Reconstituting the VARK Competencies in Teaching and Learning Components of Graphic Design Curriculum Towards the Development of a sustainable Curriculum Model / Woo Siew Leing @Sabrina

Thesis Submitted in Fulfillment of the Requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy

ABSTRACT
The need for a sustainable curriculum that equips learners with key competencies and transversal skills has become crucial in the competency-driven society today. In graphic design education, the curriculum should not only train students with the fundamentals of theoretical and practical skills but also align with industry needs to prepare graphic designers for increasingly complex roles.
However, existing studies found various issues of graphic design education and its curriculum such as curriculum structure issues, outdated material and conventional approaches and insufficient sustainable integration highlighting the need to investigate and re-evaluate existing curricula to ensure its effectiveness in cultivating transversal skills required by modern graphic designers.
In Brunei Darussalam, the graphic design education has yet to be formally studied and it is unknown how graphic design curricula are conducted and how effective they are. In this research, the graphic design micro-curriculum in Universiti Teknologi Brunei (UTB) was studied as a representative case with the aim to discover findings reconstituting curriculum components towards a proposed sustainable framework for graphic design that prepares learners with transversal skills for a sustainable future.
Through an exploratory lens of VARK Learning theory, the study utilised mixed-methods approach and triangulation to evaluate the micro-curriculum. Quantitative researcher-designed VARK questionnaire, qualitative classroom observation and focus group sessions were used to evaluate the micro-curriculum curriculum components' capacity in establishing the required skills, teaching and learning alignment and understanding learner feedback.
Findings revealed that despite the reliance on conventional approaches, the curriculum and its components were found effective to foster the required competences and transversal skills in graphic design students. Findings of this research demonstrate that a competent curriculum is a holistic integration of curriculum components rather than revolutionary approaches. Distinctive curriculum components were found to facilitate sustainable graphic design learning and the employment of VARK in this research also demonstrated its relevance and success in broader applicability beyond its original purpose in a rapidly changing society.

Thesis (PHD) - Universiti Teknologi Brunei, 2024