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ES Informal Learning Spaces: A Study of Use

ES Informal Learning Spaces: A Study of Use. IUPUI June 2, 2005. Project Background. Spaces designed and developed by community partners Major partners RJE Business Interiors Maregatti Interiors CSO Architecture Engineering & Interiors Rowland Design, Inc. Plus many other contributors.

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ES Informal Learning Spaces: A Study of Use

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  1. ES Informal Learning Spaces: A Study of Use IUPUI June 2, 2005

  2. Project Background • Spaces designed and developed by community partners • Major partners • RJE Business Interiors • Maregatti Interiors • CSO Architecture Engineering & Interiors • Rowland Design, Inc. • Plus many other contributors

  3. The Spaces • Five learning spaces created • Design • Lighting • Furniture • Infrastructure: paint, carpet, built-ins • Corridor plants • Adjacent to classrooms in Education-Social Work building • Completed September 2004

  4. The Old “Platforms”

  5. Area 1—Carrels

  6. Area 2 –Sectional Sofa

  7. Area 3 –White Board

  8. Area 4 –Triple Divide

  9. Area 5—Recycling Bar

  10. The Study

  11. Study Team • Nancy Chism, Associate Vice Chancellor and Associate Professor of Education • Liz Coles, Assistant Professor of Interior Design • Erica Pyle and Lauren Bevers, Interior Design Undergraduate Students • Brooke Worland, Education Graduate Student

  12. Methods • Institutional Research Board approval • Design • Observation of use • Informal interviews with users • Table top surveys • Focus groups • Email solicitations to faculty and maintenance staff

  13. Observations • Conducted over a period of 4 weeks in Fall semester 2004 • Covered time range of 9 AM – 7 PM • Noted number of users, types of users, behaviors of users in each space

  14. Informal Interviews • 38 student users for on-the-spot interviews • Standard open-ended questionnaire used (see handout) • Detailed notes transcribed • Analyzed by themes

  15. Table Top Surveys • Standard questionnaire (see handout) placed in all five areas with envelope for completed surveys • Distributed and collected regularly over period of two weeks • 58 completed surveys collected • Analyzed by theme and numerically

  16. Focus Groups • Two time periods set aside for focus groups—before afternoon and evening classes • Instructors of classes notified • On-the-spot recruiting • Four impromptu groups, 23 total students • Question prompts used • Notes from multiple recorders transcribed • Data analyzed by theme

  17. Electronic Requests for Feedback • Email to instructors teaching in adjacent classes (see handout) • Three questions: overall impression, use in teaching, suggestions for change • 20 responses • Analyzed by theme • Email to maintenance staff

  18. Results

  19. Observation Results • 724 people observed • 303 alone • 421 with others • Most common uses • Studying • Talking • Eating • Hanging out

  20. Activities Observed

  21. Observation Time Line Note: Represents the number of students in each space during an average day per observations.

  22. Interview Demographics Interview Age Groups Hours on Campus Per Week Note: Total interviews = 38

  23. Interview Demographics-2 Major Fields of Study

  24. Interview Findings: Positive Overall Impressions-1 • Comfortable (16) • Like chairs (14) • Comfortable, fabrics, placement • Attractive décor (7) • “Gorgeous, state of the art” • Relaxing (4) • Convenient (4) • Close to classes

  25. Interview Findings: Positive Overall Impressions-2 • Colorful (3) • “Starbucks-like” areas • Bright/light (3) • Secluded (3) • “I feel secluded and isolated from everything else” • Nice spaces (3) • Contemporary (2) • Functional (2) • Moveable furniture

  26. Interview Findings: Positive Overall Impressions-3 • Unique (2) • Like tables (2) • “Great for studying” • Quiet (1) • Different from before (1) • Big windows (1) • View and light

  27. Interview Findings: Complaints • Can’t find a place to sit (6) • Tractor stools are uncomfortable (3) • Hallway is too noisy (2) • Rolling task chairs (1) • “They get stuck on the carpet.” (Area 1) • “Always moved to other spaces.” (Areas 4 & 5)

  28. Interview Comments on Design • “I really like them, it’s the reason I stopped, I thought WOW!” • “Stylish, looks great!” “Very modern” • “I think they are nice looking.” • “It’s nice and convenient. It’s sometimes loud, but I know they can’t really restrict that.” • “I like it. It’s cute.” • “Good use of corridors. Good use of extra space because of the way the corner is cut.” (Area 1)

  29. Interview Comments on Furniture • “I like the rotating chairs.” (Area 5) • “I’m confused by the bar stools. What is their purpose?” (Area 2) • “All the furniture is relaxing except the stools.” (Tractor stools Area 2) • “I like the poofy chairs.” (Area 5) • “I like the desk part. The chairs are for relaxing.” (Area 4) • “More cushiony seats are nicer.” (Area 3)

  30. Interview Comments on Colors • “The different colors in the spaces make me feel different ways.” Area 4 makes her feel relaxed. • “Why not use regular colors instead of this weird yellow?” She goes on to say the space is her favorite. (Area 2) • “The color is bright. It makes me feel more awake.” (Area 2) • “All the colors are aesthetically pleasing.”

