It is the first year the list has been so dominated by education, something RIBA president Angela Brady puts down to the "recessionary times" deterring risk-takers within commercial construction fields. Of the 43 British and nine EU-based structures longlisted, six will shortlisted for the Stirling prize next month.
This is a useful blog which discusses library design from a user (human) perspective, rather than just bricks and mortar. The focus is on improving the user experience, through working in partnership with them and marketing services effectively.
It investigates the method used by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) to assess space needs in the Further Education (FE) sector in England, and researches examples of higher education (HE) space planning and management in other parts of the world."
A USA-based hub of information and research about learning space design. Much of the focus is on school design, but there's still useful information here.
"Designing Libraries
The centre for library design and innovation: a resource for library planning and design, a database of library buildings and a marketplace for services."
Dr. Lesley S. J. Farmer,Professor of Librarianship,California State University, Long Beach
This paper analyzes the state of learning spaces as they impact library education.
Specifically, it reviews the literature about current trends in designing learning
environments that facilitate e-learning. The report also lists cited examples of good
practice in contemporary school library e-learning spaces.
A blog run by the University of Lincoln, which helps maintain communication with users during the continued development of the university's learning spaces. Learners are encouraged to engage and give feedback on the projects.
Redesigning the College Library Building, 2014 Edition
This 220+ page report looks closely at the capital spending plans and building renovation/construction policies of academic libraries, predominantly in the USA and Canada. The study covers capital spending and space allocation plans with highly detailed data on recent library spending and future plans for the construction or renovation of library cafes, seating space, lighting, atriums, classroom space, information commons and other technology-oriented spaces, group study space, storage space, collection space, rooftop space, offices, meeting spaces and auditoriums, entrances and exits, restrooms, gardens and other outdoor spaces, artwork, windows, space and facilities for special collections, performance space, space intended for library applications for specific academic departments and other forms of library space and special features. In addition, the report looks at other forms of capital spending such as plans for library furniture, workstations,information technology and more. The study also presents extensive data on sources of funding for renovations and new construction as well as data on how renovations have been received by the target audience. Redesigning the College Library Building, 2014 Edition also examines special purpose investments in energy saving technology, enhancements to natural light and soundproofing, among others. Data is broken out for public and private colleges, by size and type of college, and by college tuition level.
iTEC is about designing the future classroom. The project, which involves 15 Ministries of Education from across Europe, brings together teachers, policymakers, pedagogical experts - representatives from each stage of the educational processes - to introduce innovative teaching practices.
SCALE-UP initiative at Nottingham Trent, started this year.
The purpose of this website is to share designs for state-of-the-art learning studios, teaching methods, and instructional materials that are based
on more than a decade of discipline-based education research.
Dr. Robert Beichner is an award-winning professor of physics at North Carolina State University and is receiving the Prize for his work at the post-secondary level. He has changed how students learn in the science classroom not only on his home campus, but at the more than 100 institutions of higher education that have adopted SCALE-UP, an approach that uses digital technology combined with innovative teaching approaches centered on hands-on activities and roundtable discussions.