Design is part of the Technology key learning area in Victorian Education. Students use the Technology Process (Investigating – Designing – Producing – Evaluating) to solve technological problems. This process is outlined in the Technology CSF. When students are involved in Dreams and Schemes they can use this process to design their innovation. Students need to be able to investigate possible ideas and inventions thoroughly, design their solution, produce a model or a method of communicating their invention and evaluate their solution to ensure it fulfils its purpose.

Design Briefs
When designers and inventers are asked to come up with an innovation or design, they follow a process that helps them to clarify the design task and organise their ideas. They use a Design Brief

A design brief is a clear description of the design task. It can be a simple statement of the design problem or a complex outline that includes a statement of the problem, context and specifications.

Design specifications include things such as function, aesthetics, ergonomics, materials, processes, construction techniques, size, safety, timeline, finish, durability, and cost (environmental, social and material). Students will need to consider the specifications when designing their solution.

Design briefs can engage students in creative problem solving activities whilst also providing them with structure. A design brief should be written in a way that suits student’s interests and ability and should deal with needs and problems they encounter in their own lives or the lives of the people around them. The problems set may reinforce class themes or issues and the content teachers wish to cover.

When teachers develop the design brief they can focus students learning. For example they may specify:

• particular investigations
• materials to be used
• tools and skills
• how designs are presented and recorded.

In Dreams and Schemes students will identify the idea that they would like to work on and will develop their own design brief (with guidance from teachers). Students will need practice and support in looking for, finding, and defining problems on their own. There are many formats that may be used for design briefs. All of them should include a clear statement of the design task, and a description of specifications.

One of the trickiest parts in writing design briefs, and in using them with students, is determining just the right amount of structure. If too much structure is given, creativity can be stifled and students' options limited. Design briefs should allow students to explore a range of ideas. A range of materials should be available so that a range of solutions can be devised. Any examples shown to students should not provide them with stereotypical solutions to the problem.

Although design briefs are assigned as individual work for students, they are suitable for small-group work. Groups of two or three students can encourage each other to achieve higher levels of creativity.

Designers and inventers often encounter failures on the road to success. The limitations of the classroom do not always provide students with the opportunity to turn failure into success. It is therefore critical that teachers appreciate the value of a trial-and-error approach. So while students should aim for success and should be rewarded for success, students should also be rewarded for creativity, resourcefulness, and for pursuing a solution. The solution should be evaluated against the specifications outlined in the design brief.