A built-in microphone in the ceiling that enables hybrid solutions, fold-out walls that create rooms within the room – and that can also be written on – and furniture on wheels that can be folded up and moved around depending on the type of activity the room is to be used for. These are some examples from the new test environment Learning Lab Örebro, which was inaugurated in Långhuset at Örebro University this week.
"There are so many people who have been involved in creating the Learning Lab and we are really happy to finally get started and start using the environment together with our teachers and students," says Anna-Eva Olsson, team leader for Learning Lab Örebro.
Students' needs at the center
The work of building Learning Lab Örebro has been a very rewarding collaboration," says Charlotta Andersson, architect for learning environments at Akademiska Hus.
"The students' needs have been at the centre and all the work has really been based on Örebro University's pedagogical outlook and how we can realise it. Now we hope that teachers and students will take the opportunity to dare to try Learning Lab – and also take help from the pedagogical and technical support you can get here," she says.
VR technology as an educational tool
Kristin Törnqvist, Örebro Student Union's vice president with responsibility for education policy issues, took the opportunity to test the VR glasses in Learning Lab's VR center. Here, the idea is that teachers and students will be able to explore together how VR as a technology can be used in teaching.
"It's the first time I've tried VR, so it feels both exciting and a little scary. I think VR can be a good tool for students who, for example, want to practice standing and speaking in front of an entire class," she says.
What does it mean for Örebro University's students to be able to take part in new learning environments such as the Learning Lab?
"It gives a lot. Now we have both the Learning Lab and the flexible learning environments in the Forum House, which create new conditions and provide tools for the pedagogy of the future – and it also means that the traditional way of teaching is challenged. This is really the future," says Kristin Törnqvist.
"The sky is the limit"
Helen Stockhult, senior lecturer in business administration at Örebro University, is one of the teachers who is looking forward to trying out the new environment with her students.
"Now there are no educational barriers anymore, but 'the sky is the limit'. These rooms with their interactive solutions are great, the room really supports the way I want to teach. But it's not just about coming here and going on with the old way of thinking as usual – it's about having a thought about how to use Learning Lab," she says.
About Learning Lab
The Learning Lab in Örebro is a test bed for the learning environments of the future, created in collaboration between Akademiska Hus and Örebro University. The project runs between 2022 and 2025.
Learning Lab is Akademiska Hus' national concept where we, together with customers, test the learning environments of the future and explore the interaction between people, pedagogy, space and technology in close collaboration with educators and researchers in the field of learning. Through the Learning Lab, innovation is driven that accelerates the development of the learning environments of the future with the aim of strengthening competence and collaboration on new types of evidence-based learning environments.
Right now, three initiatives are underway, in Gothenburg, Örebro and Umeå.
Charlotta Andersson
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