The design studio is central to architectural education, enabling collaborative learning guided by experts across areas such as space planning, interior design, ergonomics, and urban design. This study examined how the design thinking process manifested within the conventional design studio (CDS) and a real-life design studio (RLDS), with a focus on the empathizing phase and the role of ICT tools. A qualitative methodology based on constructivist grounded theory was used, supported by naturalistic observations and action research. This study explored design practices through a literature review, empirical studies on student collaboration in CDS, the influence of ICT tools on students' design thinking processes, and the manifestation of students' DT with the transition made to RLDS. 

Findings revealed that students have commenced their design thinking process by generating ideas, bypassing the empathizing and defining stages due to access to existing digital repositories through the ICT tools available. In contrast to that, in RLDS, with the interactions of the real user, students have empathized not only at the beginning of the DT process but also throughout all the major phases of the DT process. This iterative appearance of the empathizing phase has fostered deeper engagement, collaboration, and user-centered design.

The study concludes that RLDS fosters empathy through collaboration with real users, emphasizing the importance of integrating empathy-driven design practices into the design pedagogy for students to prepare themselves for complex real-world challenges.