Creating a learning-centred community is a key part of the University of Otago's proposed "master plan" to develop its campuses in the future.
Andrew Harrison and Steven Smith, from international learning and environment consultants DEGW, spoke to university executives, staff, students and the community last week about how they saw learning changing in the future and how universities could adapt.
Gone will be the days of a traditional lecture held in a lecture theatre.
Students will demand more interaction and a complimentary relationship between virtual and physical space, Mr Harrison said.
Technology will become more and more central to their learning experience as online communities, "immersive learning, game-based learning and visualisation of complex data" come into the mix, he said.
As this technology becomes more important, so too does technological mobility, which will require power sockets, "prime pieces of real estate", to be available everywhere.
Space will also be used in different ways, as transition spaces get exploited to "take advantage of every opportunity for learning".
He praised the university's Link space in the Information Services Building for its student friendly nature and wanted to create more like it as part of the master plan.
Mr Harrison favoured having "flexible and adaptable space", which could be used for many different purposes and subjects to ensure high use of all space.
Vice-chancellor Prof David Skegg believed Dunedin needed to be involved in the new master plan.
"This university has been created by the city and the community. I hope that most Dunedin citizens regard it as a lively and attractive part of the environment."
Between now and January, the master plan will be developed, discussed and refined.
The visit marked the first information gathering trip for Mr Harrison and Mr Smith, property services manager Barry MacKay said.
The plan will be submitted to the university's governing council next year.
