One takeaway from my experience teaching landscape architecture studio design online beginning in 2019 was that not only was it possible but that the resulting student work was equal to and in some cases better than traditional in-studio classes. Why this is so I attribute the favorable results to the fact that students were present online and listened in on all individual desk critiques. They truly learned from each other's critiques and were then able to apply what they heard to their own work. When it was announced in Spring 2019 by the university administration that we would need to be ready to teach our courses online within two weeks of the announcement, my colleagues and I were not at all thrilled of the imminent prospect. As it turns out, teaching online via Zoom was not all that bad. Many of us quickly learned how to effectively approach online teaching g of design as well as landscape construction courses such as site grading. We found out by trial and error that teaching our courses online was not the end of the world. As a matter of fact, the online experience proved to be a bonus for our students as it prepared them for practicing remotely when they joined the workforce.

I was able to apply my online teaching of design studio courses when I was approached by the International School of Art (SIA), a university in Beijing China, to teach a park planning and design workshop in fall 2021. Having myself visited and taught short courses at several Chinese universities over a 10-year period in the past prior to the COVID 19 lockdown I felt comfortable working with the Chinese students. The special park design workshop I was asked to teach in 2021 was for master's level landscape architecture students, students who themselves were taking the course in cities throughout China. The results were very successful, so much so that I was asked to teach again this year in the fall 2022. I have selected a cross-section of the students' final projects. The proposed park was located on an island in a river south of the City of Chengdu civic center.

 

The program outlined in the course brief was to design an inclusive park to serve the neighborhoods in the vicinity of Bamboo Island. Activities included a diverse non-sport functions including nature trails, picnic, children's play, outdoor classroom, multi-functional spaces for dancing (ballroom dancing is a popular outdoor activity in many parts of China), nature preserve, and other appropriate functions identified by individual students. The duration of the course was 6 weeks. Students met online for studio twice a week with time for "desk critiques" of each student. The course was taught in English. The SIA university provided an online 'translator application as well as a faculty assistant who herself did graduate studies in Scotland. She served as a backup translator when needed.

Students were required to work independently, not in groups as is common in China. Their ability to communicate in English improved as the students gained confidence and became less timid. Their English was not perfect but was good enough to engage with the teacher and explain their work during class critiques and for the final presentation of their park design solutions. Following are selected examples of individual student work.

The upcoming Parks Issue of Landscape Architect and Specifier News saw many firms submit their projects for feature consideration. This project was not chosen for a Feature in the issue, but we at LandscapeArchitect.com thought the project deserved to be showcased online . . .

To have your project featured in LASN or on LandscapeArchitect.com please email dherbold@landscapearchitect.com

For more information about submitting a project, go to: https://landscapearchitect.com/research/editorial/editorial-submissions.php