1. Dissertation Defense Susan J. Wolff September 7, 2001 Dr. George H. Copa, Major Professor

2. Dissertation Title : Sustaining Systems of Relationships: The Essence of the Physical Learning Environment that Supports and Enhances Collaborative, Project-based Learning at the Community College Level

3. Table of Contents Chapter 1 ….. Focus and Significance of the Study Chapter 2 ….. Review of Related Literature Chapter 3 ….. Design of the Study Chapter 4 ….. Findings and Analysis of Phase I

4. Table of Contents Chapter 5 ….. Findings and Analysis of Phase II Chapter 6 ….. Findings and Analysis of Phase III Chapter 7 ….. Understandings and Future Research Bibliography Appendices

5. Significance of the Study Roles and responsibilities of work, family, community, and personal life are changing in response to: – Globalization – Transition from the industrial age to a knowledge age

6. Significance of the Study Significance of the Study – Diverse and multi-cultural living and work environments – Fast-paced, fragmented, and changing societal norms and structures

7. Significance of the Study – Need for continual learning of new skills and abilities to keep pace with the accelerated rate of change

8. Sample of Learning Expectations Sample of Learning Expectations That address changing roles and responsibilities: – Gathering, analyzing, and using information – Anticipating and handling change

9. Sample of Learning Expectations – Working in high-performance teams – Thinking in terms of systemic outcomes – Using effective communication skills

10. Sample of Learning Expectations – Taking action to improve communities – Managing resources – Providing leadership

11. Sample of Learning Expectations – Respecting others and valuing diversity – Taking responsibility for one’s own learning

12. Collaborative Learning Process Collaborative Learning Process Provides Learning of: Content Critical thinking Problem solving Teamwork

13. Collaborative Learning Process Negotiating Reaching consensus Social and academic development Sense of community

14. Project-Based Learning Project-Based Learning Provides relevancy, value, and meaning Provides learning of: Value of relationships and partnerships Communication skills

15. Project-Based Learning Higher order thinking skills such as critical thinking and solving problems Use of technology and tools Importance of lifelong learning

16. Focus of the Study Identify and describe the design features of the physical learning environment that support and enhance collaborative, project-based learning at the community college level

17. Focus of the Study Gain an understanding of the rationale for the selection of the desired features of the physical learning environment of community colleges

18. Why Look at Physical Environments ? Why Look at Physical Environments ? Majority of community college facilities were built in the 1960’s Billions of dollars are being spent for renovations and replacements

19. Why Look at Physical Environments ? Availability of research regarding how design of college facilities supports desired learning expectations and processes is minimal and most of what is available addresses K-12 facilities

20. Methodology Phenomenology – to gain an understanding of recommended the design features and the purpose and rationale of the features.

21. Design of the Study

22. Phase I of the Study Sources of data: – Site visits – Internship Data gathering strategies: – Observation – Participation – Note taking – Reflection

23. Phase I of the Study Analysis process: – Text analysis

24. Findings of Phase I 28 design features and their descriptions and purposes of the physical learning environment were identified

25. Findings of Phase I 4 preliminary categories of these design features were determined: – Learning group sizes – Learning activities – Adjacencies among the spaces – Furnishings for the spaces

26. Transition - Phase I to Phase II Phase I was introductory and exploratory Findings from Phase I indicated need for: – Gaining greater understanding of the two foci of the study

27. Transition - Phase I to Phase II – Narrowing the focus to collaborative, project-based learning – Concentrating the study at the community college level – Increasing the pool of participants

28. Phase II of the Study Sources of data: – National and International Conferences Data gathering strategies: – Observation – Participation – Note taking

29. Phase II of the Study Data gathering strategies: – Audio and electronic mail interviews – Reflection Analysis process: – Text and audio analysis

30. Findings of Phase II 5 additional design features were identified 1 additional category of design feature was identified – psychological and physiological support

31. Findings of Phase II Renamed “Learning Activities” to “Learning Activities/Learning Spaces” Added depth and breadth to findings Data more specific to community colleges

32. Transition - Phase II to Phase III Phase II began to concentrate on collaborative, project-based learning at the community college level; however, the data collected continued to have some Pre-K-12 influence

33. Transition - Phase II to Phase III The addition of personal interviews as a means of collecting data provided new perspectives to the foci of the study and the data

34. Transition - Phase II to Phase III Phase III gave full attention to physical learning environments that support and enhance collaborative, project-based learning specifically at the community college level

35. Transition - Phase II to Phase III Phase III added three additional methods for collecting data Phase III modeled collaborative, project-based learning

36. Phase III of the Study Source of data: – Two-day design studio Data gathering strategies: – Observation – Note taking – Audio and electronic mail interviews

37. Phase III of the Study Data gathering strategies: – Participant journals – Participant materials and designs – Reflection Analysis process: – Text, audio, and video analysis

38. Findings from Phase III 11 additional design features were identified resulting in a total of 44 features being identified from the study that support and enhance collaborative, project-based learning

39. Findings from Phase III 1 more category of design feature was added: – Structural aspects

40. Level One Analysis of the Findings Involved looking for commonalities of function and design across all 44 features, resulting in the number of features being reduced to 32

41. Level One Analysis of the Findings Further analyzed the six preliminary categories of features for appropriateness, resulting in the renaming of one category: – learning activities/learning spaces became functional spaces for learning activities

42. Level Two Analysis of the Findings: The design features were clustered into the following six categories: – Group size – Functional spaces for learning activities – Adjacencies

43. Level Two Analysis of the Findings: – Furnishings – Psychological and physiological support – Structural aspects

45. Level Three Analysis of the Findings Areas of further research: – What are the systems of relationships among people and spaces that support and enhance collaborative, project-based learning?

46. Level Three Analysis of the Findings Areas of further research: – What are the core or “fixed” elements of the design of the physical learning environment?

47. Level Three Analysis of the Findings Areas of further research: – How can we prepare community colleges to adopt collaborative, project-based learning approaches and assist in the design of physical learning environments that support this learning process?

48. Alexander, C. (1979). The Timeless Way of Building “Evidently, then, a large part of the structure of a building consists of patterns of relationships …the fact is the elements themselves are patterns of relationships …that actually repeats itself and gives structure to a building”.