MUSSE

The Eastern Precinct project at the Parkville campus continues to surprise and delight the University community in many ways as the latest refurbished area for students, the new Frank Tate Learning Centre, becomes available.

The Frank Tate Learning Centre opened to students on Monday 8 September and is the second stage of the Eastern Precinct project.

The new Learning Centre provides a suite of four chambers which have been created to be complementary zones for students: a dedicated small-group study space, a comfortable reading room, an IT zone providing quick access to terminals, and a unique informal learning and social space called the Learning Atoll.

The overall precinct project is still some way from completion but will consist of the Eastern Resource Centre (ERC) library, where first stage refurbishments were completed in July 2008, the Frank Tate Learning Centre, the Frank Tate Plaza where two sculptural pavilions will provide shelter and amenity, and the new Science Student Centre which will be located in a large vaulted public space adjacent to the ERC main entry.

The vision behind the Eastern Precinct project is for an ‘improved research and learning environment’ for all students as part of the introduction of the Melbourne Model.

The precinct project is designed to attract and retain students on campus and provides for the social and recreational needs of the University’s locally-based international student body.

The addition of the Frank Tate Learning Centre and adjacent areas will complement the ERC library and bring many more students and staff into the precinct to access the improved services and enjoy the enhanced amenity.

Vice-Chancellor Professor Glyn Davis says that the use of ‘public space’ in the project draws on forward thinking design, the latest technology and an interactive ‘learning landscape’ model for social interaction, sharing of knowledge, recreation and intellectual engagement.

“The new Frank Tate Learning Centre and the first stage of the ERC library refurbishment are providing informal learning and social facilities and delivering a truly Melbourne experience to our students.

“Such spaces are crucial physical foundations for the Melbourne Experience, providing welcoming spaces so students can study, linger and interact on campus.

“I encourage staff and students to take some time to wander through the precinct area and see the imaginative design and facilities on offer,” Professor Davis said.

Professor Peter McPhee, Provost, expects that research higher degree students will enjoy the lounge areas in the lower level of the Frank Tate Learning Centre, and that Education and Engineering students will use the facilities for collaborative and project activities.

“I can already see the presence of students studying creative arts and languages in this space and I hope that all students will choose to spend some time in the new facilities, studying or relaxing,” Professor McPhee said.

Professor Peter Jamieson, Educational Designer in the Office of the Provost, commenced work on the project in 2006. Professor Jamieson conceived the project as an attempt to ‘rejuvenate a potentially exciting precinct of the campus’ which was not realising its full potential either as a social zone for staff and students or as an area supporting research and informal learning.

The purpose of the project was to create a more engaging and inviting campus setting for students.

His role was to conceptualise the project and the new spaces and to work with the project architects, Cox Architects, to develop the specific design of each new space.

Professor Jamieson said he wanted to give a physical expression to the concept of the ‘Melbourne Experience’ that was accommodating towards the international students who live close by and have need of the open space and other amenity that the Parkville campus can provide.

“Learning communities can only be formed when students and staff gather in attractive, functional spaces to collaborate and interact and this is what we have tried to achieve in this project,” Professor Jamieson said.

Meanwhile, in semester two, students moved back into the ERC Level 1, with a new entrance from the 1888 building precinct and a refurbished student IT environment providing improved collaborative study facilities.

Bachelor of Biomedical Science student, Can,19, is a relative newcomer to the library and said he found the ERC a relaxing place to study.

“I walk past here every morning. It seems a little more relaxing than in the biomedical library where people are really into their work and it’s a bit too serious,” Can laughs.

“It just seems like a really nice place to have group discussions and I like the layout of the tables. I think it is very attractive.”

The suite of student IT services on offer at the library includes access to Microsoft Office software as well as selected specialist academic and multimedia software, access to library electronic resources and the Internet, and access to printing. Level 1 of the library also features an e-learning studio that will be primarily used for library and IT training sessions for students.

One of the main attractions of the ERC for students is the capability to connect to the new campus wireless network from their personal laptops. In addition, when there are no scheduled classes or workshops in progress, the computers in the studio are available for general student use.

First-year Arts student, Finola, 19, said she had been using the ERC library for the past six months and is now taking advantage of the wireless network.

“There are so many computers and there are printers and scanners.

“I bring a laptop and have never had any trouble getting on to the network.”

Helen Page, Project Director, Library Learning Centre Developments and Manager, Knowledge Facilitation, said that library staff from the Collections and Scholarly Information programs played a critical role in planning operational processes that allowed the staged implementation of these environments to go ahead.

The Learning Environments Program, led by Jon Peacocke, Student IT Service Owner and Manager, was responsible for the design and implementation of the IT infrastructure program at the ERC and the Frank Tate Learning Centre.

The desktop support team and networks team from the IT infrastructure program were responsible for designing and commissioning the entire data network, as well as designing and deploying all student computers at the Frank Tate Learning Centre and the ERC Level 1 student IT environment.

Bachelor of Early Childhood Studies student, Katie, 20, said she used the area to complete group projects.

“We can work as a group here, in this big space,” she explained.

“It’s got nice big tables, open spaces and good lighting,” she said. “We can use computers and work at the tables as well, we are able to work in groups, and we can discuss projects here.”

Mr Peacocke added that a team of trained student interns at the ERC are employed to provide support and assistance to users of the facilities.

“These interns reflect the diversity of the student population, with a wide range of international languages spoken by team members.

“The service philosophy is about students helping students, and this degree of peer support is seen as one means by which we can help to build stronger cohorts and more enduring learning communities on campus.

“The area is suitable for all students and it is anticipated that undergraduate international students will comprise a significant proportion of the users, as will those students living in nearby accommodation in the city.

“We expect there will be some overlap from the Frank Tate Learning Centre and welcome all those students who study, research and spend time in the Eastern Precinct to access the ERC Level 1 library,” Mr Peacocke said.

The Eastern Precinct project has been a major initiative undertaken by Professor Peter McPhee (Provost) with support from senior management, Professor Peter Jamieson (Educational Designer from Office of the Provost), Helen Page (Project Director, Library Learning Centre Developments and Manager, Knowledge Facilitation) Jon Peacock (Program Manager, Learning Environments Information Services) and members of Property and Campus Services.

For information visit www.infodiv.unimelb.edu.au/tss/hub