Learning Spaces In Higher Education Research Articles

Transformation of Challenge-based Learning Spaces in Higher Education

Transformation of Challenge-based Learning Spaces in Higher Education

Pedagogical Translanguaging as a Socially Just Strategy for Multilingual Students in Occupational Therapy

Multilingual speakers’ languaging practices are undervalued and problematised in formal teaching and learning spaces in higher education. The environment has legitimised monolingualism as the only acceptable practice, hence students often lack the confidence to recruit their full linguistic repertoires. In the third and fourth years of their Occupational Therapy studies, many African students faced challenges due to socio-historic-political factors that put them at risk of failure. These challenges were addressed in academic support tutorial spaces using pedagogical translanguaging. The aim of the paper is to demonstrate the use of translanguaging as a socially just strategy, its affordances, and its challenges. This paper utilises data from a case study within a larger project aiming to describe the use of translanguaging in multilingual teaching and learning settings at a historically White university in South Africa. The case study comprised of eight African students. Linguistic ethnography and Moment analysis were employed. Pedagogical translanguaging and humour were used to create a space conducive to collaborative learning and co-construction of knowledge that granted epistemic access to occupational therapy discourse. Respect and dignity were fundamental in fostering cohesion, improving confidence, enacting speaking rights, and creating a sense of belonging among students who often felt alienated.

Learning Spaces in Higher Education: A State-of-the-Art Review

Educational learning spaces encompass a spectrum, from traditional classrooms to contemporary online platforms and immersive virtual reality settings, fostering versatile teaching methods like collaboration, project-based, and experiential learning. Our study delves into modern higher education environments, particularly the shift from conventional to innovative spaces. Our focus centers on the benefits and challenges intrinsic to these emerging learning spaces, intending to enlighten educators, policymakers, and researchers. Our exploration commences by revealing the limitations entrenched within traditional learning environments, emphasizing the vital need for inventive solutions to meet evolving educational demands. We further investigate diverse learning scenarios, ranging from hybrid and remote setups to the integration of online platforms and virtual tools. Through this lens we navigate complexities introduced by these novel modalities, including potential reductions in face-to-face interactions and heightened demand for adept instructional and technological support. Lastly, our inquiry underscores the disparities between traditional and contemporary learning spaces, accentuating the potential for innovative settings to elevate higher education quality. Here, we illuminate the anticipated merits of such spaces, notably heightened student engagement, enriched collaboration, and amplified creativity. Concurrently, we explore technology’s pivotal role in shaping learning environments and ultimately influencing pedagogical methodologies. Our future research will explore how Artificial Intelligence can improve higher education.

Supporting bachelor’s and master’s students’ thesis writing: a rhizoanalysis of academic writing workshops in hybrid learning spaces

ABSTRACT Previous research has suggested that bachelor’s and master’s students seem to experience challenges with thesis writing, and the need for support might be greater when studying at a distance. To further develop supportive practices for thesis writing, this study points to a need to acknowledge materialities and spaces as active and necessary components in thesis writing. The study uses a rhizoanalytical approach that offers possibilities to study learning spaces in higher education and to explore the complexities and multiplicities of supporting thesis writing at a distance. Building on an action research project that developed academic writing workshops to support bachelor’s and master’s students’ thesis writing processes, this study explores the academic writing workshops enacted in hybrid learning spaces (e.g. Zoom, Padlet, and Moodle). The study suggests that various hybrid thresholds make a difference in supporting students’ thesis writing. The hybrid thresholds produce a closeness to the texts in becoming, suggested to be essential for enacting an effective writing pedagogy at a distance; an embodied distance to peers, calling for building personal relationships through other means than face-to-face interaction; and collaborative-and-individual support through (a)synchronous connections, no matter the students’ geographical location. Taken together, the academic writing workshops enacted in hybrid learning spaces can potentially support students’ thesis writing, enabling (un)predictable and spontaneous mo(ve)ments across hybrid thresholds and digital platforms that create a closeness to the theses in becoming.

