Abstract
Social learning theory asserts that learning involves constructing knowledge through dialogue with others. Traditional learning spaces designed with didactic pedagogies in mind are often not flexible enough to cater to the range of social learning activities promoted by educationalists in classrooms today. This thesis investigates the interaction between social constructivist theories of learning and urban design, developing a body of social learning space design theory as well as space design principles which foster social learning in a university setting. The research uses an 'Enquiry by Design' methodology to develop the principles, basing this enquiry on two case studies: (i) a pilot study analysing an existing social learning space; the Simon Williams Undergraduate Centre, and (ii) an ongoing masterplanning project at Oxford Brookes University's Gipsy Lane campus, Space to Think.