Final presentation slides (and alt text)

Posted on 7th January 2025 by Emma Charleston

I like to design most presentations (particularly those delivered to my students), such that, if for some reason the viewer needs to explore the presentation without me being present to deliver it, they can still gather the salient points from my slides. It can be tough to strike a balance between simple, usable, in-person slides, and slides which are rich enough in content to make sense without personal delivery, but this is what I strive for.

I have created my PG Cert presentation with this in mind, so if you prefer to explore it in this way without my accompanying voice over (which you can view here), you can do so in this blog.

You can also download a PDF version of the presentation here.

Attendance, participation, and collaboration in the undergraduate studio
Emma Charleston
PG Cert 2024/25
Orr and Shreeve (2017)1 describe the studio space as one of the signature pedagogies of art and design — a unique and important aspect of a creative education.
Orr, S. and Shreeve, A. (2017) Art and Design Pedagogy in Higher Education: Knowledge, Values and Ambiguity in the Creative Curriculum. 1st edition. London; New York: Routledge.
(P.88 – 90)
“…the studio helps structure what can and does take place when students learn, and it has been a central part of organised learning in visual arts for more than a century. This space also echoes those found in professional working environments… There is usually no central focus for the lecturer to hold forth, but rather students create a social learning environment discussing amongst peers… Ideally the studio is an active, busy and social place where learning is visible and open to discussion through active participation.”
Orr, S. and Shreeve, A. (2017) Art and Design Pedagogy in Higher Education: Knowledge, Values and Ambiguity in the Creative Curriculum. 1st edition. London; New York: Routledge.
(P.88 – 90)
So why does our BA UXD studio often look like this? (During open access periods)
(Image of an empty studio with a fake illustration of tumbleweed blowing across a desk)
And why is students use of the studio a social justice issue?
It is easier to understand this when we start to consider reasons why students might not be there:
Accessibility
17.9% of UAL students have a declared disability. (Based on ISAs and informal conversations with our current year 1 cohort, we know we at least 10 of our 24 students have some additional access needs).
Is there some aspect of our studio that makes it inhospitable to students?
(According to UAL dashboard statistics, gathered December 2024)
Class/social/financial status
The studio could provide a haven for students, particularly if their accommodation is sub-optimal. But transport costs, or pressure to spend money (e.g. for food/hot drinks) may hinder students attendance.
“…pervasive intersectional class inequality [is] a structural problem endemic to the arts, and society at large.”
Shepherd, C. (2022) Caring to Listen: Developing listening practices to better understand experiences of socially engaged artists from working class backgrounds. (Accessed: 29 June 2024).
At this stage though, this is all just speculation.
It was time to find out more about our studio, and the staff and students who use it.
Time for some research!
Image of a spider diagram with ‘research’ in the centre, and arrows emerging from it leading to ‘student interviews’, ‘staff interviews’, student workshop’, ‘survey’ and ‘observations’. Observations has been crossed out, and there is a note which says ‘Ask me later about why I didn’t do observations’
Staff interviews
All interviews were thematically coded and analysed using grounded theory coding, and various user experience research methodologies. Each interview was summarised into key insight statements and ‘how might we’s.|
Corbin, J.M. and Strauss, A. (2008) Basics of Qualitative Research: Techniques and Procedures for Developing Grounded Theory. Third Edition. Los Angeles: SAGE Publications, Inc.
IDEO (2015) The Field Guide to Human-Centered Design by IDEO.org. San Francisco, Calif: IDEO.org / Design Kit.
The same slide as previously, but with a pop up which reads ‘ask me later to show my coding document and why I LOVE this approach!
Staff interview with our studio technician
Students don’t feel or take sufficient ownership of the space, which may result in them feeling less connected and less invested
How might we foster a greater sense of ownership within the space?
Students don’t understand the full potential of ways in which they can use or adapt the space to enhance comfort, enjoyment and learning
How might we make students aware of the potential of what they can do within the space?
Students don’t appreciate the value that collaborative work and discussion can bring, and how working in a studio setting can foster this
How might we help students understand the benefits of working in a collaborative way?
Staff interview with a disability support advisor
Offering students choice throughout their experiences at university is a great way of striving to meet a diversity of access needs
How might we offer greater choice to students when it comes to their experiences in our studio
Students stay at home may be because they feel they have everything they need there, and can better control their sensory environment at home
How might we offer students greater control over the sensory environment in the studio space
The importance of collaboration and peer-learning can sometimes be a ‘hidden curriculum’ that students do not appreciate
How might we demonstrate to students the value of collaboration and peer learning
Staff interview with a neighbouring course leader
When students feel ownership of a space they are more likely to use it
How might we foster a sense of ownership of our space in our students
Comfort means more than just physical comfort, it also encompasses safety, security, support and confidence
How might we explore all different dimensions of comfort within our studio space
Shaping a space around students ‘desire lines’ can make for more successful, functional and well used studios
How might we understand students ‘desire lines’ and use them to shape our space
Next, time for…
A workshop!
I was interested in incorporating participatory drawing into my research, as well as speculative design approaches and fantasy.
Jokela, T. and Huhmarniemi, M. (2019) ‘Art-based action research in the development work of arts and art education’, in, pp. 9–23.
Pauwels, L. (2019) Visual Elicitation in Interviews. SAGE Publications Ltd.
Perrone, R. (2015) ‘Integrating fantasy into the creative process’, in. Conference: The 3rd International Conference for Design Education Researchers, Chicago.
The workshop started by prompting students to draw their dream workspace (Images of students drawings)
