University Learning Spaces Activities Image by velcr0 via Flickr, Creative Commons CC-BY 1 DRAFT

Activities The activities have been kept separate from the Learning Spaces presentation, not only because there is more than one possible place for each activity but also because you might wish to use some of them without any reference to the slides. 2 DRAFT

Activities to introduce the topic and encourage discussion 1.Images 1 2.Images 2 3.Favourite learning space 4.Photostories DRAFT 3

Images 1 Look at the photographs of teaching spaces Choose 3 or 4 and, for each of these, jot down notes on the following: What conception of teaching and learning do you think informed the design of this space? (What kind(s) of learning is this space intended to support?) Where (if at all) does this sort of learning fit into your discipline? Give an example. How flexible is this space? How many people could it accommodate? Do you and/or your students work in this kind of space? What would you and the students be doing in a space like this? Where do you go in the space? Are there distinct areas for teacher and/or students? 4 DRAFT

Photo by Daniel Nugent 5 DRAFT

Photo by YoTuT 6 DRAFT

Photo by ecastro 7 DRAFT

Photo by Azwaldo 8 DRAFT

Photo by Evan Bench 9 DRAFT

Edinburgh library by learningspaceTK 10 DRAFT

University of Michigan MSIS 11 DRAFT

University of Exeter 12 DRAFT

Photo by armandas 13 DRAFT

By Loughborough University Library 14 DRAFT

Photo by Ecotrust Canada 15 DRAFT

Photo by University of Michigan MSIS 16 DRAFT

Images 2 Take a photograph of a physical space that you teach in List all the things that are in the room Mark on the list the item that is least necessary to the teaching and learning (If you had to remove something from the room what would it be?) Mark on the list all the other things that could be dispensed with. What model(s) of learning and teaching was this room designed to support? How do you actually use it? Is there anything you would like to have in the room that is not there now? How would this addition improve the teaching and/or learning? Now go through your notes and consider what they tell you about learning and teaching in your discipline, in the spaces that you currently use. If possible, compare notes with colleagues in similar and different disciplines. 17 DRAFT

Favourite learning space 5 minutes free writing Topic: A place where you like to work. Where is it and what is it like? What equipment/furniture is there? Any other features or facilities? What kind of work do you do there? Why do you like working in this place? Discussion: Was the place you chose very specific to your discipline or could anyone work there easily? Do your students work in places like this? 18 DRAFT

Photostories Collect digital photographs of the spaces where you and your students work. Take photographs yourself and ask your students to do the same. You could also involve colleagues. Upload the images to a place where you and your students – and colleagues perhaps - can view them. This might be in your VLE. Invite students and/or colleagues to a half-hour discussion. Based on the discussion, decide on 3 action priorities for improving the space for students and teachers. 19 DRAFT

Ownership and institutional priorities These two short activities aim to raise awareness of the range of people – apart from students and tutors – who have an interest in the spaces used for teaching and learning. 5. Competing interests 6. Learning space language DRAFT 20

Competing interests? Who are the people who have an interest in the learning spaces located in your department or disciplinary area? Spend 2 minutes jotting down your own list and then compare notes with someone else. If you are not sure, start by listing the people you would need to consult in order to make changes to the room (minor and major changes). 21 DRAFT

Learning spaces and language Collect together four or five descriptions of the learning environment in your own and other institutions ( words in total). An institution’s online prospectus would be a good source. Find the 3 most commonly occurring words (exempting words such as ‘a’, ‘the’). You could do this yourself by counting the instances of particular words, or you could get a visual representation by pasting your descriptions in to Wordle ( ). Does this suggest anything about how institutions view learning and learning spaces? 22 DRAFT

Reflection and action The writing activities in this section could be used for assessment, perhaps as part of a portfolio. 7. Reflection 8. Making a case for change 9. Ideal learning space DRAFT 23

Reflection How does space impact on my teaching and my students’ learning? Write about words in response to this question. 24 DRAFT

Making a case for change Choose one of these: 1.Draft a case for developing and refurbishing one learning space in your department, to put to the Head of Department. 2.Draft a manifesto on learning space in your discipline. The target audience for this would be other academics in your discipline. 25 DRAFT

Ideal learning space Choose one of these 1.Write a near-future prospectus entry for your department, imagining that you are writing at a time when physical and virtual learning spaces are ideal for the discipline 2.Write words describing your ideal teaching space 26 DRAFT

Learning Resource Metadata Field/ElementValue: TitleUniversity Learning Spaces - Disciplinary Perspectives - Activities Description Slides containing a selection of activities related to learning spaces in HE. A selection of these activities could be used in a workshop with the presentation, University Learning Spaces - Disciplinary Perspectives – Introduction. ModuleTheme 5 - Disciplinarity and e-learning/digital practices SubjectHE - Education AuthorJane Hughes & Colleen McKenna: HEDERA, 2012 OwnerThe University of Bath AudienceEducational developers in accredited programmes & courses in higher education. Issue Date20/04/2012 Last updated Date20/04/2012 VersionDraft – V1 PSF MappingA2, A4, K4 LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 UK: England & Wales LicenseCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 UK: England & Wales License. Keywords ukoer, education, discthink, disciplinary thinking, hedera, university of bath, omac, learning spaces, classroom design, mobile learning, e-learning, learning environment, student experience, learning technologies, e-learning DRAFT 27