New ‘Concept’ Classroom Launches
December 10, 2009
A unique ‘concept’ classroom, designed by students from the University of Glamorgan’s Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries, opened its doors on the Treforest campus this week, 10th December.
The design brief for the new facility was to create a learning space that supports group work and inquiry-based learning activities.
In all, 27 student designs were submitted and six student finalists were selected to present their designs to the Project Panel. Second year interior design student Luke Gillard’s design was selected as the winning entry. Since then, he has been involved in the development of the fit-out specification and has ensured that the ICT specifications are sensitive to the original academic intentions of the project, as outlined by the Project Group.
Luke’s design splits the classroom into four zones, each providing a different element of functionality for the users.
Zones One and Two are packed with state-of-the-art modern features and technology, including three large plasma screens, interactive whiteboards, ‘white-walls’ (entire walls that can be written on with marker pens) recording equipment, flexible furniture (that can be arranged to suit the teaching requirements or stored away to create an open space), as well as a bank of laptops with both Wireless and wired connectivity.
Zone 3 is a ‘reflective’ space, featuring a grass floor and images of a sunny Treforest sky on the walls, where students can further consider and consolidate their learning experiences against a ‘natural’ setting. Magnetic whiteboards adorn the walls to allow students to write, draw and assemble thoughts and materials as required.
Zone 4 is a fully fitted out ‘executive office’, fitted with plasma screen and magnetic white-boards suitable for mock interviews, meetings, presentations and group work.
Luke said, “It was fantastic, as a design student, to get the opportunity to see my designs turned from concept into reality and to have a level of input into the development and specification of the fit-out that you’d normally only get years into your professional career. The whole process has been a fun and yet, invaluable experience.”
