Human Error or Just Bad Design? An interview with Author Don Norman by Manuel Acevedo

Recently, Manuel Acevedo landed an interview with author Don Norman who wrote The Design Of Everyday Things.  The interview led to new knowledge, lots of wonderings, design theories, and clever advice.  Manuel is a Chicago Public School teacher that recently launched his own problematic task within his classroom setting.  He and his students ventured into a world of reverse engineering.  They explored a Dyson Vacuum Cleaner with a focus on force, mathematical implications, and the cyclonic technologies. This fascinated his students!

So Mr. Acevedo gravitated towards Norman’s book based on design thinking. His book zooms in on how bad design is sometimes mistaken for human error.  Norman expressed  that he was always wanted to build computers. When faced with the fact that he couldn’t make that happen, he opted to study the human mind, which in itself is a powerful computer.  This led to his own career as a psychologist.  He investigates this notion of…human error or bad design?

“By understanding errors, I realized most errors were caused by design-bad design.”

-Don Norman

Author Don Norman supported Mr. Acevedo in his STEM endeavor.  He encouraged students to think about problems within their own lives and accept that as a challenge to create/invent possible solutions.  He also suggested replacing the word “failure” with “learning experience.”

Manuel Acevedo is creating wonderful learning opportunities for his students in introducing and implementing reverse engineering.  Way to go Mr. Acevedo!