Nurturing innovation and creativity in educational practice: principles for supporting faculty peer learning through campus design

Abstract

While much work has focused on pedagogical innovation processes within universities, less has been said of the processes and cultures which foster and give rise to creativity within HE, and the ways in which faculty members are encouraged to develop their pedagogy across disciplines and within their departments. This paper examines the ways campus spaces at a UK university are utilised by staff for peer learning, and the barriers and affordances for innovation and creativity in educational practice. Utilising an interdisciplinary design, this paper suggests that the various spaces available to university teaching staff are able to be further utilised to support creative practice and peer learning, presented as four design principles: innovation happens in everyday spaces; communal spaces need social functions; forums have different scales; and, collaborative spaces require a collective culture. The normalising of a culture of innovation requires both physical, as well as behavioural, adjustments to the use of space, suggesting that both faculty and institutions need to work together to reimagine spaces for peer learning.