Description of the project development.
The experience gained with the Housing@21.eu intensive programmes, has been a motivation to create a new consortium to develop a larger and more structured virtual campus to study dwelling at a European scale. This virtual campus will integrate on-line and off-line learning activities encompassing: 1. innovative pedagogic methods, which interweave on-line resources with traditional classroom activities to study housing from a multidisciplinary perspective: seminars and studio projects, digital repositories and cases of study, along with joint design workshops, carried out physically and virtually, in a collaborative manner 2. multi-national and multi-professional activities planned in conjunction with community representatives and local authorities, to study the problems of dwelling and to propose solutions to it 3. Bologna compatible courses (ECTS credited) aimed to support the creation of future European Master's programs, which combine physical and virtual mobility of teachers and students
The expected outcomes of the project are: an innovative pedagogic methodology integrating on-line activities with the curricula at each partner institution, implemented, tested and validated; critical analysis of e-learning methods and tools applied in architectural education (virtual design studios, repositories of cases of study); educational open resources stemming from the learning activities conforming to standards; innovative housing proposals embracing architectural, urban and environmental scale, developed collaboratively by the participating institutions in conjunction with social and professional organizations; evaluation reports of the methods and tools employed and the results obtained; reports of good and bad practices and recommendations for other partners to join the virtual campus.
The impact envisaged for the project: 1. an increasing awareness of the European dimension of dwelling, not only among academics but also among local authorities, practitioners and operators in the economic sectors; 2. promoting citizen participation in housing design and environmental analysis; 3. establishing models of good practice for the application of virtual campuses in architectural education, as a result of integrating content, pedagogic methods and ICT in a meaningful, efficient and innovative manner; 4. strengthening the links among participating institutions, leading to the creation of shared curricula; 5. disseminating the virtual campus methodology and products among higher education institutions, professional bodies and social organizations, in order to promote the consolidation and future growth of the virtual campus; and 6. influencing future policies on education, after demonstrating the validity of the implemented learning model.
The overall cost of the two-year project was 399.408 euros. The Long Life Learning Programme's contribution amounts to 299.556 euros.
Once the Erasmus Virtual Campus was completed in 2009, we applied for a new grant to consolidate and disseminate the project results during the year 2010-2011. The activities of the one year project include the enhancement of the learning platform, the organization of an international workshop and an international conference, exhibitions and publications to disseminate the project outcomes.
The overall cost of the one-year project is 200.000 euros. The Long Life Learning Programme's contribution amounts to 150.000 euros.