Knowledge Communication in Architectural Research (7.5 credits)

Course coordinators: Daniel Koch & Johan Örn; Examiner: Thordis Arrhenius

KTH School of Architecture

Overview

The course Communications / Knowledge communication in architecture research addresses knowledge communication both broadly and in-depth, including different forms of communication and communication with different audiences. This includes different media and formats – e.g., written communication, visual material, exhibitions – and how these work in relation to different contexts. It will address these fields and queries through a combination of broader discussions, specific, concrete, examples, with the doctoral students trying out a series of different formats during the course, amongst which they develop one more in-depth as their final assignment.

The course combines lectures and presentations with peer discussions and exercises, arranged into (1) a course introduction, (2) three major course meetings with lectures, workshops, and seminars, (3) a small set of in-between seminars where exercises are presented and discussed, and (4) a final meeting where the final course assignments are discussed. The smaller seminars will also be an integrated part of larger meetings (i.e., a small exercise will be part of each larger meeting). In practice, this combines introducing different important aspects of communication, reading and discussing both examples of and theory about communication and publication, and trying out a series of formats to experiment, learn, and develop skills and precision regarding forms of communication. The exercises will predominantly be structured as communicating one’s own doctoral research in diverse formats with diverse target audiences in mind.

Topically, the course will include the introduction of, and critical discussions on, academic publications such as publishing in scientific journals, peer-review systems, and bibliometrics, as well as written communication for other kinds of publications and for different audiences such as e.g., magazine articles, blogs, or debate articles. The course will also address communication through visual materials such as images, maps, diagrams, and photos, both as standalone material and in relation to written communication. Finally, the course will address other communication formats including e.g., exhibitions, installations, events, and workshops, focusing on how they can be used for the presentation and dissemination of research/knowledge to diverse audiences in various settings. Within these broader fields, we note that the course will be centered on research communication, not only looking at formats themselves but to help course participants map out and navigate between different media, and to prepare for strategic thinking as concerns publication and communication. For all of these formats, publication and communication ethics will be key questions, as will how the different kinds of communication can fit into a larger idea of academic knowledge dissemination and for academic merits.

There will be a continuous discussion throughout concerning dissertations, and all assignments will be related to each doctoral student’s own research. For the final meeting, the students will be expected to, within certain criteria, develop one of the exercises from the course into a final submission, accompanied by a critical and theoretical reflection.

Course structure

As noted above, the course consists of a course introduction, a course conclusion, and larger and smaller course meetings. The larger meetings including the course conclusion will be on-site, with a recommendation for on-site participation on all course moments when possible

• For the course start, the preparation consists of preparing a brief introduction of yourself and your research. The format will be communicated to registered students as the course approaches.
• While the balance between activities will vary, each larger meeting will take place over two days and contain lectures/presentations, literature seminars, peer discussions, and assignments done on-site. The preparation for each of the larger meetings will be reading of course literature for the seminars.
• Each seminar will primarily consist of peer discussion of assignments and last about 2-3 hours. The preparation for the seminars should fit within about a day’s work, and will be to produce a draft version of how (parts of) your research can be communicated within a given format and to prepare comments on the same from another participant.
• The course conclusion will consist of peer discussion on one another’s final assignments. The preparation consists of preparing a final version of one of the previous assignments, writing a critically reflective companion piece about it, and preparing commentary and questions on the same from another student.
• In all activities, the course leaders and/or guests will participate to provide additional feedback and contribute to the discussions.

Thematically, the course is structured to revolve around the themes

• writing and academic publishing (including e.g., bibliometry, publishing strategies, writing formats, author voices, types of text),
• visual material (including e.g., images, maps, diagrams, and video),
• and exhibitions and participatory forms (e.g., exhibitions, workshops, events).

Each larger meeting will have an emphasis on one of them while themes and meetings are not strictly and completely matched, and questions of e.g. intended audiences, blended formats, and similarities and differences will run throughout. Similarly, while the assignments will touch on all themes, not every specific discussed format will be given equal focus, and for each assignment, it will be possible to choose focus and format amongst a given selection.

Schedule:

• February 6^th: Course introduction
  • (preparatory reading, Large meeting 1)
• Thursday, March 14 & Friday, March 15: Large meeting 1
  • (preparation assignment, Seminar 1)
• Tuesday, March 26: Seminar 1
  • (preparatory reading, Large meeting 2)
• Wednesday, April 17 & Thursday, April 18 (prel.): Large meeting 2
  • (preparation assignment, Seminar 2)
• Tuesday, April 30: Seminar 2
  • (preparatory reading, Large meeting 3)
• Wednesday, May 15 & Thursday, May 16 (prel.): Large Meeting 3
  • (final assignment)
• Friday, June 28: Hand-in, final assignment,
  • (preparation, peer-review of assignment)

Final meeting: Preliminarily August 21 or 22.

Formalities

The course is given as the doctoral course Communications within ResArc (www.resarc.se), and formally at KTH as F1A5034 Knowledge Communication in Architectural Research, 7.5 credits. Formally, in order to follow the course a student must have completed a Master’s degree in architecture or adjoining fields, or have an equivalent level of education. The course is thus open for doctoral students in architecture and adjacent or otherwise relevant subjects, with priority given to students according to subject relevance should the course become full. The course is open to up to 15 students in total. Priority is given to students enrolled at KTH or as doctoral students in architecture at other universities. If you are unsure if you can apply, please contact the course coordinators. For a formal description of the KTH course, please see: https://www.kth.se/student/kurser/kurs/F1A5034
 

Registrations and inquiries

For questions regarding course contents, structure, relevance for your studies, or if you can participate, please contact Daniel Koch (daniel.koch@arch.kth.se) or Johan Örn (orn@kth.se). For preliminary application and/or expression of interest, please contact Daniel Koch, and include information about your subject/field of research, university, and doctoral programme no later than January 20.
 

Requirements for completion

To complete the course, the student needs to have completed all assignments and prepared for and participated in all seminars and workshops (in both larger meetings and smaller seminars). At least 80% should be covered during the course, while 20% can when needed be solved through complementary work.