Archinect - News

Architects for Gaza launches Gaza Global University for afflicted Palestinian students

2024-03-18T18:07:00-04:00

The UK-based group Architects for Gaza, appealing to the educational needs of displaced Palestinian architecture students in the occupied territory, has just announced the creation of a new learning platform called Gaza Global University.

The announcement was made earlier this month via Instagram. The group says: "We know that to rebuild Gaza requires rebuilding its institutions, its culture, its life — and importantly for those of us not situated in Gaza — it requires a rebuilding of all our worlds. We see Gaza Global University as a radical pedagogical project rooted in hope and shared humanity."

According to the group's website, the objectives for developing the initiative include:

Establishing links with academic institutions internationally to offer online tutorials and lectures free of charge Gazan students in any part of the world, who are students of architecture, and related courses, such as design and urbanism.
Offering technological assistance for remote communication at...

Spatializing Digital Pedagogies grants fund innovative online and in-person learning strategies at Taubman College

2020-07-13T19:59:00-04:00

The University of Michigan Taubman School of Architecture and Urban Planning has announced the 11 winning grantees of the school's Spatializing Digital Pedagogies grant initiative. The awards represent an effort on the part of the school to "help develop a teaching framework for the fall 2020 semester that blends online and modified-residency education," according to a university website.

The 11 grantees were selected for funding by Anya Sirota, associate dean for academic initiatives and associate professor of architecture, and Jacob Comerci, academic innovation project manager. Leaders selected 11 projects to receive support.

Previously on Archinect: "Studio culture goes online at Taubman College." Image courtesy of Cyrus Peñarroyo / Taubman School of Architecture and Urban Planning.

Regarding the winning proposals, Sirota and Comerci write, "Spatializing Digital Pedagogies emerged from the understanding that through first-hand experience, our faculty, students, and staff are uniq...

How architecture students and educators are optimizing their work environments at home

2020-04-03T20:59:00-04:00

For most architecture students, faculty, and staff around the world, working from home has become the new normal since campuses closed in response to the sweeping pandemic several weeks ago.

Archinect wanted to find out how things had been going so far for the architectural academic community and reached out to its readers via the ongoing survey How is your school dealing with the coronavirus outbreak? In our previous two analyses, we looked at the initial experience of working online versus onsite at school and the emotional impact this ongoing new situation was having.

Today, we learn from students and educators how they tried to optimize their work environments to facilitate remote learning and teaching.

The Garage Converter: Photo courtesy of a participating California State University, Sacramento educator.

"It's ALL on my laptop," was the upbeat response from one educator at the California State University, Sacramento. "Other than that, I have a comfortable chair, a space I en...

The Design Museum of London aims to bring art and design into your home with their new Digital Design Museum Calendar

2020-04-03T17:57:00-04:00

Online courses, activities, and programming have increased as the globe adjusts to this "new normal" of social distancing measures and safety precautions amid the current pandemic. However, museums across the globe have shifted their efforts towards bringing art to the homes of millions of patrons.

On April 1st, the Design Museum announced the launch of their new Digital Design Calendar of online content. According to a press statement by the museum, "new digital calendar includes lesson plans and activities for children at home with the Young Design Museum program, a series of ‘Lunch and Learn’ sessions for adults in new Learn with the DesignMuseum series and a roster of Instagram Lives with leading designers called #DesignDispatches."

Image courtesy of Design Museum

The museum has partnered with the Royal College of Art, BBC Studios, Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, and several others who aim to assist the museum by carrying out it's "mission to make the impact of design vi...

How COVID-19 is affecting architecture students and educators on an emotional level

2020-03-31T08:00:00-04:00

The sudden transition to online learning and teaching has presented students, faculty, and staff at many institutions of higher learning around the world with enormous challenges — technological, organizational but also on a human and inter-human level.

Archinect asked for responses from its global community via the ongoing survey How is your school dealing with the coronavirus outbreak? to learn how students and educators in the architecture field were dealing with the transition. In our first analysis, we looked at the main challenges as well as opportunities of working online versus onsite at school.

Today, we are focusing on the emotional impact this ongoing new situation is having on the architectural academic community.

Mood 1: Good (or trying to stay positive)

While some responses did share a positive, or at least somewhat hopeful, sentiment, these answers were clearly in the minority.

"All good... Bored mostly haha," was the upbeat response from a student at the University o...

How architecture students and educators are handling the transition to online coursework

2020-03-26T14:26:00-04:00

The recent need for schools and universities across the educational spectrum to transition to online learning practically overnight has caught many students, faculty, and staff around the world completely unprepared, while others enjoyed a smooth transition due to routines and protocols established before the crisis.

Archinect reached out to its global community with the ongoing survey How is your school dealing with the coronavirus outbreak? to learn how students and educators in the architecture field are handling the transition. Over the next few days, we will be sharing some of the key takeaways from the responses.

In this first analysis, we are looking at the biggest challenges as well as benefits of working online versus in-person at school. The responses were not conclusively tilting in any specific direction but rather represented an eclectic mixture of frustration, ease, and cautious hope.

Scenario 1: Easy Transition

Students and educators who reported an overall positive ...

If you are architectural faculty, don't miss this ACSA webinar on studio-based online learning

2020-03-25T15:39:00-04:00

After an initial surge of event cancellations and postponements due to the growing pandemic, we are now seeing an increasing shift from physical gatherings to virtual, web-based virtual events.

With the sudden transition to online teaching and remote studios, many teachers in architecture and design academia still face unanswered questions and unresolved challenges. To offer guidance for faculty, the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture is offering a free webinar this Friday, March 27th. The panel will be moderated by Beth Lundell Garver (Boston Architectural College), panelists include Derek Ham (North Carolina State University), Yoonjee Koh (Boston Architectural College), Drew Krafcik (Stanford University), and Amy Larimer (Stanford University).

Studio-Based Online Learning: Building Community and Engaging Design at a Distance Webinar
Friday, March 27, 2020 | 4:00-5:00 pm ET
FREE (registration required)

Education in architecture and design offers studio-based learning en...