ASTHA THAKKAR

RESEARCH
& TEACHING

COURSES
TAUGHT:

I believe teaching design goes far beyond imparting technical skills; it involves nurturing critical thinking, encouraging self-directed exploration, and fostering a sense of community engagement. Inspired by Neil Postman and Charles Weingartner's transformative work Teaching as a Subversive Activity, I approach education as a means of empowering students to think critically and engage meaningfully with their cultural and social contexts. My goal as an educator is to guide students toward uncovering their unique design voice, cultivating curiosity, and embracing experimentation.

I view the classroom as an active laboratory where creativity, technical skills, and intellectual growth converge. Students are encouraged to push boundaries and reimagine possibilities while recognizing failure as an essential part of the learning process. To this end, I include a dedicated project focused on celebrating and analyzing failed experiments, underscoring the importance of resilience and reflection in creative growth.

In response to the shifting social landscape, I have intentionally revised my course syllabi to integrate counternarratives that address systemic issues such as racial and gender inequality within the field of design. By engaging students in critical discussions and challenging them to consider how design can be a tool for social change, I aim to foster awareness and inspire action toward a more equitable and inclusive profession. Through these efforts, I strive to equip students with the skills and perspectives necessary to become not only innovative designers but also conscientious contributors to the world around them.

STUDENT WORK:

‘Knowledge is produced in response to questions. And new knowledge results from the asking of questions; quite often new questions about old questions.’