Learn for Life: New Architecture for New Learning

New spaces for new learning — not just in kindergartens, schools, and universities.

How well we learn is directly linked to where we learn. Because the digital age has changed the way we gather knowledge dramatically, places where we learn now look and feel very differently than they did just a decade earlier. Today, the spaces in which our lifelong path of learning takes place have evolved to accommodate our expanding educational needs. These new spaces promote learning by providing inspiration and helpful tools as well as facilitating opportunities for productive cooperation and collaboration.

A diverse collection of inspiring architecture, Learn for Life showcases spaces that support progressive and collaborative models for acquiring knowledge. In addition to new interpretations of traditional places for learning including kindergartens, schools, universities, libraries, and educational centers, the book also features commercial buildings whose architectural innovations redefine our understanding of what it means to develop professionally in offices, corporate headquarters, conference rooms, convention centers, and laboratories. Also included are more experimental projects including flexible, informal, and temporary installations and exhibitions that offer further perspectives on the rapidly evolving topic of how and where to best learn in the new millennium.

The examples presented in Learn for Life also demonstrate how color, light, the organization of space, and the inclusion of playful as well as surprising elements can be used to support learning.

In short, the work presented in this book makes clear that the creative use of architecture and interior design not only provides a new physical framework for acquiring knowledge, but also revitalizes and advances the process of learning as a whole.