Abstract:

The growing trends of use of Geographical Information Systems (GISs) in the fields of urban planning, spatial planning, or landscape planning increase the need for the inclusion of GISs in architectural education. The use of GISs offers architects an effective tool for collecting georeferenced data for the analysis supporting the well-informed decision making and the data-based design of space, presented in maps of various scales. However, the students of architecture programs are required to get a broad set of knowledge, skills, and competencies, so there are many subjects, offering specific knowledge in specific domains, competing for their place in the curricula. The use of digital technologies in architectural education focuses more on construction-related computer-aided design or three-dimensional modeling, building information modeling, virtual or augmented reality. GIS courses are often difficult to include in the curricula on a compulsory basis. The research reviews the experience of teaching GISs in the architectural study program at the Faculty of Architecture and Design of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava (Slovakia), analyses the possibilities of including GIS-based courses in the curricula of bachelor or master study programs, and discusses setting the teaching models, to meet the requirements of design studios, architectural practice and demand of students.

Keywords:

GIS, urban planning, urban design studio, data-driven design, architectural education.