This chapter focuses on the theory of knowledge-based urban design as a tool for intellectual literacy in architecture schools. It explores the extent of the current knowledge effects in the educational process by knowing the experience gained by the students during the current learning plans, as opposed to what the urban designer should know. The dilemma is what could happen if the experts in the relevant disciplines of urban design do not accept such a paradigm shift or even recognize that there is intellectual illiteracy in a particular discipline and closely relevant fields by discussing some features of intellectual illiteracy in the academe of some developing countries. These features could provide a ground for accepting this theory. Furthermore, the chapter helps to present what can reduce the alleged intellectual illiteracy. In conclusion, this chapter provides an experimental attempt to explore the relationship between illiteracy of thought and mental ability among professionals in the field of urban design to raise their intellectual and cognitive competence.
TopThe Role Of Knowledge In Teaching And Learning
Generally speaking, all people by nature are interested in knowledge. And, it is widely recognized that knowledge has become the key source of wealth in advanced economies. In this matter, Brontis (1998, p. 63) cited from Aristotle who was inspired from Plato’s common definition for knowledge. They all agreed that it is the true justification or pretext powered belief ideological belief (Plato, 1935, p. 140). Andrew Leach notes, quoting Michel Foucault that knowledge does not exist for something basic or specific meaning behind things, and therefore everything can be judged according to the framework of knowledge that always change (Leach, 2006, p. 329). According to the theoretical platform of how people learn in the traditional methods of education, it is important to say that learning is a process of remembering what person gets by his five senses, and knowledge consists of what is interpreting through various skills and is affected by what they believe (D. Bransford, L. Brown, & R. Cocking, 2000, p. 10). This could lead to the search for the concise of knowledge for being a holistic icon gets in touch with all that student gains in the academic learning and could be transferred to others and be seen in their intended learning outcomes (various assignments and study projects). This could give them the ability which enables them to present their work in a distinctive way reflecting their theoretical base. Whenever we fought in tracking the dialectic of knowledge to understand, it was possible to be developed to be a gateway to learn. Thus, each individual in the field of competence of the Architecture and urban studies, in particular, accurately represents the intellectual capital for the field of his/her professional practice. Following to this, the presence of each person will play an important role in future of the affiliated institution which is affected by/on the whole society (Starovic & Marr, 2003, p. 26). This process takes into consideration what happen earlier through learning procedures and afterward steps of the early career. Albert Einstein mentioned that the main driving factors in person’s work are not in the knowledge gained from the school rather from the experience of life and this can be seen in his/her appropriateness of the outcomes which reflect with benefits on local/ global communities (Einstein, 1954, p. 62). On another word, the knowledge in the field of Architecture is directly linked to the quality and value of the outcomes products constructed features. This indented quality is not only the quality of the building but also the one which targeting a certain level of standards of fluffing the users’ requirement (Volker & Prins, 2006, pp. 900, 902). Therefore, one of the most urgent questions in this chapter is the students’ qualification that should be covered to make the student qualified at the level of Bachelor and how they gained knowledge to be used in the early career in a useful way gets its befits to their community. Also, this may need a better understanding of the meaning of the word ‘intellectual illiteracy.’ The development of the intellectual skills are usually related to the social interaction between the tacit and explicit knowledge through a framework consist of four main factors (SECI) (Nonaka & Takeuchi, 1995, pp. 60-62). The first is creating knowledge which begins by socialization (S). The second is continuous with externalization (E). The third and fourth are a combination (C) and intellectualization (I). Then, the process returns back to socialization but at new level due to the metaphor of spiral of knowledge (Figure 1).
Figure 1. Tacit an implicit knowledge