  31. Where Interview Respondents Spend Time on Campus • Education/Social Work (10) • University Library (7) • Lecture Hall (6) • Cavanaugh Hall (6) • Business/SPEA (5) • Engineering/Science and Technology (4) • University College (4) • Informatics and Computer Technology Complex (3) • Science (3)

  32. Impact on Interviewee’s School Work • Positive (14) • “It’s nice to have somewhere on campus to work.” • “It’s quiet, isolated, and I like to be close to class.” • “It is easy and comfortable for groups.” • “It helps me to get more work done. It’s easier and more convenient.” • Not about school work (12) • “Always full.” “Fairly noisy.” • “I study at home and play games with friends here.” • “I usually just eat and wait for class.” • “Not really, I just like that it is comfortable.” • Undecided (2)

  33. Change in Interviewee’s Space Use • Used space before renovation (7) • “It was awful!” • “It’s a pretty good improvement. I like it a lot.” • “Big blocks were so uncomfortable.” • “We usually sat on the floor around the cubes.” • Did not use space before (18) • “I went outside when it was nice.” • “The cubes were too uncomfortable.” • N/A—first semester at IUPUI (9)

  34. Interviewees’ Comparison with Spaces at Other Campuses-1 • Indiana University Bloomington (3) • “Not this neat.” • “The spaces are old.” • Purdue University (2) • “Similar but not as nice.” • Indiana State University (1) • “Kind of in the food areas.” • Marian College (1) • “Nothing like this. Just tables and chairs.”

  35. Interviewees’ Comparison with Spaces at Other Campuses-2 • Eastern Kentucky University (1) • “Similar.” • Franklin College (1) • “No, not spaces like these. Not commuter friendly” • Butler (1) • “They only have tables and chairs. Nothing like this.” • Vincennes (1) • “Just space in the Library, but nothing like this.”

  36. Survey Results: Demographics • Average Years at IUPUI: 2.72 • Gender • Male 29% • Female 71% • Average Age: 26.14 • Most Common Majors • Social Work, Nursing, Dentistry, Education

  37. Surveys Ratings of Carrels Rating: 1-10, with 10 being excellent.

  38. Survey Comments on Carrels

  39. Survey Ratings on Sectional Sofa Area Rating: 1-10, with 10 being excellent.

  40. Survey Comments on Sectional Sofa Area

  41. Survey Ratings on White Board Area Rating: 1-10, with 10 being excellent.

  42. Survey Comments on White Board Area

  43. Survey Ratings on Triple Divide Area Rating: 1-10, with 10 being excellent.

  44. Survey Comments on Triple Divide Area

  45. Survey Ratings on Recycling Bar Area Rating: 1-10, with 10 being excellent.

  46. Survey Comments on Recycling Bar Area

  47. Electronic Results: Faculty • Comfortable • Functional/Practical • “In short, I think it was one of the wisest uses of space and best thing for the students that I have seen in many years.” • Appealing/Inviting • “My initial impression upon . . . seeing the renovations was that I had stumbled into Starbucks. It is very pleasant and pleasing to the eye.” • “. . . gives the school a look of cohesiveness, as it promotes student interaction.”

  48. Electronic Results: Faculty • Break-out Space for Group Work • “ . . my students regularly work in small groups and one or more of the groups will venture to the areas outside during class to discuss and work in small groups.” • “My students use the space . . . as a classroom extension.” • Meetings with Students • “Instead of going to my office to discuss a concept after class, I find a comfortable chair to sit and chat with students.”

  49. Electronic Results: Faculty • Group Work • “I have often seen students before and after class using those spaces to work on small group assignments so this space makes this easier for them.” • Studying • “I definitely think the space is being used for more than just getting together or chatting.”

  50. Electronic Results: Faculty • Well Populated • “I wanted to use the space for chatting with a student but couldn’t find an empty spot.” • “I see many students studying and waiting for classes.” • “I feel that they are great informal learning areas and there appear to be people at them most of the time that I am there.”

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