Facilitated by Dr. Sam Elkington (Principal Lecturer, Learning and Teaching – Academic Registry, Teesside University)
A significant amount of estates development is currently underway in UK colleges and universities at a time of major change for educational technology and modes of learning and teaching. This is evidenced by Teesside University’s own commitment to an extended programme of estates, infrastructure and pedagogic innovation. Changing educational requirements of increasingly diverse student populations have prompted more tailored, student-centred, approaches to designing environments for learning on and off campus.
Increasingly approaches to learning are required to be flexible and networked, bringing together formal and informal activities in a seamless environment that recognises that learning can take place any time, in either physical and/or virtual spaces. Despite the relationship between spaces and learning receiving growing recognition as a fundamental aspect of the debate on contemporary approaches to learning and teaching in higher education; ushering in a broader emphasis on learning space design as ‘sites for learning’ that is necessitating a more holistic vision for campuses and programmes. Our understanding of the complex interplay between spaces and learning remains largely underdeveloped, lacking a clear evidence-base.
Learning space design, when approached from a holistic perspective, takes into account the spectrum of learning activities and the variety of environments necessary for students to realise a richer educational experience. Here, the development of learning spaces supports innovative (formal and informal) pedagogical approaches and environments through the affordances of digital technology. To this end, this interactive seminar looks to bring together and showcase cutting edge examples of effective and innovative efforts at learning space design, framed by the recent Advance HE ‘Future Learning Spaces’ publication (1).
More specifically, it seeks to explore and better understand the relationship and interplay between three core features of contemporary learning space design – namely, ‘Space, Technology and Pedagogy’ – with a view to providing a more comprehensive consideration of the variety and mix of different forms of practices utilised and how they are interrelated and hang together to promote student learning.
The seminar itself will not only be of interest and relevance to the work of senior leaders and academic teaching staff, but also to those with a responsibility for shaping and supporting the wider university learning environment – i.e. estates and library services, as well as Student Union.
Seminar Details and Booking Arrangements:
Wednesday April 10th – The Curve – Room T1.01
14:00 – 14:30 – Refreshments
14:30 – 16:30 – Seminar
To book your place on the seminar, please use the following link selecting Learning and Teaching Programme from the drop-down menu:
https://staffdevelopment.tees.ac.uk/StaffDevelopment/Default.aspx
References:
- Elkington, S. and Bligh, B. (2017) Future Learning Spaces: Space, Technology and Pedagogy. Advance HE Publication (January, 2017).