Informal learning in architectural education through sociomaterial approaches: Towards a network-based pedagogy in design education

AbstractMost ethnographic research on architectural education focuses on formal teaching events. It mainly analyses meetings between students and teachers in tutorial sessions, design reviews, and formal presentations. Architectural knowledge, however, is also acquired informally between formal academic sessions. This study focuses on informal design-learning processes within formal architecture academic courses. Our data were collected during eight months of ethnographic study in an immersive masters-level architecture programme. We analysed our data using a macro-level inductive methodology and interpreted our findings using a sociomaterial theoretical approach. This paper offers two types of contributions. Theoretically, it contributes to our understating of informal learning processes in architectural education by demonstrating how different actor network compositions and dynamics affect informal learning. Pedagogically, it re-evaluates the role of the design instructor within a broader context of actors working together to produce knowledge and develops a network approach to design education.Keywords: Architectural educationinformal learningsociomaterial approachdesignbuildethnography Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Additional informationNotes on contributorsBarak PelmanBarak Pelman is a lecturer at Bezalel Academy of Art and Design School of Architecture and the director of the Hybrid Pedagogy Lab, an interdisciplinary research initiative focusing on the ways art and design knowledge is generated within contemporary hybrids of digital-physical learning environments. In the School of Architecture, Barak runs a designbuild studio and focuses on making and experimenting with materials and technologies as the driving forces of architectural design.Amit Raphael ZoranAmit Raphael Zoran is an Associate Professor at the Rachel and Selim Benin School of Computer Science and Engineering at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. His research focuses on digital design, craft, fabrication, and human–computer interaction. Amit combines computational tools, novel digital-based methodologies, and ethnographic methodologies to study the dynamics of the craftsperson’s practice and creativity.