When architects discuss the educational facilities of the next century and beyond, the conversation turns to collaborative spaces. They envision flexible and fluid spaces that will encourage creative and critical thinking, and free students to communicate clearly about the task at hand. While these are admirable ideals, there are some fundamental…

The opportunity to design a learning space does not come along often. Usually, it involves the construction of a new building or the complete remodel of an old one, and both of these require a lot of money. Smaller projects, such as renovation of a single room or a defined space, can be the best way to test ideas and establish a model for…

In these troubled economic times, members of college and university communities must provide effective learning environments to support ever-changing curricula while reducing budgets. At the same time, a growing body of literature points to shifting needs of the variously named digital natives, Millennials or the Net Generation. This article…

This article explores how to adopt a gender perspective in the analysis of educational facilities. It argues that social relations are influenced by the physical environment, and that social and physical aspects are often interlinked. Although difficult to measure, including a gender perspective in international research and other projects on…

The purpose of this study was to determine the design features of the physical learning environment that support and enhance collaborative, project-based learning at the community college level, and to gain an understanding of the rationale for selection of the features. The characteristics of the physical environment investigated in the study…

This research project examined how educational facilities are perceived and used by the occupants. It sought to inform the design of effective learning environments in elementary schools through a heightened awareness of the needs of the occupants and an understanding of how they use their school facilities. Project objectives included the…