Space frontiers for new pedagogies: a tale of constraints and possibilities

Abstract

This article draws together two linked studies on formal teaching spaces within one university. The first consisted of a multi-method analysis, including observations of four teaching events, interviews with academics and estates staff, analysis of architectural plans, and a talking campus tour. The second study surveyed 166 students about their perceptions of existing teaching spaces and dreams of ideal spaces, eliciting qualitative comments. Researchers used a comparative analysis of the data to generate themes. Academics and students held differing conceptions of space. For students, a functional view prevailed with teacher-centred and dominant approaches (lectures, seminars, tutorials) constraining their imagination of fresh possibilities. Academics reflected on the limits and potential of spaces, surfacing more abstract concepts about familiarity, invisibility, space-time dimensions, territoriality and collegiality. The article explores the boundaries that space may place over imagined and alternative pedagogies, and concludes that familiar, computer-networked and conventional spaces may re-inscribe hierarchical, teacher-centred approaches.

Learning space preferences of higher education students

“…Moreover, research on required facilities and learning space preferences is often limited to the perspective of managers, lecturers, or staff. There is a need to involve the student's voice in studying the physical learning environment [20,22].…”

Why do they study there? Diary research into students’ learning space choices in higher education

“…Research into higher education shows an increasing interest in the physical learning environment (Matthews, Andrews & Adams, 2011;Jessop, Gubby & Smith, 2012;Salter, Thomson, Fox & Lam, 2013;Fisher & Newton, 2014). In the past two decades, developments such as the increasing use of information and communication technology (ICT) in higher education (Prensky, 2001;Collis & Van der Wende, 2002), new social constructivist learning approaches (Foster, 2008;Marais, 2011) and the phenomenon of learning communities (Smith & Bath, 2006), have led to new ideas about the university in the third millennium.…”

“…According to Jessop et al (2012), the students' voice is still missing too often in research into this topic. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the interaction between learning activities in higher education and the physical environment from a student perspective, focusing on: what, where and why.…”

Condiciones del contexto instruccional que afectan el diseño de la enseñanza del profesor universitario

“…Otros estudios muy recientes (Jessop, Gubby y Smith, 2011) analizaron si las características de las aulas de clase afectan la forma en que los profesores enseñan. Aunque los profesores pretendan diseñar clases participativas, abiertas al debate y a la interacción entre los estudiantes, estos auto-res constataron que las condiciones físicas del entorno promueven enfoques de enseñanza centrados en el profesor y en la transmisión de contenido.…”