Then, students added annotations to their drawings using post-it notes (images of students drawings with post-it notes added)
We then themed these post it notes collectively as a group to determine core areas of interest in a good studio (image of post its clustered under different groupings)
User Experience Design sometimes uses ‘archetypes’1 (a more contemporary methodology replacing personas).
I was curious about whether a methodology normally applied to types of people could instead be applied to types of place — together we came up with four archetypal studios based on their work so far.
Youngblood, M. and Chesluk, B. (2020) Rethinking Users: The Design Guide to User Ecosystem Thinking. 1st edition. Amsterdam: BIS Publishers.
Image of four different mood boards with images of studio spaces. These moodboards are titled:
Cosy/warm studio
Bright, collaborative space
Functional, bespoke, solo
Natural/green studio
Finally, we reflected on the fact that while everyone has their individual preferences, there may be elements which could allow a space to be more flexible or adaptable to meet different needs…
What might these be?
(A lot of modular walls/booths, apparently…)
Workshop insights and how might we’s
Students highly value comfort in their work spaces, but definitions of comfort are highly subjective, varied and individual.
How might we enable students to adapt the studio space to meet some aspects of their own comfort needs
It was possible to discover some broad archetypal models for ideal studios.
How might we take inspiration from these archetypal studios, combining the best elements of all of them to create an adaptable space
Students tended to socially cluster based on their studio preferences.
How might we support students to build their collective vision of what a studio should be, and empower them to adapt our space accordingly
Student interviews
I conducted a group interview with 4 year 2 students. (Note which reads: Ask me later why I did this as a group, rather than as individuals!)
Student interviews, key insights and how might we’s
The studio will never be as optimal for solo working as (most) students home spaces, and should be viewed primarily as a collaborative space
How might we build a studio culture that focusses on collaboration
Students are excited to socialise and share their space with other year groups and even neighbouring courses
How might we create more opportunities for the different year groups to mix
Students value more scheduled activities in the space, or even just themed times
How might we, taking into account staffing and budgetary limitations, make the space feel like it has more ‘going on’
Survey
Finally, I conducted a short survey1 across all years of the UX course which mostly focussed on the sensory experience of the studio space.
RM.Converse, J. and Presser, S. (1986) Survey Questions. SAGE Publications, Inc,
Key survey insights
The majority of students choose to work from home first…
How might we encourage students to spend more time in the studio, while respecting that it is not the right workspace for all kinds of work
Students comfort preferences vary and it would be impossible to completely meet them all within one space.
How might we make the studio flexible and adaptable to individual student needs
Above all, students (in this survey) want space and not too much noise.
How might we help students find the space and quiet they want
So, I learned a LOT!
There’s loads more discussion of all this, as well as my full research coding linked on the blog.
(Note reading: Ask me later how I analysed my research to develop my intervention concept!)
After analysing my research, I developed a series of concepts for my intervention, and took these to my course leader, so that we could discuss which intervention would be most effective and practical to test
in the time available.
This led us to one clear answer…
Noodles!!
More specifically:
A free hot meal within the space
For all year groups
With the intention of becoming a regular event
(Accompanying bespoke illustration of a pot noodle which lists the details of the first event)
Why?
Meets research findings which show:
Need for a greater sense of community in the space
Food as a key way of building social connections
Desire for ‘vertical’ events within the space
Why might it work?
A reason for students to stay in the studio through into unscheduled time, rather than leaving to get lunch and not coming back (as they currently do)
Student interviewees explicitly said that the one thing that would make them come to an event was hot food
Students wanted more opportunities to socialise across year groups — this is their chance!
So, how did it go? (Note which reads: Ask me later about food as a social justice issue)
Image of around 17 students whose faces have been anonymised, sitting in the studio space eating noodles.
It went great!
Good turn out (mostly year 1 students whose session it followed, some from years 2 and 3 as well)
Popular food choice (everyone was actively enthusiastic about noodles)
Positive feedback
(Note which reads: Ask me later how I gathered feedback from the intervention!)
In conclusion…
I entered this project thinking that there was something about the space itself that we could change which would improve students comfort.
But the fact is, people’s individual definitions of comfort are too diverse for everyone’s needs to be met in the same space, no matter how much hypothetical money we were able to throw at the problem (though MORE space would help)
While most students, absolutely could recommend improvements to the space, they were also pretty pragmatic about what’s possible, or indeed, worthwhile.
As one of my second years noted:
“…I think design is a very collaborative process, and I love that aspect of it. It’s not going to kill me to sit there and have a chat or sit there and work with other people [even if the space is not as comfortable as my space at home]”
The most important drivers for use of the space also happen to be some of the core benefits of the studio, as noted by Orr and Shreeve:
Community
Collaboration
Connection
This is what students want from the space. For almost everything else, their home will invariably be more appealing.
Orr, S. and Shreeve, A. (2017) Art and Design Pedagogy in Higher Education: Knowledge, Values and Ambiguity in the Creative Curriculum. 1st edition. London ; New York: Routledge. (P.88 – 90)
It is hard to artificially manufacture community
But by listening to them and designing repeatable events which actually meet their needs and wants, we begin to foster a sense of community* which will organically bloom the more the students meaningfully connect with one another.
(*Alongside some other recommendations from my research)
Thank you!
Any questions?

