Course detail
Systems Thinking and Design 1
FaVU-1SMaD1Acad. year: 2024/2025
In the field of design, the term "wicked problems" has been coined to refer to extremely complex problems such as climate change, mass extinction of species or persistent poverty, where a large number of interrelated factors create the impression that they cannot be solved. In this course, the term will be unlearned by connecting it to systems thinking, through which students will learn to view the contemporary world.
Each teaching block will consist of a combination of theoretical lecture and seminar part. The seminar part will include representatives from academia and non-profit organizations who are involved in the application of systems thinking in practice. The seminar part will be reserved for discussion and group work with systems thinking models and tools.
Language of instruction
Number of ECTS credits
Mode of study
Guarantor
Department
Entry knowledge
Rules for evaluation and completion of the course
The following conditions are set for the award of credit/examination:
- Compulsory attendance - 75% attendance (attendance at a minimum of 4 blocks out of 6)
- Colloquium - presentation of own practice in the context of the systems thinking of the rest of the group.
The course is taught in blocks (2 hours lecture, 2 hours seminar). Minimum attendance is 75%.
Aims
The course will introduce students to systems thinking and provide them with tools through which they can reflect and reconfigure their own practice.
Upon completion of the course, students should be able to:
- Recognize and name the systems in which they live and implement their practice.
- Go to the root of the problems in the analytical part of the design process.
- Define the points at which it is possible to intervene in the system and think about ways of transcending it.
Study aids
Prerequisites and corequisites
Basic literature
Recommended reading
Buchanan, Richard. “Wicked Problems in Design Thinking.” Design Issues, vol. 8, no. 2, 1992, p. 5, 10.2307/1511637. (EN)
Davelaar, Danielle. “Transformation for Sustainability: A Deep Leverage Points Approach.” Sustainability Science, vol. 16, no. 3, 19 Jan. 2021, 10.1007/s11625-020-00872-0. (EN)
Fry, Tony. Design as politics. Bloomsbury, 2010. (EN)
Hickel, Jason. Less is more: how degrowth will save the world. London: Windmill, 2021. (EN)
Meadows, Donella. Thinking in Systems. Chelsea Green Publishing, 2008. (EN)
Raworth, Kate. Ekonomie koblihy. Praha: Družstevní nakladatelství IDEA, 2020. (CS)
Senge, Peter M. Pátá disciplína: teorie a praxe učící se organizace. Vydání 1. (reedice). Praha: Management Press, 2016. Knihovna světového managementu. (CS)
Sevaldson, Birger. “Leverage Points.” Systems Oriented Design, 2017, systemsorienteddesign.net/index.php/tools/leverage-points. (EN)
Classification of course in study plans
- Programme VUM_M Master's 2 year of study, winter semester, elective
- Programme DES_M Master's 1 year of study, winter semester, compulsory
1 year of study, winter semester, compulsory
1 year of study, winter semester, compulsory
1 year of study, winter semester, compulsory - Programme VUM_M Master's 2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
2 year of study, winter semester, elective
Type of course unit
Lecture
Teacher / Lecturer
Syllabus
2. Design as politics.
3. Wicked problems X Systems thinking
4. Foresight methods. Future scenarios and pathways to sustainability.
5. A critique of economic growth as an example of systems thinking.
6. Climate crisis and resilience design.