This dissertation, "Design Education in the Digital Era: How Academic Low Achievers Respond to Digital Imagery" by Bing-fai, Lee, 李炳輝, was obtained from The University of Hong Kong (Pokfulam, Hong Kong) and is being sold pursuant to Creative Commons: Attribution 3.0 Hong Kong License. The content of this dissertation has not been altered in any way. We have altered the formatting in order to facilitate the ease of printing and reading of the dissertation. All rights not granted by the above license are retained by the author. Abstract: Abstract We are living at the cutting edge of the twenty-first century. New circumstances produced by the digital era enable us to be easily engaged to a cultural and technological revolution which affects the way we see, we think and we work. Under the inference of postmodernism, knowledge structure is changed. Text-based culture seems to be retired by the advancement of technology and visual form of presentation dominates mass media. Our students are nurtured by this kind of high-tech visual culture. Their sense of perception, artistic and creative abilities are different from those of the olden days. Design education must necessarily be kept in touch with this everchanging culture so as to prepare our students for the future. This study intends to investigate how academic low achievers respond to digital imagery culture and how design education should be planned to suit this digital era. This research study serves to re-position and highlight the role of design education for these low achievers through which better curriculum planning may be initiated. A small-scale case study was carried out with a target group of forty-four Band Three students. Their preferences and views towards digital imagery were measured and analysed. In addition, observation of students' visual dairies, project works and interviews with students were also reviewed so as to provide valuable insights into their preferences. The results show that the target students were deeply influenced by digital imagery culture and created artworks joyfully with digital imaging devices. They could learn, communicate and solve problems with visual means more effectively than with traditional media. Their learning behaviours were a total reflection of the postmodern culture. Page III DOI: 10.5353/th_b3042680 Subjects: Design - Study and teaching (Secondary) - China - Hong KongDesign - Computer-assisted instructionUnderachievers - China - Hong Kong - Attitudes