Week 2 of Module 3

Seeing the "Big" Picture

I see a distinct parallel between the world of design/architecture and teaching. It actually falls in line with much of what Sarah Susanka wrote about in great detail. Take for example the fact that I work in a training environment. I have specific guidelines in place that are a list of the most effective ways to train individuals in large groups, small groups, in a face to face classroom or virtually. These guidelines are called “best practices.” They are tried and true rules for producing the best learning experience possible.

Sarah Susanka seems to have the same set of principles in place for designing a contemporary home but she also recognizes the constant struggle to keep in step with the needs of her clients. She stated, “This confirms my belief that we are all searching for a sense of home, but we haven't developed a language to help define the qualities that we seek, and so we keep building bigger in the vague hope that somehow more will be better.” I experience this tug of war on a consistent basis in my daily practice. Everyone involved in the training process wants to produce something viable and effective, but at times it is difficult to form a general consensus for many of our training projects.

This is where establishing best practices really prove to be vitally important. It’s great to have a plethora of ideas to mull over when addressing training needs, but it is also more efficient to have a universal set of guidelines to start off with. I typically work with a multitude of people from different departments when I design training programs. I routinely collaborate with trainers, client services personnel, and managers. They bring a very diverse perspective to the training environment. While I implement many of their ideas, I also reject the ones that do not fall in line with my department’s best practices.

Sarah Susanka seems to maintain this delicate balance as well. She stated, “Our profession has an enormous ability to affect what the future will look like. As an architect who questions the advisability of building bigger rather than better, I decided it was time to suggest an alternative.” I realize that Susanka understands the obsession with big houses, but I also appreciate the fact that she sees the “big picture” in her profession. This is why I think her mindset easily applies to other professions, including teaching.

Reference:

Susanka. S. (2000). Big ideas behind the not so big house. Retrieved from:

http://www.architectureweek.com/2000/0726/design_1-1.html