STLHE 2016 SAPES

Working with a premise that the teaching and learning environment is impacted by the physical environment (Tanner, 2000; Christensen Hughes, 2002) and in an effort to effect change, a group of educators from Carleton University conducted an environmental scan of the quality of university learning spaces. Studies that examine student experience of the physical university space are rather lacking (Cox, 2011), and “the creation and re-creation of learning spaces is vital for the survival of the academic community” (Savin-Baden, 2008, p.2). As an issue, one of our main goals is to improve these spaces through a participatory culture for discussion and action, in which students' voices are heard and respected.

This hands-on session will begin with a description of the design, rationale and findings of our study. This will be followed by an opportunity for participants to experience the diamond ranking activity used with 12 student focus groups and one of our research methods. The diamond activity engaged students in small groups as they negotiated and ranked different classroom amenities, such as space, seating, and accessibility. According to Clark (2012), the diamond activity is “praised for facilitating talk around a specific topic”; its strength is in requiring us “to make explicit the overarching relationships by which we organize knowledge” (p. 223).

The session will conclude with a 15-minute debriefing where participants will have an opportunity to reflect about how this “thinking skills tool” (Rockett & Percival, 2002) can be applied in their respective settings.

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

1. Appreciate the importance of spaces for students’ learning;

2. Describe the diamond activity;

3. Assess advantages of using the activity as a research or teaching tool;

4. Reflect on ways in which the activity can be applied in their own contexts.

References
Christensen Hughes, J. (2002). Developing a classroom vision and implementation plan. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 2002, 92, 63-72.

Clark, J. (2012). Using diamond ranking as visual cues to engage young people in the research process. Qualitative Research Journal, 2, 222-237.

Cox, A. (2011). Students’ experience of university space: An exploratory study. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 23, 197 – 207.

Rockett, M. & Percival, S. (2002). Thinking for learning. Stafford: Network Educational Press.

Savin-Baden, M. (2008). Learning spaces: Creating opportunities for knowledge creation in academic life. Berkshire, England: McGraw Hill.

Tanner, C. K. (2000). The influence of school architecture on academic achievement. Journal of Educational Administration, 38, 309-330.