Teaching Spaces: The Fourth Corner of University Learning

Teachers hold valuable knowledge and intimate understanding of the spaces where students learn. It is important to leverage their knowledge and allow their voices to be heard in planning new spaces. This article reports on mixed methods research undertaken at the School of Law, University College Cork, to assess teachers' views on spaces, with particular focus on two rooms - a traditional lecture room and a discipline-specific Moot Court room. We present an inquiry - focused conceptual framework, the application of which has helped us investigate and make public the perspectives of teachers regarding engagement in spaces on campus. As this paper demonstrates, it is vital that the staff voice is captured to inform best practice and in the planning and usage of spaces. This idea may be obvious, but we argue it is often overlooked and not leveraged to its full potential. There is also transformative potential for staff as both researchers and research participants in investigating their teaching and the impact of space on practice. The goal of the study is to promote the value of the authentic participation of teachers in the development and use of university spaces from a teaching perspective.