Abstract:

In Architectural Design classes, studios and face to face desk critiques are widely used to help students develop their skills. In large classes, communication amongst the students and professor, while effective, is limited. One way to increase communication opportunities and provide further pedagogical support is through the use of technology.In this presentation, I will illustrate the use of a Facebook page I created for my 5th year architecture design studio at the American university of Sharjah to communicate and interact with them beyond the face to face desk critiques. The widely used social network is already A place for virtual daily interactions among new generations, thus it is easy and familiar to them. The page, called “space[less] city” was our “virtual community” where students acted as “virtual citizens”. The introduction of the Facebook page was an expansion of the physical studio space where students were involved in the creation of a learning community. High level of communication, ease of access to information, immediate feedback, theoretical and procedural insights were beneficial toward students’ active learning.
Moreover, throughout the semester, the activities of the studio were extended beyond the edges of the “space[less]city “ involving other architects that had a Facebook profile and accepted to become guest critics of our studio.

Keywords:

Virtual, Facebook, architectural design.