This paper discusses the 1997 National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) two-year study("Design as a Catalyst for Learning") of how design is being used in pre-K-12 schools. The NEA acknowledged the thirty-year contributions of professional designers who bring their content and expertise to the school classroom; however, the focus of the report was on work by classroom teachers who had little or no prior design experience. Their practices ranged from using design as content (for example, an architecture walk in a history class on colonial America), to professional design projects (for example, the design of a ketchup dispenser for use by students with disabilities), to a pedagogy for teaching other subjects (for example, using the design of a city park to explore community decision making). In 169 case studies, the NEA presented compelling evidence that teachers at all grade levels in all subject areas find students benefit from this approach to teaching and learning, because it: (1) enhances students' flexible thinking skills; (2) promotes self-directed learning and assessment; (3)develops students' interpersonal and communication skills; (4) cultivates responsible citizens; (5) applies learning to students' everyday lives; and (6) increases student comfort with uncertainty. Although the NEA study was overwhelmingly positive about the outcomes of design as a strategy for teaching and learning, there were findings that indicated much work needed to be done before broader adoption could proceed. (Contains 6 endnotes.)