INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON ENGINEERING AND PRODUCT DESIGN EDUCATION 8 & 9 SEPTEMBER 2016, AALBORG UNIVERSITY, DENMARK CO-TALK? THE ROLE OF COLLABORATION PARTNERS IN DESIGN EDUCATION Tatjana LEBLANC 1 and Mario GAGNON 2 1 School of Design, University of Montreal, Canada 2 Alto Design, Montreal Canada ABSTRACT Academic institutions offer a unique environment for academics and experts from different fields to come together and explore creative ways to improve education and advance disciplinary practices. Emphasizing the collaborative aspect of such joined ventures has become exceedingly popular. The abundance of writings on this subject matter reveals its rapid proliferation. Many disciplines, and design is no exception, have embraced this current since, which gave rise to interdisciplinary approaches and invited industrial partners into classrooms. However, some critics question the productive output in light of the increasing collaborative practices, while others have doubts about their very nature. This paper will therefore attempt to clarify the concept of collaboration and elaborate on the phenomenon and its effects on design education. Furthermore, Evan Rosen’s work on The culture of collaboration will allow us to assess the collaborative nature of a teaching venture that the School of Design at the University of Montreal and Alto Design have put in place and tested over the past years. More specifically, the paper will describe the framework and the role of partners, explain the scope and benefits of the teaching activities, talk about students’ results and challenges, and compare all these aspects to Rosen’s elements of collaboration by which he characterizes true collaboration. Keywords: Design education, collaboration, teaching methods. 1 INTRODUCTION Design scholars and educators play an important role in the development of disciplinary knowledge and thus further education and professional practice. Obviously, the academic environment is a unique ecosystem where academics, students and professionals participate in exploring and creating new approaches, methods or tools. The results often contribute to the advancement of education and design practice. Academic institutions play a significant role in disseminating knowledge and shaping the next generation of professionals and researchers. Yet, as some point out, the ambitions of academic institutions are not always aligned with the expectations of the professional sector [1] that is looking for graduates with a solid skill set, which are fully operational from the onset of their career. In addition, the increasingly competitive academic landscape tends to put an additional pressure on design schools, which feel obliged to differentiate themselves from their competition. Consequently, many try to reinvent themselves, by extending their programs, by creating multidisciplinary learning environments, or by offering hybrid degrees. Others enrich their curricula by collaborating with the industry or by forming partnerships with other institutions. The abundance of writings on this subject reflects to what design schools have embraced this current. Nevertheless, by adding more and more content to their programs without increasing its duration, schools can easily endanger the quality of the basic design education. They risk weakening the fundamental teachings and students might graduate with a lesser proficiency level than expected. In fact, some companies complain that students lack confidence and basic skills. We observe how many try to delay their entry into the professional world by either pursuing graduate degrees or seeking out complementary majors. Obviously, this can be beneficial to the student and the academic institutions, however it does not necessarily address the needs of the professional market. Inviting professionals into the classroom is one way of addressing the shortcomings. However, without an adequate framework, these efforts can be counter-productive. Many of our past collaborative efforts simulated - at most - a client-designer relationship without really addressing the