Face to Face in a New Learning Space

Abstract

Abstract: The construction of a new building primarily for the School of Computing and Information Technology at UNITEC gave us the opportunity to rethink the layout of the computer laboratories as teaching spaces, sometimes referred to as closed laboratories. A recent visit to a university in the USA with innovative teaching spaces spurred the author to design an innovative layout incorporating state of the art technology. Drawing on past experience and some literature, and academic staff and student considerations were taken into account in the development of the new physical layout. Based on a design that met the academic needs, a partnership with the architects and design team was formed to turn the vision into a reality. This paper documents the background, rationale, design and development process, and also describes the resulting innovative teaching spaces that are now in use. Initial reactions of the faculty and students will be presented.