PEER LEARNING TO DEVELOP STUDENT’S SKILLS, SHARE KNOWLEDGE AND 5553 FOSTER A SENSE OF COMMUNITY IN UNDERGRADUATE DESIGN STUDIOS

The study examines different peer learning methods and strategies implemented in two courses of the Design School of the Politecnico di Milano to increase student involvement and collaboration during the training activities. The paper aims to highlight the different activities and results obtained during the design studios to show some strategies specifically conceived to encourage students to cooperate, provide knowledge sharing and help build a sense of community. The experiment took place with two different types of students, during the course in full presence mode, after the interruptions due to the covid-19. The interruptions alienated students and, in some cases, made it more difficult for class members to get to know each other and to collaborate with different groups, affecting the importance of peer learning to develop students' skills in communication, critical thinking, and self-confidence. The experimentation took place with two types of students with different needs and backgrounds: Experiment 1: Second-year students of the Master's Degree in Interior and Spatial Design of Politecnico di Milano, within the design studio named "Contest Design Studio". The class was composed of international students, mainly working together for the first time, who attended the first year partly remotely. Experiment 2: First-year students of the Bachelor's Degree in Interior Design of Politecnico di Milano, within the design studio named "Elementi Visivi del Progetto". The class comprised national students who had already worked together in small groups during the first semester, partly remotely. The majority met physically for the first time during the course. The topics the two design studios addressed are different, while the structure is similar; in both cases, the courses envisage the development of a project and consist of: lectures held by the various professors of the course, talks held by guests, guided tours and extracurricular experiences, classroom review of the projects carried out by groups, with four students each. During the first phase of the course, more time is dedicated to frontal and theoretical lessons. In contrast, the second phase focuses on the project and the revisions, a tool to increase the student's skills and put the acquired theoretical knowledge into practice. The revision is an essential moment of growth and learning; unfortunately, students are increasingly reluctant to participate in the revisions of other groups, the last two years of distance learning have made collaboration more complex, and students often consider revisions as private moments in which the single group meets with the teacher's team. The paper aims to illustrate the various activities that have led to positive results demonstrating favourable aspects of peer learning, including increased confidence and competence. Students belonging to different groups collaborated; after the first difficulties encountered, students proved to be proactive in finding ways for project debate through peer-to-peer review, and being able to expand their design and comparing abilities, also increasing the sense of belonging to the class, weakened by previous events.