R+D Collaborations

Teachers roles and responsibilities:

• Teacher preparation in advance: allocate dedicated time before the project starts to upskill in relevant tools/resources/processes (e.g., Canva, laser cutting, podcast production, etc).

  • The R+D Website has detailed descriptions of many R+D tools/resources/processes and linked tutorials to explore.

  • Schedule early practice sessions: book time with an R+D team member well before the student project begins to practice using tools/resources/processes and troubleshooting. 

  • Bring specific questions: come to R+D sessions prepared with clear questions or challenges from your practice.

• Review your project scope: with limited R+D staffing, an adjustment to the project may be needed. This could include scaling back on certain aspects and/or revisiting the amount of time allocated to complete the collaboration.

• You are a Designer too! During a collaboration:

  • Review the R+D Guiding Principles with students in advance and reinforce during a collaboration. 

  • Lean into your R+D educator role when in the space: guide students through their design work, help source materials, ask questions, keep spaces organized and clean, and ensure tools are used safely and appropriately.

Students roles and responsibilities:

• Follow the R+D Guiding Principles throughout a collaboration.

• Be patient when trying to access materials, spaces, and 1:1 support from R+D team members

  • Use online resources to learn/up-skill: review R+D website guides, tutorials, and linked materials before requesting in-person help.

  • Be prepared for longer wait times – build extra time into project timelines for fabrication or specialized support.

• What have you tried?:

  • We all get stuck sometimes. Be prepared to share what you've tried (strategies, tools, resources, and/or approaches) with an R+D staff so we can help you figure out your next steps. 

  • Follow “Ask Three Before Me”: help us all work more efficiently by seeking answers from peers, teachers, online resources, or class materials before approaching R+D staff. 

• Use time outside of class to up-skill on tools/resources/processes and complete work:

  • Leverage lunch, office hours, or other free blocks to work with available R+D team members.

  • Schedule meetings in advance when R+D team members have availability.

R+D Team Members roles and responsibilities:

• • Safety is the top priority:

    • The Workshop will be locked unless an R+D team member and/or trained teacher is actively using it for a collaboration. 

    • A reminder that students are not permitted to use power tools without an adult present (R+D member or trained teacher).

  • R+D presence:

    • We aim to have at least one R+D team member on the D-level at all times.

    • Instead of one consistent R+D team member per collaboration (how we operated historically), support may vary daily based on schedules and availability, with increased internal coordination to maintain consistency.

  • Consistently reinforce the R+D Guiding Principles throughout a collaboration.

R+D Guiding Principle #1: The Research and Design process is messy: 

• Expect to develop your idea through multiple iterative rounds of prototyping + feedback

• Anticipate challenges and persevere through uncertainty; don’t expect perfection

While every idea/product is unique, there’s a common ideation, prototyping, and feedback design process the R+D team encourages all students to embrace:

• Step 1: Student comes up with an idea they want to create (ex: podcast episode, infographic, laser cut or 3D printed design, etc.) and shares their idea with a R+D team member and/or teacher to discuss and develop the concept, including the proposed material.

• Step 2: Student creates a rough first draft or prototype of their idea (we call this Version 1 or V1). Depending on what the idea is, this could take many forms: 

  • Podcast: outline of episode or storyboard

  • Infographic: sketch of general layout 

  • Laser cut: sketch and model (using Illustrator (part of the Adobe Creative Suite)

  • 3D print: sketch and model (using OnShape or Tinkercad)

• Step 3: Student shares their V1 prototype with a R+D member and/or teacher to discuss, iterate on, and finalize the idea

• Step 4: Student works on V2 of their idea (a more polished prototype)

  • Podcast: record into Canva or Audacity

  • Infographic: design in Canva or Illustrator (print in black and white)

  • Laser cut: fabricate design using recycled cardboard

  • 3D print: fabricate using standard 3D filament

• Step 5: Student shares digital file with R+D member (for laser cuts or 3D prints) and/or asks for help when needed

  • Laser cutter: laser@bcdschool.org or lazer@bcdschool.org

  • 3D printer: 3dpring@bcdschool.org 

• Step 6: Review V2 for any mistakes and create an even more polished V3 (time permitting)

  • Podcast: finalize music, transitions, publish, etc

  • Infographic: print in color and/or using large format printer

  • Laser cut: fabricate using fancier cardboard, wood, acrylic, etc.

  • 3D print: fabricate using fancier filaments

Important Notes to Consider:

• We really emphasize the originality of a design. While there are many digital files easily available for students to download from others, we want all designs to be at least 60% original work.

• All V1 and V2 prototypes should be done using recycled or simple materials when possible. Save fancy materials for V3 iterations (projects that you intend to keep and treasure).

Triple E Framework by Dr Liz Kolb (Engage, Enhance, Extend)
Inspirational philosophy for R+D collaborations based on book Learning First, Technology Second (available in the faculty room)

R+D Inventory List (2025-26)
Current tools/resources available in the RD Center

R-Level:

• Inquiry-based learning and research at Beaver

• Research Learning Targets (Copy of GHSS 2022-2023)

D-Level:

• R+D Guiding Principles, MS Version (2025-26)

• R+D Guiding Principles, US Version (2025-26)

• D-Level Layout (2025-26)