Innovation in Planning Education

The Innovation in Planning Education research cluster aims to bring together and boost BSP’s research and activities on planning education and pedagogy.

Image of a group of people sitting in a meeting room at various tables

1 April 2024

Overview

Drawing from the wide range of interests and expertise in The Bartlett School of Planning (BSP), the Innovation in Planning Education research cluster aims to contribute to, and shape, academic debates and pedagogical practice(s) in planning education. It aims to:

Present - and further develop - a clear and coherent BSP profile in teaching & learning in planning as an object of research;
Provide an inter-disciplinary cluster on planning education focusing on the different fields relevant for BSP (e.g. planning, design, real estate, sustainability etc) and augment links between colleagues in BSP and externally (such as other departments in the Faculty and IoE);
Shape up academic and practice-based debates on planning education and pedagogy through research contributions and outputs;
Support BSP staff in developing and disseminating research on planning education;
Develop work on pedagogical issues that is relevant for further understanding and supporting teaching and learning at BSP;
Collate and disseminate innovative practices by BSP staff with the aim to inform teaching and learning practices within the faculty and UCL.
Drawing on existing areas of interest and current innovative practices of teaching by members of the cluster, we are developing the following research agenda:
Planning Education and AI, particularly around the impact of AI tools on teaching, learning and assessment, and on professional practice and the skills required by future graduates
Community-engaged teaching and learning, further examining the value of community engaged teaching, its challenges and best practices
Specific types of teaching, learning and assessment, focusing on approaches and best practice in Urban Design, Project Based Teaching in Spatial Planning, and Critical Pedagogy. A particular focus will be on critical thinking and reflective practice
Decolonising the planning curriculum
The impact of Student qualifications on outcomes/performance in Higher Education
The role of universities as embedded institutions and their critical engagement with place-based stakeholders
Diverse identities in planning education

The cluster has a diverse membership, including academics in different stages of their careers and different tracks, PhD students, and professional services staff. Cluster activities will be organised in ways that maximize participation. EDI issues take central stage in our research, and the cluster aims to contribute to debates on these topics as well as BSP practice through research and guidance.

People

Co-leads

Elena Besussi, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Juliana Martins, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Michael Short, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Members

Paula Morais, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Danielle Sanderson, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Valentina Giordano, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Daniel Fitzpatrick, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Professor Elisabete Cidre, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Lucy Natarajan, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Bianca Maria Nardella, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Pablo Sendra, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Susan Moore, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Professor Matthew Carmona, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Professor Catalina Turcu, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Peter McLennan, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Tse-Hui Teh, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Professor Yasminah Beebeejaun, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Filipa Wunderlich, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Dr Jenny Post, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Professor Barbara Lipietz, The Bartlett Development Planning Unit
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Marie Xypaki, PhD student in the IOE, UCL's Faculty of Education and Society and The Bartlett Faculty
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Irene Manzini Ceinar, PhD student at The Bartlett School of Architecture
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Elisabeta Ilie, PhD student at The Bartlett School of Planning
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Mina Sufineyestani, The Bartlett School of Planning
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Outputs

The cluster has a range of activities planned in the coming term including:

Workshop & Seminar: ‘Research in Planning Education’
Cluster Meeting / Seminar: ‘Teaching to think – experiences and best practice in critical thinking pedagogy’
Cluster Meeting / Seminar: ‘Research-led education and critical debates modules’
Cluster Meeting: next academic year’s agenda and activities

We will submit a grant proposal for UCL’s Changemakers on engaging students with critical thinking and scholarship over summer 2024.

A range of members of the cluster have been involved in writing chapters for a UCL Press-published anthology 'Engaged Urban Pedagogies: Participatory Practices in Planning and Place-Making' (Edited by Dr Lucy Natarajan and Dr Michael Short, published in 2023).

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Photo by Dr Michael Short