Game as a mediator in a first year architectural design education

Abstract

First year architectural design education can be started with various methods which, through testing within different studio studies, can also give ideas as to how to start architectural education. This study will address the contributions, and results of starting first-year architecture education with game as a mediator.  When they start their architectural education, students will have their own unique experiences of form, and space gained since their childhood in their built environment. Therefore, in order to refine the students’ perceptions on their built environments at the beginning of the education process, it’s necessary to provide them with opportunities that will give them confidence in what they can do about form and space. The aim of this paper is to emphasize the importance of the first year in architectural design education, and to discuss the beginning methods, considerate student, tutor and educational factors together. Thus, the game selected to start the architectural education with the purpose of activating the gaming instinct of the student is the “City Game”. The findings of this study provide guidelines for tutors to set up a favorable learning environment from the city and that cooperative learning can be enjoyable by the game for the students. Keywords: design education, game, mediator, first year architectural education