Design learning from case studies

Not many buildings are carefully evaluated either from a user perspective or from the view point of sustainability. Students develop design strategies from reading magazine articles (Architects Journal, Architecture Today etc). Magazine articles avoid discussion of features in the building that are not successful. This skews the learning process. Design can be improved by a deeper understanding of the complexities of buildings. Carefully assessing the performance of existing buildings can inform both future design as well as existing projects. This paper explores and reviews a case study approach to learning in the module u30020 'Technology and sustainability" for second year architecture students at Oxford Brookes University.