WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT?
Visual Communication Design is the study of
visual language and the role it plays in
communicating ideas, solving problems and
influencing behaviours. Students learn how to
manipulate type and imagery when designing
for specific contexts, purposes and
audiences. Students choose and combine
manual (hand drawn) and digital methods
(such as iPad), media and materials with
design elements and principles. In doing so,
students learn how aesthetic considerations
contribute to the effective communication and
resolution of design ideas, and how an
understanding of visual language, its role and
potential is the foundation of effective design
practice.
Students explore how designers visually
communicate concepts when designing
messages, objects, environments and
interactive experiences. Students find and
address design problems, making
improvements to services, systems, spaces
and places experienced by stakeholders, both
in person and online. Students participate in
critiques, both delivering and receiving
constructive feedback and expanding their
design terminology.
Students consider how best to accommodate
the varied needs of people and our planet,
both now and in the future, using human-
centred design principles, together with
ethical, legal, sustainable and culturally
appropriate design practices. Students learn
about the relationships between design, place
and time, acknowledging Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander design knowledges,
histories, traditions and practices.
WHAT WILL I LEARN?
VCE - Visual Communication Design
P A G E 3 2 | P A K E N H A M S E C O N D A R Y C O L L E G E S E N I O R S C H O O L 2 0 2 6 H A N D B O O K
UNIT 2: DESIGN CONTEXTS AND
CONNECTIONS
Area of Study 1 Design, place and
time
How does design reflect and respond
to the time and place in which it is
made?
Area of Study 2 Cultural ownership
and design
How do designers evolve culturally
appropriate design practices?
Area of Study 3 Designing interactive
experiences
What is the role of visual
communication in shaping positive
and inclusive interactive
experiences?
UNIT 1: FINDING, REFRAMING AND
RESOLVING DESIGN PROBLEMS
Area of Study 1 Reframing design
problems
How do designers find and reframe
human-centred design problems?
Area of Study 2 Solving
communication design problems
How can visual language
communicate to audiences and
shape behaviours
Area of Study 3 Design’s influence
and influences on design
How influences design, and what
does design influence?