Minding the mind in design tutoring and guiding

This research paper tries to shed light on the cognitive aspect of tutors' guiding in the design studio. To this end, it starts by reviewing the characteristics of design knowledge, as well as how knowledge is transferred and constructed during the process of studio guiding. We use the term 'guiding' instead of 'teaching' to highlight the trait that distinguishes studio tutoring, which appreciates multiple representations for developing design capacity, from conventional classroom lecturing. Subsequently the focus will shift to describing the behavior involved in design guiding and its implications on the cognitive mechanism operating in the tutor's mind. The aim is not to develop a prescriptive method for design tutors, but to provide a possible frame of mind for pedagogical improvement in design guiding.