Faculty of Design
Industrial Design
Senthurri Thiruchenthooran
operationColossus{
Industrial Design
2026
How do neurodivergent students navigate existing school systems designed for the needs of neurotypical students? Neurodivergent students often face learning barriers in their education resulting in poor well being, higher rates of stress and attrition. Through interviews and co-design sessions, I found that students often engage with their surroundings through art but their learning environments never leveraged their interests for their learning. More specifically, these sessions revealed that most of the codesigners educational needs were actively being neglected by the adults and the systems around them.
“Learning is more than abstract concepts and memorization, especially with science and technology. Operation Colossus is the pilot to a series combining micro-electronics kits and comic books intentionally assembled to encourage youth to engage with art and creative technologies with human centred design principles. It removes the barrier to learning electronics through visual representation and focuses on understanding the physical elements. This project combines both academic research and years of experiences from public school students and neurodivergent students through interviews and codesign. Operation Colossus addresses challenges students face globally including financial distress and tech literacy while fueling their passion for creation.”
Celebrate the work of OCAD U’s class of 2025/2026!