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Session 1621

Design Habitat: Putting the Pieces Together Elizabeth Petry, AIA University of Hartford

Students of architecture like many undergraduate students are challenged with "putting the pieces" of various courses together. The development of a new Architectural Engineering Technology course at the University of Hartford will help to address these concerns. Design Habitat attempts to cross over all phases of architectural services and includes a service learning component to undergraduate technology education. The new course promotes critical thinking, problem solving skills, and creativity. Student learning is improved by effective implementation of practice.

Issues in Architectural Education

The study of buildings has always included the blending of aesthetic issues with those of technology. Vitruvius’ ancient ideals of Firmness, Commodity, and Delight have challenged architects and students of architecture for centuries. The education of an architect includes course work in “architectural ‘basics’ – architectural history, architectural theory, drawing, technical courses such as structures and environmental systems, and, above all, design”1 Finding the balance and connections between these areas of study is the challenge that faces students of architecture each day.

In 1996, the late Ernest L. Boyer and Lee D. Mitgang completed a comprehensive report on the state of architectural education with goals for improvement. The Carnegie report on "Building Community: A New Future for Architecture Education and Practice" challenged the academic community to “A New Vision”. Boyer and Mitgang were “especially inspired by the design studio, the distinctive holy of holies of architecture education where generations of bleary-eyed students have hunched over drafting tables until all hours working on balsa or cardboard creations amid old sofas and soda cans.”2 However, Boyer also noted, “many design studios seem not to be living up to their goals”.3 “Building Community” also challenged the architectural community to provide "Service to the Nation". "Schools of architecture, in other words, should educate students for both competence and caring."4 The architecture profession demands service of its constituents and requires architectural interns provide community service through the Intern Development Program (IDP), a prerequisite to licensure throughout the United States.

In response to “Building Community”, Hugh Hochberg of the Coxe Group, Inc. reported on “The State of the Profession”. Hochberg also recognized the challenges presented to the architectural profession. He challenged the academy to “help students understand more about the real world in which they will be practicing (while also recognizing that with some of their skills they many help shape it differently).”

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Petry, E. (2000, June), Design Habitat: Putting The Pieces Together Paper presented at 2000 Annual Conference, St. Louis, Missouri. 10.18260/1-2--8267