Abstract:

The paper illustrates a didactic experimentation carried out with university students of the Materials and Technologies Laboratory for Fashion Design, in which the principle of "Learning by doing" was the relevant concept.

The methodological approach defined four phases corresponding to "teaching practices for active learning":
1. THINK: Learning as knowledge transmission
2. PAIR: Learning as knowledge construction
3. SHARE: Learning as sharing of operational experiences.

The centrality of the first phase was the study of the fashion industry, and more generally of the current textile system, which generates significant impacts on the environment. This study has stimulated a specialized interest and contextualization of the motivations of the educational action. The total use of primary raw materials in the supply chain for clothing, footwear and textile consumption represents the fourth highest category of environmental pressure with respect to the indicators "use of resources" and "use of water". The focus has been mainly on one of the biggest unresolved problems: textile dyeing [1], where processes have a strong impact. Circular Ecodesign [2] has been the proposed solution to promote greater sustainability in the fashion design industry [3] and minimize environmental impact [4]. These materials, in addition to being certified "Cradle to Cradle" [5], must meet criteria of health, well-being, recyclability, renewable energy and energy saving, decarbonization and social equity.

Acquiring the theoretical and process knowledge needed to create sustainable products for the fashion industry by analyzing the product life cycle and its impacts at each stage, especially in textile dyeing, was central to the knowledge transfer.

The second phase involved experimenting with the application of natural, artificial and synthetic garments by making natural dyes from roots, leaves (mint), flowers (lavender, saffron) and fruits (blueberries, pomegranate, etc.).

The study of the process to obtain the desired range of colors required the use of different elements to allow the fabric to "absorb" the color, then allowing it to be used on various types of fabrics to evaluate and compare the results in terms of color and texture.

The third phase brought the students together in groups and asked them to conduct experimentation on the materials, scientifically recording the process, documenting the steps, noting the variables, and evaluating the final results.

The experiment allowed the students to become aware of the potential of using sustainable dyeing in the fashion industry, realizing the entire process themselves, starting from the search for the basic material, to the procedure for creating the natural color, and ending with the dyeing and production of the garment, considering its reintegration into the biological and technological system at the end of its life.

References:
[1] R. Kant, doi.org/10.4236/ns.2012.41004.
[2] D.G.K. Dissanayake, D. Weerasinghe, doi.org/10.1007/s43615-021-00090-5.
[3] M. Murzyn-Kupisz, D. Hołuj, doi.org/10.3390/educsci11090531
[4] A. Kozlowski, M. Bardecki, C. Searcy, doi:10.3390/su11133581.
[5] S. L. C. Han, P. Y. L. Chan, P. Venkatraman, P. Apeagyei, T. Cassidy, D. J. doi: 10.1080/17569370.2016.1227146

Keywords:

Learning by doing, Fashion design, Innovation, Circular Ecodesign, Sustainable colouring.