Architecture learning environments: Pedagogy and space in the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya's Sant Cugat Campus

AbstractThe qualitative improvement of learning spaces in higher education has often been linked to the technicalization of classrooms, and to the dissolution of the physical and temporal framework of teaching. The main objective of this research was to examine the relationship between learning and space, beyond its formal and functional values, and how this relationship contributes to promoting an efficient, cohesive educational community that strengthens links with the society that it aspires to serve. Methodologically, a quantitative approach to the design of learning spaces is proposed in relation to three aspects: formal diversity, functional flexibility, and sociability of the university community. The proposed methodology was applied to the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya's Sant Cugat Campus, which is recognized for the innovative nature of its pedagogical model, based on project‐based learning, and the adaptation of learning spaces to educational projects. With an educational model that tends to the spatial–temporal dissolution of learning and university spaces designed under the principles of form and function, improvement in the quality of learning is related to the improvement and quality of learning spaces using the principles of functional flexibility, spatial diversity, and sociability.

The Experience of Co-Designing a Learning Space with Teachers and Students

This paper presents the findings of an empirical research study investigating the perspectives of students and teachers on learning spaces in higher education and their participation in the design process of such spaces. The study employed a participatory design method, using workshops to involve teachers and students in redesigning a prototype learning space named the ‘Cube’. This approach allowed the researchers to actively engage users in reflective thinking on the learning spaces and their role in learning and to co-create new learning spaces through the use of their experiences and ideas. The findings are organised into 10 design themes, highlighting key considerations for the design of meaningful and effective learning spaces. The study concludes that involving teachers and students in the design process can significantly improve the learning and teaching experiences by fostering an active sense of agency and ownership over the learning spaces.

Satisfaction on Online Learning during Covid-19 Pandemic: Perspective of Malaysian students

This study investigated the determinants of students’ satisfaction with their online learning experience during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data was collected among 241 undergraduates enrolled in information management from a selected universities in Malaysia. The Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) results revealed that the independent variables, namely course design and digital resources, influenced students’ satisfaction with their new online learning experience. The findings have several implications for developing and maintaining practical and student-friendly online learning spaces in higher education. Keywords: Online learning; digital resources; Malaysian students; Higher education eISSN: 2398-4287 © 2022. The Authors. Published for AMER ABRA cE-Bs by E-International Publishing House, Ltd., UK. This is an open-access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Peer-review under responsibility of AMER (Association of Malaysian Environment-Behavior Researchers), ABRA (Association of Behavioral Researchers on Asians), and cE-Bs (Centre for Environment-Behavior Studies), Faculty of Architecture, Planning & Surveying, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Malaysia.

Formal learning spaces in Higher Education – a systematic review

ABSTRACT Over the past ten years, there has been an increasing focus on physical learning spaces in higher education. By now, what do we really know about the relation between space and student learning? What does the research landscape look like, and how has it developed? A systematic review of peer-reviewed 108 articles on the physical learning space for the period 2009–2019 was performed. A broad and fragmented field emerged that is to some extent under-researched and under-theorized. Few articles contain theory sections, and very few authors refer to each other’s work in their articles. On the other hand, a diversity of themes, methods and perspectives can be seen. Overall, the review can contribute to an overview of what we know – and what we do not know – about the complex relationship between student learning and learning spaces.

Should you become a leader in online collaborative learning? Impact of assigned leadership on learning behaviors, outcomes, and perceptions.

The growing prevalence of collaborative learning spaces in higher education highlights the importance of student leadership for group learning. Thus, leadership assignment as a common practice in online collaborative learning merits special attention. To investigate the impact of assigned leadership and its key characteristics in promoting team learning in the online context, a semester-long quasi-experiment was conducted with 94 students in a graduate-level blended course. The results revealed significant differences between assigned leaders and group members in certain participating behaviors. However, the impact of assigned leadership on learning outcomes and perceptions was insubstantial. Additionally, student leaders' academic achievement was found to have little impact on group members' learning behaviors and learning outcomes, and mixed results were reported regarding the influence of leader behaviors on group performance. The research findings can inform the crucial decision of leader selection and extend our understanding of leadership in online collaborative learning.

Architectural design of classroom to stimulate learning in Higher Education

The architectural design of learning spaces in higher education has undergone profound changes with the new educational perspectives that break with traditional pedagogical practice supported by control, hierarchy, and information dissemination. Educational institutions are gradually seeking disruptive models that enhance new learning experiences. This article presents references of innovative projects of learning and interaction spaces, that have been added to the principles of Neuroeducation and Neuroarchitecture for the development of architectural strategies for a new classroom proposal for the Bahia State University. As a result, the project brings preliminary studies to the Learning Environment Model for Higher Education (LEMHE). A flexible model, divided into three learning areas: flexible zone (active); introspection zone, and relaxing zone. This zoning aims to provide diverse experiences of pedagogical practices, added to respect the physiological needs of its users to enhance well-being and learning in higher education.

