VIRTUAL Prague Research & Teaching Conference

Abstract

While academic institutions typically structure instruction within disciplinary silos, many professions, including architecture and landscape architecture, rely on the expertise of many orchestrated professionals in practice. Professional accreditation bodies in the USA, such as the National Architectural Accrediting Board and the Landscape Architectural Accreditation Board, recognize the necessity of promoting interdisciplinary group work within university settings. These bodies have incorporated the ability to “collaborate on multidisciplinary teams, incorporate knowledge from other disciplines, professions, and perspectives” into student learning outcomes and measurable objectives. For two years, fourth-year Landscape Architecture students from West Virginia University and third-year Architecture students from Fairmont State University collaborated on the design of “The Farm to Table: Restaurant and Garden” in a studio setting. This project naturally synergized the disciplines of architecture and landscape architecture due to the intrinsic programmatic relationship between landscape and building. The student cooperation was successful despite numerous challenges. The final output significantly exceeded the minimum learning outcomes and expectations. The projects demonstrated a clear effort by the students to conceive the building and landscape as an integrated whole. Students learned that the practice of landscape architecture and architecture involves incorporating a variety of specialists to complete projects, emphasizing that collaboration is essential for a successful one. The students highly valued the teamwork exercise, as reflected in an anonymous survey conducted by the authors, where students shared that this was one of the best experiences in school to prepare them for their profession.
The authors will recount this collaborative experience in the presentation, highlighting the educational benefits and the practical challenges.