Design Thinking in Distance Education of Engineering: a Systematic Literature Review
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.18264/eadf.v16i1.2773Keywords:
Engineering education, Distance education, Design thinkingAbstract
Contemporary engineering education demands the integration of technical and socio-emotional competences, challenging Distance Education models. Design Thinking (DT) emerges as an active methodology capable of mitigating practical and empathetic distancing in the virtual environment. This article presents a systematic literature review aiming to map the application of DT in engineering education mediated by digital technologies. The search was conducted in the Scopus, ScienceDirect and SciELO Brazil databases, resulting in 12 primary studies after applying eligibility criteria. The analysis categorized the data into pedagogical models, technological tools, barriers, and opportunities. The results indicate that the transposition of DT to the online environment depends on collaborative digital ecosystems and instructional adaptation to maintain engagement. Barriers such as the difficulty in building remote empathy and "social loafing" were identified, countered by emerging opportunities such as the democratization of participation via textual tools and the digital traceability of ideation processes. It is concluded that the integration of DT and Distance Education is viable and promising, provided there is a rigorous alignment between the pedagogical task and the supporting technology.
Keywords: Engineering education. Design thinking. Distance education.
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