My first week with Coursera's on-line university course Design: Creation of Artifacts in Society was difficult but ended up being incredible rewarding.
Coursera is an on-line university completely free, taught by real professors and linked to well respected universities in Canada, the United States and around the world. It is completely free. Yes, free. However, you will not get accredited for it. Right now it is for the joy of learning by some of the best professors out there.
I enrolled because I get very little design experience in my everday life which is a direction I strongly want my career to go in. I was hoping this course would get me excited and get my mind thinking about design again. The only design course offered is Design: Creation of Artifacts and is being taught by Karl T. Ulrich from the University of Pennsylvania.
My life is like everyone's. It is busy. I have a full time job as a Landscape Architect, am married, have a five month old little girl and a dog who gives me dirty looks if we don't walk her twice a day. Coursera says this course is a 5-10 hour work load per week. That frightened me. I almost didn't enroll. I eventually thought, if I can't do it, I un-enroll and nothing lost. Here is how the first week went.
There were several videos to watch which is how the course is presented. At most a video is 12 minutes long or so. These were easy to watch and informative. There is also a free textbook as suggested reading by Ulrich, (download it here). The first two chapters did not take long to read and reinforced the information from the video. It is basic 101 design information that is interesting. Then I took a look at the assignments and become frightened and thought they were below me. There were four assignments, all fairly simple well thought out assignments to get you thinking about design problems. Why was it then after one day I debated dropping this course? It was my wife who pointed it out to me. I had become a lazy thinker. I was afraid to take a chance and think outside my comfort level and I didn't realize it. And this is work I enjoy doing. This course is exactly what I needed and I almost gave up before beginning.
So I hunkered down. I watched ones less tv show three weeknights and took a couple hours on Sunday to finish all my assignments. I still had time for my wife and daughter, for the dog and a small social life, and yes a little tv. Am I happy with all my assignments? No. I think I could have done better. But did I do what I could with the time I have? Yes. And it made me realize my mind has become lazy when it comes to thinking more than then required.. I love design. I want to be doing design work everyday. However, for a while I have not had the opportunity to do this in my career or in my hobbies and it changed me. This course made me realize this (more so my wife, thank you!). With a little shift in mind-set I'm staring to see the assignments not as burdens but as challenges to think differently again.
I am sticking with Coursera for as long as my daily life will allow it. Television will be still be there when it's done. I truly want to finish this course and think it is a great tool to get me thinking critically again. One week down.