That concludes the main part of my presentation, which you can view a video of here.

What follows are slides from my supplementary Q&A presentation, which you can view a video of here.

Slide with 6 boxes, reading:
The challenges of observations
Grounded theory coding
Why a group interview for the students?
Research analysis and intervention concept development
Food and social justice
Gathering feedback from the intervention
The challenges of observations
I initially planned to undertake observational research1, observing both our studio and our neighbouring course’s studio.
However, this did not work out in the end. Why?
Stinkdorn, M. et al. (2016) This is Service Design Doing: Applying Service Design Thinking in the Real World. 1st edition. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly. (P120 – 124)
No compatible times where I was available to attend and there was open access time in either studio
Challenges of obtaining fully informed ethical consent while remaining discreet
Ran out of time / felt I may have reached data saturation point anyway!
Grounded theory qualitative interview coding
You can view my interview coding process/document here
Why a group interview for the students?
Student interviews
I conducted a group interview with 4 year 2 students. I did this as a group:
For time efficiency (transcribing and coding interviews takes time!)
More fun/appealing for the students
Easier to schedule
Because I was interested in the potential power of the ‘focus group’…
Focus groups…
“Can stimulate spontaneous ideas and personal disclosures beyond what’s possible in a 1 to 1”
“As participants exchange opinions, they consider their own views in relation to others’—which may encourage participants to refine their thoughts”
Roller, M.R. (2020) ‘Strengths of the Focus Group Method: An Overview’, Research Design Review, 30 October. (Accessed: 15 December 2024).
Office for Heath Improvement and Disparities (no date) Focus group study: qualitative studies, GOV.UK. Available at:(Accessed: 15 December 2024).
Research analysis and intervention concept development
From my research coding themes, I wrote a series of broad recommendations for our course team (I didn’t want these ideas to get lost if they weren’t enacted as part of my intervention)
(Image of the coding themes listed in full, these are viewable here)
Analysis
In order to analyse my research and develop ideas for interventions, I first gathered all my ‘How might we’s’ and the recommendations from my coding exercise together.
Image of how might we’s and recommendations on post-its in Miro. Miro board viewable here
Core themes
I grouped my ‘How might we’s’ according to the core themes emerging from my research, which were:
Ownership / Customisation / Community / Collaboration
Image of how might we’s clustered by theme on Miro board viewable here
Recommendations
I clustered my recommendations according to these themes, to see what intervention ideas started to emerge…
Image of recommendation post-its on Miro board clustered by theme. Board viewable here
Ideation
I summarised the core themes into three key ‘how might we’s’, and developed several simple intervention ideas for each one, based on the recommendations and all other insights I gained throughout my research
Image of 3 key ‘how might we’s’ with ideas clustered underneath them. Miro board viewable here.
Value/effort matrix
I mapped all my ideas onto a value/effort matrix…
Image of ideas clustered on a 2 x 2 matrix, whose axes are high value > low value and high effort > low effort. The High value, low effort quadrant is labelled ‘do right away’, the high value, high effort quadrant is labelled ‘make a plan to do’, the low effort, low value quadrant is labelled ‘Do only if the mood strikes and there’s time’, and the high effort, low value quadrant is labelled ‘dismiss’. Miro board viewable here.
Food and social justice
Our course team have become aware that a small but significant number of students are experiencing food poverty, with some having to choose between feeding themselves or paying transport costs to university.
Image of Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs (Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological Review, 50 (4), pp. 370–396), a pyramid whose successive layers are labelled, from bottom to top: Physiological needs, safety, belonging, esteem and self actualisation. Examples of what these tiers mean are provided.
As well as building community within the studio, Noodle Socials also supports some students with attendance more broadly, as they do not have to worry about paying for or preparing lunch on noodle days.
Feedback from the intervention
An image of a whiteboard in the BA UXD studio. On the whiteboard is written ‘Noodle socials: feedback! e.g. how often would you come? Types of noodles? Suggestions for how to run it? Things you like? Things that could improve? Day of the week?’ One student has written ‘It was great, thank you for organising!’ and there are a number of other post-it notes underneath.
Key feedback
(Summaries from verbal feedback and notes on feedback board)
“Next time please can we have [insert noodle brand here] / [insert hot sauce brand here]”
“Can we get more people from other years to come”
“I had a great time and will come again!”
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