What are the latest curriculum changes and reforms in architecture education?
The pedagogy at School of Architecture, Anant National University, focuses on a deep and detailed understanding of material and construction technology. This is rooted in not just architectural design studios.
Subjects like history, building construction and climate studies are also seen through this lens. This allows the students to learn the various indigenous design and construction possibilities and pushes them to innovate and experiment the traditional knowledge in the contemporary world.
Pandemic allowed the students to relate to their immediate surroundings and analyse and respond to situational problem. Design solutions which were region specific were generated. This constraint of being in different regions allowed the curriculum to address various situations and contexts for a deeper understanding of the built world.
It also inversed various pre conceived ideas of privacy, ownership, inside-outside relationships, public and private which were incorporated as lectures, webinars and inputs in the curriculum post pandemic.
How are courses in technology, climate action & visual arts helpful to students professionally?
The need of the hour is to be able to analyse and perceive knowledge in multiple perspectives. The fast changing world and innovation in technology demands one to be industry ready and being trained to review situations as a whole give students at AnantU an edge over the rest. We are conscious of giving our students multidisciplinary perspectives that help them be better designers and better solutionaries.
For instance, the digital learning experience has evolved a lot in the last few years. It allows one to gain knowledge from various sources, regions and bring the world on the table. This has opened up the opportunity for international collaborations with universities and scholars, enhancing the learning experience, research possibilities and helping with design teaching practices.
In what ways are technologically advanced methods changing conventional teaching?
The new age technologically advanced teaching methods have increased the reach but have affected the experiential learning component. With its many advantages, it also decreases the understanding of scale, tactility and spatiality.
The university is striving to balance this by hybrid learning methods which allows us to garner a wholesome experience. Experiential learning is a very important aspect of the pedagogy at Anant National University. Whether it is the traditional ways of teaching or the new age software; practical knowledge, community engagement and impact of environment are elements that we strongly advocate.