3/2/2026-17/3/2026 (Week 1- Week 7)
Bai Xinning / 0369233
Intercultural Design /Bachelor of Mass Communication (Hons)
INSTRUCTIONS
Week 1 - Lecture/Brainstorming/Ideas/Sketches:
In the first week, the class was mainly about getting our direction
clear. The lecturer walked us through the course outline and weekly plan,
then focused on explaining what Assignment 1 requires and how we should
present our work. We also looked at a few past examples, which helped us
understand the expected standard. After that, we formed our own groups and
kicked off the semester as an intercultural team. From there, we started
shifting into an “urban observation” mindset—looking at public spaces and
everyday travel to spot real issues that affect people’s experiences.
After our first round of discussion, we narrowed our ideas into three
possible directions: The “Motorcycle Micro-Parking Bufferio,” The “Green
Buffer” Modular Rest-Point, and Stickers Signage. With the lecturer’s
recommendation and our team’s practical considerations (such as
feasibility and clarity of impact), we eventually chose The “Motorcycle
Micro-Parking Bufferio” as our main design direction moving forward.
Week 2 - Planning/Meetings/Topic Determination:
In Week 2, we held a group meeting to clarify our research goals and align
on what we wanted to investigate. Each team member brought in their own
ideas and started gathering supporting evidence from articles, academic
journals, and relevant news sources. After a few rounds of discussion, we
narrowed our work down to three key design directions. Together with Zhang
Yishan, we also developed the initial sketches and basic structure for
each idea. All our references and draft sketches have been uploaded to our
Miro board for easy access and further iteration.
The information collected by each person
Preliminary sketch
Week 03 - Proposal Presentation Submission:
After receiving feedback from our supervisor, Mr. Fauzi, we
made our final decision and officially selected the
Motorcycle Micro-Parking Bufferio
as our Project 1 proposal. We then refined the layout and
circulation, and improved our proposal drawings so the spatial
planning is clearer and the parking arrangement is more
structured and implementable. The PowerPoint slides were
compiled by our team member in charge of the deck, based on our
research findings and sketches. Finally, we recorded the
presentation and submitted all required materials according to
the Assignment 1 guidelines.
Week 04 - SS15 Field Study/Data Gathering
This week, we first held a team meeting to finalize the process and division of labor: two team members were responsible for logistics, including compiling interview questions, writing interview transcripts, and post-interview documentation, while the remaining members were responsible for conducting interviews and filming on-site. Afterwards, we visited SS15 to focus on the problem of haphazardly parked motorcycles. On-site, we observed and recorded numerous instances of motorcycles occupying sidewalks and parking in undesignated areas, using cameras and audio equipment to capture how these parking behaviors directly impacted pedestrian traffic. This real-world data provided crucial evidence for our design and clarified that our goal was not simply to create an "aesthetically pleasing" solution, but to restore the streets to a shared space that everyone could use with peace of mind.
Week 5 – Progress Update and Beginning of Task 3
In Week 5, our group attended the class and reviewed the progress of our assignment. During the session, the lecturer introduced the next stage of the project and explained the expectations for Task 3. After the class, our group went through our PowerPoint slides again and made some minor adjustments to improve the clarity of the content and the overall presentation. Once the revisions were completed, we finalized the slides and submitted Task 2.
After learning about the requirements for Task 3, our group had a discussion to decide how to divide the work among the members. Each person chose a different role so that we could analyze the issue from multiple perspectives. This helped our group better understand the parking problems in the SS15 area and how they affect different stakeholders in the environment.
For my part, I focused on the pedestrian perspective. My responsibility was to identify the problems that pedestrians experience when motorcycles park on sidewalks. To present these ideas clearly, I created a mind map that shows the main issues faced by pedestrians, such as blocked walkways, safety concerns, and uncomfortable walking conditions. Under each point, I also included several related problems to explain the situation in more detail. This analysis will help our group better understand pedestrian needs when developing possible design solutions in the next stage of the project.
Task Allocation Table
Week 6 – Group Design Discussion and Supervisor Feedback
In Week 6, our team held an internal meeting to discuss the detailed design of the motorcycle parking system for Task 3. During the session, each member contributed ideas on how to better organize the parking layout and optimize the use of available space
After our internal discussion, we met with our supervisor, Fauzi, to present our design concepts and gather his feedback. He was generally positive about the direction we were taking and offered several useful suggestions to enhance the practicality of our proposal. Based on his advice, we decided to select an open space near a restaurant in SS15 as the site for our motorcycle parking design. We chose this location because the area has potential to be reorganized into a more structured and efficient parking arrangement.
We concluded the week having successfully completed our group design discussion, secured supervisor feedback, finalized the site near the restaurant in SS15, and developed the first version of the parking layout
Week 7 – Final Design Completion and Presentation
During Week 7, our team concentrated on pulling together all the elements of our motorcycle parking design into a final PowerPoint submission for Task 3. We split up the work to compile the layout drawings, site photographs, and background documents, making sure the slides told a clear and logical story. After assembling the presentation, we practiced and then delivered our final walkthrough, covering how we arrived at our design, what we learned from our research, and the reasoning behind our final proposal. Each of us took turns presenting our individual roles—from the early site visits in SS15 to the final drafting of the layout. By the end of the week, we had submitted everything: the PowerPoint and all related materials. Looking back over the past seven weeks, it's been a rewarding process of site analysis, supervisor meetings, and continuous refinement. The final submission captures all of that work in a clean, visual format that clearly explains both our process and the final design.
Overall Reflection
This assignment was one of the rare chances in the course to work in a full group setting, so I was excited to collaborate with classmates from different seminars and learn through exchanging perspectives. Once our team was formed, communication felt active and consistent—everyone contributed ideas, and our progress stayed steady because we divided responsibilities early and each person managed their part with accountability.
For me, the biggest takeaway was understanding how a design idea becomes more than just a concept. We didn’t stop at brainstorming; instead, we compared multiple directions, checked them against research, and refined our decision through discussion. That process showed me that strong design choices come from evidence and real needs, not simply what feels “nice” or personal preference.
Tools like Miro also played a key role in making teamwork smoother. Having our references, notes, and drafts in one shared space helped us stay organized and made it easier to track decisions and changes over time. At the same time, producing sketches pushed me to translate vague thoughts into something visual and concrete, which made group communication clearer and reduced misunderstandings.
The SS15 fieldwork added another layer of learning because it brought us face-to-face with the real situation. Observing the space and speaking with people helped me see how research can be influenced by practical constraints like weather, timing, and user availability. Overall, this project strengthened my understanding of user-focused design and the value of combining secondary research with real-world data, while also increasing my interest in how different people think, behave, and experience shared urban spaces.
评论
发表评论