The Next Generation Learning Spaces conference was held in Manchester, UK, 20-22 March 2018, hosted by IQPC.CO.UK, and University of Manchester, UK.

The aim was to present and to discuss on the topics as

• improve student engagement, retention, and academic results by adopting unique approaches, and to re-imagine learning spaces
• design and implementation of cost-effective, flexible, and future proofed space to ensure that learning environmemtns can adapt to future demands and continue to deliver world class teaching and learning opportunities
• select, integrate, and utilise technology to drive innovation and optimise the learning process to deliver on student expectations now, and  into the future
• develop key metrics to monitor, and measure performance of new learning spaces to identify areas of improvement and justify investments
• collaborate effectively with all stakeholders throughout the entire project process to avoid cost blow outs, time delay, and missing brief

I was invited to host a preworkshop on the 20 March 2018, which I did. The presentation can be downloaded at my SlideShare account

1:00 PM - 3:00 PM Workshop B: Future Libraries: Re-thinking Traditional Spaces and Aligning them With User Expectations

With this in mind, this workshop is will provide you with the tools to:

Review recent trends influencing the future of University Libraries and analyse their implications on design, user experience and operation
Assess your space and storage arrangements, identify unique requirements and develop leaner learning environments and user centric space
Look at storage arrangements/ consortiums to house older journals, along with other technologies to build leaner learning environments

Next Generation Learning Spaces is a hot and highly debated topic right now due to high demands and trends for educatiion, not at least to the changing learning landscape, and UNESCO SDG4. Some of them can be described as

Competitiveness amongst Universities, changing expectations from students, rising fees, introduction of new frameworks and the rapid pace of change occurring with technology is changing the entire education landscape.

New campus development, as well as re-lifing and retrofitting existing spaces can create an opportunity to disrupt traditional ways of teaching and transform the way in which students interact and learn, but it must be approached in the right way.

It is clear therefore, to attract and retain students, as well as improve engagement and drive better results; the classroom of the future must utilize the physical space effectively, whilst leveraging tech-driven innovations that support the innovative environment and teaching approaches.

Clearly, understanding how existing spaces are performing by leveraging, ratings tools and post occupancy assessment will be key.

With this in mind, this year’s event aimed to continue to focus on process of creating innovative, comfortable, accessible, flexible, collaborative, and aesthetically pleasing and technology enabled spaces, but it will evolve to cover performance assessment of spaces. The event gathered a large variety of professions with interest in Next Generation Learning spaces, such as academics, Librariens, Architects, Estate staff, Administrators, Senior Managers, and Rectores, as well as Students. The Conference had also a wordlwide target group, although mainly from UK and Ireland, but  also from US, Brazil, Lithuania, and Sweden.

Space, whether physical or virtual, can have a significant impact on learning. Learning Spaces focuses on how learner expectations influence such spaces, the principles and activities that facilitate learning, and the role of technology from the perspective of those who create learning environments: faculty, learning technologists, librarians, and administrators. Information technology has brought unique capabilities to learning spaces, whether stimulating greater interaction through the use of collaborative tools, videoconferencing with international experts, or opening virtual worlds for exploration.

Recently I have presented and discussed learning spaces in two of my latest Blogposts from 25 February for the online Conference CO18, on the topic Learning Spaces, and Cross Action Spaces, the other one was from my presentation Innovative Learning Spaces at the online discussion for Open Education Europa the 30 January 2018.