I approach a create challenge. This mindfullness of my process helped me be incredibly thorough and allowed me to question my overall approach. Reflecting on my approach before this module, I would say it was fairly shallow and unfocused, as I think the way I worked was habit, and not tailored to the project or challenge enough. i’ve found that although it’s good to have a set step of the process. For example, research, experimentation, development and outcome. It may never be as straight forward as this, and you may need to come back a step or two as the idea or concept isn’t working.

I’ve also realised that in the past I would go through the process, but at a point choose a single direction to develop further. This means all my time would be spent developing a single idea and then as the deadline closes, I have one polished pitch, but the rest are yet to really be explored fully. This process has helped me realise this and that I should attempt to develop multiple ideas and not just one. Developing multiple ideas allows me to see the full potential of each idea, and explore the concept thoroughly. I have found myself choosing the idea and design I have spent most of my time developing, instead of perhaps the most suitable but underdeveloped one.

In regards to research methods, I was unaware of the breadth of methods to gather information. My research in the past had utilised the internet and the internet alone. I’ve learned that they are are a myriad of places to discover suitable research and this leads to a large amount of research which is strengthened by the different mediums the information is found.

My reflective post blog itself has also been incredibly helpful, as it’s a space for where I can reflect on my process and updates in the project. I think the blog is most useful to me to read back through after the initial writing, as rereading a reflective post as some time has past helps me understand it more so than when I have just constructed the text. It’s as if I’m reading with the intent to understand as opposed to thinking how I’m going to get my thought out into text in a coherent fashion.

Overall I think my project has had a successful start, and I’ve explored many key areas to help inform the rest of my work in the future modules. I believe what I have learned from the two modules will help me in the future, as I’m much more aware of the process of research, but also the many methodologies than can be employed within the research stage.