Supporting complex decision making in learning space design: WDA-ANP, a novel sociotechnical systems approach

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to introduce a novel approach, underpinned by systems thinking, to structure requirements and support front-end design decision-making around the performance in-use of developments within highly complex environments, with diverse stakeholders and users, such as the case of learning spaces in higher education (HE).Design/methodology/approachWork domain analysis (WDA), a sociotechnical systems design framework, is first used to model the constraints that shape the expected performance of an informal learning space (ILS). Based on the model, the following stage involved a sector-wide survey questionnaire (n = 175) to appraise the views of different stakeholder groups in relation to ILS. These were analysed using the analytical network process (ANP).FindingsThis study provides a novel approach, using WDA, to conceptualise the constraints shaping the performance in-use, integrating the perspectives of different stakeholder groups. Furthermore, it provides a structured approach to establish priorities that can serve as the basis to support complex decision-making during early design stages. The findings and proposed WDA–ANP approach aim to support HE estate managers on better understanding and integrating perspectives in relation to campus developments.Originality/valueIn this paper, a novel systems-based approach is proposed as an alternative to conceptualise ILS. Furthermore, the approach is combined with ANP, a multi-criteria decision-making approach, to develop a novel tool to derive priorities and support front-end design decision-making in learning space design.

Making talk work: using a dialogic approach to develop intercultural competence with students at an Australian university

ABSTRACT Despite clear claims that higher education institutions prepare graduates for a world that is increasingly globalised, diverse and interconnected, how best to develop intercultural competence in places of learning is less clear. Drawing focus to a purpose-built intercultural programme, this paper explores the development of intercultural competence within a group of culturally diverse students at a regional Australian university. Eight students participated in a series of forums that were guided by a dialogic approach to facilitate discussion around cross-cultural topics. Through a fine-grained qualitative analysis of interviews and reflections, students were found to develop a deeper self-awareness and understanding of others’ views and reported better seeing themselves in a global context. The programme also promoted greater individual awareness around adjusting communication skills to relate to others, and students reflected on what it might mean to interact in a broader global society. This paper highlights the value of intentionally promoting cross-cultural interactions in higher education learning spaces and offers a dialogic approach as a way forward for universities to produce globally ready students.

Student Satisfaction with Online Learning during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Study at State Universities in Sri Lanka

This quantitative study investigated the determinants of students’ satisfaction with their online learning experience at Sri Lankan universities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data was collected from 1376 undergraduates enrolled in various courses in humanities and social sciences at three state-owned universities in the country. The results of the Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) revealed that the independent variables of the model, namely perceived learner motivation, perceived challenges of e-learning, and interaction significantly affected students’ satisfaction with their new online learning experience. Out of the three variables, learner motivation exerted the strongest effect on students’ satisfaction, implying the crucial role self-regulated learning—characterized by motivation—plays in online learning environments. The study has several implications for both creating and ensuring the long-term sustainability of productive and student-friendly online learning spaces in higher education.

Informal Learning Spaces in Higher Education: Student Preferences and Activities

Informal learning spaces play a significant role in enriching student experiences in learning environments. Such spaces are becoming more common, resulting in a change to the spatial configuration of built environments in higher education. However, previous research lacks methods to evaluate the influence of the spatial design characteristics of informal learning spaces on student preferences and their activities within. This paper aims to tease out the spatial design characteristics of informal learning spaces to examine how they shape students’ preferences in terms of their use of the spaces and what they do within them. The two case studies selected for this study, both in the UK, are the Diamond at the University of Sheffield, and the Newton at Nottingham Trent University. A mixed-methods study is applied, including questionnaires, observation, interviews, and focus groups. Six significant design characteristics (comfort, flexibility, functionality, spatial hierarchy, openness, and other support facilities) that influence student use of informal learning environments are identified. These can be used to inform future design strategies for other informal learning spaces in higher education.

