New Approaches to Old Learning Spaces

We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us. - Winston Churchill Many universities today are struggling with the challenge of working with learning spaces that were originally designed for different pedagogies and... [ view full abstract ]

We shape our buildings; thereafter they shape us.
- Winston Churchill

Many universities today are struggling with the challenge of working with learning spaces that were originally designed for different pedagogies and different purposes. This paper is an update of the progress at DCU since presenting at Edtech 2015.

With increasing possibilities due to advances in technology and a greater emphasis on collaborative teaching, some classrooms require a significant overhaul to meet the needs of 21st century learners. Limited budgets, however, require creative approaches and new ways of thinking in order to achieve required goals. In 2015 faced with these issues, DCU initiated a project to redesign a selection of learning spaces. What initially started as a project managed by the Estates office evolved into a interdepartmental collaboration between Estates, Computing Services and Teaching and Learning.

The size of the task quickly became apparent and a multi phased project emerged. The first phase of development described in this paper involved developing showcase learning spaces that facilitated both collaborative and technology enhanced learning. Based on the seven principles of learning space design (Keppell et al 2011) the collaborative nature of the team ensured that all perspectives of design were taken into account. The paper describes our journey to date, our reasoning behind decisions taken, our lessons learnt and feedback from our end users - the lecturers and students.



Reference:
Keppell, M., Souter, K., & Riddle, M. (2011). Physical and virtual learning spaces in higher education: Concepts for the modern learning environment. Hershey, Pennsylvania: IGI Global.