Hamilton 1

Aidan Hamilton
Design and Society
Betsy Natter

Winter Reflective Essay

This winter term in design and society a variety of topics were covered; most of these
topics were centered around the theme of ableism and universal design. I was exposed to new
ideas and methods of thinking. Throughout this term I had at least one assignment that
corresponded to the four focuses of university studies, communication, critical thinking, ethics
and social responsibility, the diversity of human experience.
The most salient activity this term in regards to critical thinking would undoubtably be
the work that was done with lego robotics. The assignment was to design a robot that could
traverse a set obstacle course using lego robotics. In order to do this the physical robot itself had
to be built, which required critical thinking especially as the instruction booklets were in black
and white. This made it more difficult to figure out which piece was intended to go where, and
hence require more thought. This was easy compared to programming the robot so that it could
navigate the obstacle course. I had done some programming prior to this assignment, but it is
always difficult to work in a foreign programming environment as was required to program the
robot. Careful thought and pure logic was required in this assignment to design an algorithm that
worked. It was difficult because while I knew what I wanted the robot to do, translating this into
code that the robot could understand was new skill. While designing this robot and programming
it technically does not fall under the UNST's critical thinking rubric I argue that it is a prime

Hamilton 2
example of critical thinking. This is because of the necessity to think logically and creatively
when designing the robot's physical structure and code that enabled it to navigate the obstacle
course.
During this term I watched multiple TED talks given by those with some sort of
disability; some of them were watched in main class and some in mentor session. The
experiences shared by these people affected me greatly. While I have what I consider a minor
disability, especially compared to those who gave the TED talks, it is still a struggle to live with.
Managing it's symptoms are the most difficult part of my college experience. I probably spend
about a third of my day in a near stupor because going to college drains the little energy reserves
I have due to my disability. While most of the speakers lectured on topics related to the social
construction of disability, which has little effect on my well-being, the lectures were still useful
to me. It was comforting to hear that others that were dealt a harsher blow in life than I could still
chase their dreams, so why couldn't I? It's a message and story I was already quite familiar with
but being reminded of it during the toil of life is nice.
One area of this class that related to ethics and social responsibility was learning about
the topic of ableism. Ableism is when those with disabilities are discriminated against. As this is
a design course the topic was mostly taught in regards to ableism in the design of products and in
architecture. Learning about ableism completely changed the way I view the design of things,
especially public buildings. It also made me realize how I as person and this nation as a society
have to be more considerate of the needs of those with a disability; and remember for many the
social response to their disability is the hardest aspect of it. This was a topic I had never
considered before this course, and now every time I see a building without proper wheelchair

Hamilton 3
access I'm reminded of it.
What helped me improve in the university study's focus of communication was the same
thing that has helped in every university study course I have taken yet, volume of writing. Each
assignment over this term did focus on a different aspect of writing, different audiences, different
styles, different formats. But considering that none of these different aspects of writing were new
to me, it ends up being the amount of writing done that made the most difference in improving
my ability over the term. That being said, having to another presentation in front of the class this
term was helpful. It reminded me that I need to practice my public speaking abilities;
Specifically it reminded me that I need to make greater effort when preparing my speech so that I
can cut out unnecessary pauses and "umms".
In conclusion, I believe that during the winter term I improved in each of the 4 focuses of
university studies. I hope that during the spring term of this course I can do the same.