Place matters: Thinking about spaces for humanities practices

This essay reflects on the role of place for humanities practices and contributes to emerging discussions on infrastructure for the humanities and socio-material conditions of scholarly knowledge production. I provide a theoretical framework for studying venues for humanities work drawing on the phenomenological approach to the concepts of place and space, the pedagogical perspective on learning spaces in higher education, and epistemological studies of scientific places. Next, I analyse the landscape for the reconfiguration of humanities venues and present arguments for engaging with space by referring to the functioning of digital humanities. This essay shows that place is an extremely important resource, seeing as it is endowed with the power to drive new practices, institutionalize a community, and consolidate a discipline. Therefore, humanists should reflect critically on the ‘architecture of the humanities’ and engage in making their own spaces that determine practices, communication, and well-being.

Students’ learning patterns and learning spaces in higher education: an empirical investigation in China

ABSTRACT Learning spaces in higher education are changing in crucial and myriad ways. It is important to know how learning spaces are associated with learning in order to provide students with the most appropriate spaces to learn. This study investigates the relationship between students’ learning patterns and learning spaces in higher education through empirical work. It was divided into two phases – firstly, it selected two contrasting learning spaces in a Chinese university and used an adapted Inventory of Learning Styles (ILS) to compare how students went about their learning differently within the spaces. In the second stage, students were recruited to participate in focus group interviews, in which they were asked about their learning experiences of, and attitudes towards, the spaces. Quantitative and qualitative data were combined and analysed in order to identify patterns of covariation that related to features of students’ learning patterns and preferences for learning spaces. The findings revealed that students with features of a typical application-directed learning pattern preferred flexible, innovative learning spaces; students who showed characteristics of a reproductive learning pattern considered traditional, didactic learning spaces as desirable or necessary; and students who adopted more strategies of a meaning-directed learning pattern placed less emphasis on the importance of space as they tended to choose different types of learning space according to their own learning needs. Implications for further research and practice of learning spaces in higher education, as well as the generalisability of the findings, are discussed.

Potential for radical change in Higher Education learning spaces after the pandemic

The article situates the challenges that higher education faces before the onset of COVID-19. A future that situates disruptive and immediate transformation for higher education curricula is described to save global universities from the ravages of the “stay-at-home” policies. The move to a totally online environment took place overnight, and most institutions of higher education were totally unprepared. Yet, a future of possibilities could be adopted in the coming five years, one, in particular, being game-based learning, an andragogy based upon experiential education.

Examining the Development Processes of Learning Spaces in Higher Education

This study reports the developmental steps prior to the development of learning spaces in Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia (USIM). Space issues in higher education were usually considered either as part of space planning (which is aimed at providing adequate space for defined uses and maximizing their use once provided) or as part of campus planning and construction design. The findings report the level of design effectiveness of the learning spaces in USIM. The recommendation from learning space users will be taken into consideration in improving the design of the next learning spaces in USIM.

Embracing complexity: a sociotechnical systems approach for the design and evaluation of higher education learning environments

ABSTRACTHigher education institutions (HEI) have undergone fundamental changes driven by ICT developments, globalisation, and the advent of socio-constructivist pedagogic approaches. As a result, within the UK, capital investment in new and retrofitted facilities has reached a record expenditure. Recent research on user-related evaluations of facilities, particularly in HEI learning spaces, highlights the prevalence of evaluations dominated by reductionist approaches focused on measuring outcomes, on users, such as satisfaction, learning outcomes or engagement. These approaches have a major pitfall, neglecting the complexity of the dynamic relationships between people, spaces, technology, institutional structure and pedagogic practices. In response, this paper aims to propose a shift on current approaches by exploring the application of sociotechnical systems theory to learning space design and evaluation. Amid these, it is argued that Cognitive Work Analysis (CWA) offers promising alternatives to inform design and management of higher education learning spaces. Finally, within the paper, three CWA interventions are proposed and discussed, focusing on how these address previously identified shortcomings of predominant approaches used in HEI learning space design and evaluation.

Designing Hybrid Learning Spaces in Higher Education

As Hybrid Learning Spaces move beyond distinctions between online and offline spaces, they challenge divisions between teacher/student roles, formal/informal contexts and analogue/digital communication and media. This article presents the concept of hybridity in higher education through a concrete example of a trans-national hybrid course collaboration between three teachers and thirty students at Aarhus University, Denmark and Åbo Akademi University, Finland. The course design is examined through theories on hybrid pedagogy, learning spaces and media ecology to suggest five design principles for Hybrid Learning Spaces. The paper argues that higher education has the potential of inviting students to learn in the world, with the world and for the world, in a way that cuts across traditional dichotomies and barriers.