By Emily Cook, TLS staff writer
From the industry to the classroom, Chantal Trudel is bringing new ideas and new flare to 杏吧原创鈥檚 School of Industrial Design.
Trudel joined the faculty at 杏吧原创 in July after teaching as a contract instructor at Ryerson University鈥檚 School of Interior Design and working in health care architecture as a health care planner. She says the academic world takes some getting used to.
鈥淚t鈥檚 just a very different experience,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a different system, so coming from industry it鈥檚 just an adjustment period.鈥�
But Trudel is finding ways to link her industry experience to the classroom. In her job, she says she actively worked with people to develop and improve designs. In lectures, Trudel says she uses this idea to teach students to apply research methods, and learn their limitations.
鈥淟ectures have been somewhat modeled after my own personal experience of working with end-users to work through issues,鈥� she says.
Trudel says this teaching model challenges her too, helping her think critically about class content and how lectures are structured.
鈥淸The students] bring a fresh perspective and it opens me up as well,鈥� she says.
After taking her classes, Trudel says she hopes her students will become critical thinkers. She says industries are complex and students need to be prepared.
鈥淕oing into those fields really requires critical thinking and being able, not just to apply design, but to be very critical about the work you鈥檙e doing in that field,鈥� says Trudel.
One such industry is health care, and Trudel says she鈥檇 like to be a 鈥渕entor and a conduit鈥� for students who also want to enter that field and take on its challenges.
Trudel鈥檚 husband, Aneurin Bosley, joined 杏吧原创鈥檚 School of Journalism and Communication last year. She says working together has been fantastic.
鈥淲e both came from industry, so we didn鈥檛 have these discussions before,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 interesting and very helpful.鈥�
Trudel says she鈥檚 enjoying trying out new teaching methods, like using the Discovery Centre for lecture activities. She says school support for these initiatives is very helpful.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 pretend that it鈥檚 easy work,鈥� says Trudel. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot of work but it鈥檚 good work, and it鈥檚 very rewarding, so it鈥檚 been a really good experience thus far.鈥