Teaching Beyond the Curriculum
Abstract
This paper discusses a collaboration, within postgraduate education, between two architectural design studios; the Urban Citizen Studio at the University of Pretoria in South Africa and the Reality Studio at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden. The collaboration engages with the communities of Woodlane Village and Melusi informal settlements in Pretoria, through methods of community participation that require critical thinking within students that equip them with skills to deal with complex socio-spatial issues. The paper unpacks this collaboration, demonstrating the methodological approaches deployed within the studios and how they extend beyond the educational environment. In both studios, students build relationships with communities and prioritise community participation to comprehend locals’ viewpoints and needs. Students combine site observations, sketching, needs analysis, and integration of existing datasets under the direction of local NGOs and research partners to develop a spatial and social understanding of the settlements. The fieldwork follows the ukuDoba method to interact with communities and to record and analyse the spatial and social conditions of the communities. Transferable abilities like critical analysis, design thinking, and stakeholder communication are encouraged by both studios, where students develop a deeper grasp of issues in the real world by concentrating on socio-spatial justice and community engagement. The collaboration between these studios has enabled students to successfully negotiate new situations, navigate complex social issues, and combine knowledge from multiple academic fields to contribute to the sustainable development of the informal settlement communities. These learnings have been further enriched through international collaboration, not only improving students’ educational experiences but also encouraging intercultural and cross-cultural cooperation and knowledge exchange on a global scale.
Jason Oberholster is a professional architect and part-time lecturer in various post graduate studios within the Architecture Department at the University of Pretoria. He is currently enrolled as a Ph.D. candidate with the research title ‘Equipping architectural graduates to address the challenges of complex urban integration of migrants and refugees: Case studies from South Africa and Sweden.’ Jason is also a member and ambassador for the Unit for Urban Citizenship.
Dr. Carin Combrinck is a senior lecturer at the Department of Architecture at the University of Pretoria and the director of the Unit for Urban Citizenship. Dr Combrinck’s field of research is rooted in the role of architecture in community development and engagement, with an interdisciplinary view towards social innovation and urban citizenship. Dr Combrinck was the 2019 recipient of the University of Pretoria’s Community Engagement Award and the joint winner of the 2022 EBIT faculty Teaching and Learning award.
Liane Thuvander is a professor, researcher and educated architect in the field of sustainable building with interests in visualization of social and environmental aspects in existing buildings and implementation of sustainable building knowledge in practice. Liane is also leader of the Research Area “Visualization and Auralization” in the Vinnova competence centre Digital Twin Cities Centre and Chalmers responsible coordinator for the Centre for Sustainable Urban Futures.
Emilio has been a lecturer at Chalmers School of Architecture from 2016-2022, where he was the director of the Master’s Programme Architecture and Planning Beyond Sustainability (MPDSD). In 2021, he received the prestigious Pedagogy Prize at Chalmers University of Technology. Since September 2022, he is also a PhD student at KTH School of Architecture (Stockholm), where his research focuses on “Community Pedagogies for Resilience Beyond Crisis”.
Shea Hagy is the Project Manager for the HSB Living Lab at Chalmers, an experimental research facility for the testing of sustainable technologies and living practices. The HSB LL will be built on the Chalmers campus in collaboration with HSB, one of Sweden’s largest housing cooperatives. The HSB Living Lab is also part of a larger EU-funded project called the Climate-KIC Building Technology Accelerator Flagship where Shea works within the ’Next Generation Building Envelope Systems’ research group.
2:30 pm - 4:00 pm
Thursday 16th November, 2023