Learning Communities in Design Education
September 2000 — December 2002
"StudioMIT provides a powerful mechanism for students and instructors to interact. Coupled with the use of wireless
laptops, StudioMIT not only allows students to access course content in a very dynamic way, but it also gives a real opportunity for students to
participate in critical discussions, contribute creative work, and create a sense of community that supplements the traditional learning practices
in the classroom."
—Franco Vairani, School of Architecture and Planning
A crucial part of creative learning in studio-centered professional degree programs is the sharing of intellectual products
with the greater community. StudioMIT provided an infrastructure for an open-ended collection of course curricula, digital images, workspaces, and
exhibition spaces, all enhanced with communication capabilities.
The interactive personal work and exhibitions areas created
by the project allowed members to represent themselves
and their work to the community. In collaboration with the
Social Computing Group at Microsoft Research, StudioMIT
also developed StudioBridge, using radio-frequency-based
location tracking graphically published over building or
campus maps to better connect the MIT Architecture community.
The work of StudioMIT validated how sharing of
work, combined with the capability to discuss, exchange
news, and share resources, stimulated social interaction
between students and instructors.
Investigators:
Prof. William Mitchell, Dean, Dept. of Architecture
Susan Yee, Dept. of Architecture
Lili Cheng, Microsoft Research
Additional Information:
http://icampus.mit.edu/projects/StudioMIT.shtml
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Learning by Doing
July 2000 — December 2003
The exploration of fusing technology with pedagogical
models is key to the iCampus Alliance. The Learning by
Doing project was a collaboration between faculty in Electrical
Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) that
drew upon the expertise of the VaNTH Bioengineering
Education Technologies project.
A collection of workshops and seminars allowed instructors,
staff, and students to hear about recent developments
in learning sciences and the implications on instruction.
An observation system was also employed to assess what
classroom interactions could benefit from constructive activities.
These insights were used to distill the principles of a
new framework upon which to develop technology-enabled
tools for learning. Using widely available technological
infrastructure and successfully proven pedagogical approaches,
the project demonstrated how technology could
be incorporated into educational activities in an efficient,
supportable way.
Investigators:
Prof. Martha Gray, Dept. of EECS
Additional Information:
http://icampus.mit.edu/projects/LearningByDoingHST.shtml
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