Metaphors To Design By: Developing Representations of Engineering Design

For all design instructors, the metaphors we select in teaching inform the process students learn. Visual metaphors of design both shape thinking and reinforce an approach to design. This paper critiques some of the most common design process models to understand how they afford and disafford student learning. We share two metaphors for our design model. We analyze their efficacy and utility for our students to try and improve the quality of our teaching and offer similar support for others making metaphors in design and elsewhere.