LEARNINGSCAPE: An Interactive Learning Center

Abstract

In the human body, learning is an ever-evolving process. We learn consciously and subconsciously; through our senses, through our surroundings and through the people we interact with. But in Pakistan, all learning has been relegated to 'schools' where a strict regimented learning takes place, and where children are expected to memorize course material rather than being exposed to a holistic learning environment. Thus, abilities like creative, cognitive, and critical thinking are usually sidelined in children, and they end up becoming adults who may have base knowledge but lack the ability to think critically and respond to situations in an original way. An Interactive Learning Center is proposed that counterpoints this by creating an integrated learning environment. Envisioned as a 'landscape of learning', the Center will combine structured and unstructured methods of learning to curate an engaging and explorative learning experience, centered around learning through skill-development, participation, and play. Spread across an urban park, the Learning Center will weave itself into an environment that enables children to learn through interaction with nature, through interaction with the architectural fabric, and through interaction amongst themselves. It will become a focal point within the urban context, blurring into the public domain, and reviving the site as a community hub within the neighborhood.