Learning from memorable spaces – an experiment in creating student-centred teaching and learning environments

This paper presents the outcomes of an experiment on how the physical learning environment contributes to the overall learning experience of students. The case reflects on the adaptation an existing classroom in order to create a learning environment that is more student-centred and able to elicit a stronger feeling of ownership among students. Although the experiment was aimed at addressing a specific situation, subsequent experience with the newly created learning space has resulted in on-going research contributing to policy formulation in support of organisational decision-making on the planning, design and use of teaching and learning spaces on the new campus of the NHTV University of Applied Sciences. The intervention occurred as the outcome of a seminar discussion on “Learning from memorable places” as part of the Specialisation Hospitality Innovation and Imagineering at the Academy of Hotel and Facility Management at NHTV University of Applied Sciences. The course setup required students to reflect on, and explore how memorable experiences and places can be used as conceptual building blocks for creating memorable teaching and learning environments. Identification of experiences and the characteristics of the physical environments related to them, resulted in the formulation of a vocabulary of phrases which were subsequently translated into an intervention in the existing learning environment. In order to document this intervention, the existing conditions prior to the intervention, the objectives with the intervention, and the subsequent implementation thereof, the Accommodation-Choice Model (Van der Voordt et al., 2011) – a process model for decision-making on organisational real estate – was applied. Results of this on-going experiment has shown the added value of creating more interactive teaching and learning environments to the overall learning experience of students. Personal reflections by students have indicated the extent to which students experience a greater sense of ownership of, as well as a heightened level of involvement in their learning environment. Overall, all students who participated in this experiment during the course mentioned, confirmed that the new learning environment created during this experiment, resulted in a more memorable overall learning experience.The experiment as discussed in this paper is a first of its kind approach to exploring the enabling possibilities of more student-centred learning environments.