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Queen’s University has established itself as a leader in Canadian higher education when it comes to the creation of innovative classrooms that support dynamic styles of teaching and learning. It has invested in more than 20 spaces in recent years that promote the use of technology and active learning with features like movable chairs and multiple whiteboards or screens. Now it has adopted a strategic framework that builds on this success and will help ensure the campus has spaces that support the current and future needs of students and instructors.

The Teaching and Learning Space Framework provides the university with a long-term guide for the design, renewal, and use of classrooms and other learning spaces. It sets out principles that will inform their future renovation and construction, including accessibility, innovation, inclusivity, and sustainability.

“Pedagogical methods and academic programs are constantly evolving, and this framework is designed to give the university guidelines for building spaces that will help teachers and learners stay at the forefront of those changes over time,” says Vice-Provost, Teaching and Learning Gavan Watson. “Classrooms, study spaces, and other learning environments designed using the framework will have features that enhance student engagement, enable the use of new technologies, and foster innovative approaches to teaching and learning.”

Classroom types and planning for improvements

The framework lays out specific recommendations and requirements for different types of classrooms, such as lecture halls, large spaces that can mix lectures and group learning, and small spaces for 60 or fewer learners. It defines the ideal conditions for these spaces, including seating, acoustics, lighting, and technology. The optimal mix of these different types of learning spaces is also identified in the framework.

Flowing from this work, Provost and Vice-Principal (Academic) Matthew Evans has received recommendations on how the university can accelerate improvements to classrooms and other learning spaces. Work is now underway with Vice-Principal (Finance and Administration) Donna Janiec to identify the resources needed to advance priority projects aligned with the framework’s goals.

“Queen’s already has a strong foundation of spaces that support engaged and collaborative learning,” says Vice-Provost Watson. “Through our planning and consultations in the development of the framework, we consistently heard that limited access to large classrooms creates real scheduling challenges. This plan gives us clearer direction for addressing that concern, with a focus on increasing the number of centrally scheduled classrooms that can accommodate 250 learners or more. The analysis shows that by adding four additional large classrooms, we will be positioned to meet future demand. This is a focused and achievable goal and planning for these improvements is already underway."

As part of the effort, Queen’s has also identified a new classroom type to support large-enrolment courses and more active learning. The “combined lecture and group learning” design features terraced levels with tables and movable seating arranged for small groups of four or more learners. This model enables instructors to shift between lecture delivery and collaborative activities in real time. While this type of central classroom space does not yet exist at Queen’s, faculty and students consistently identified it as a priority during the consultation process for the framework. Queen’s Health Sciences uses one classroom of this type, but it is not centrally booked.

A rendering of the combined lecture and group learning classroom type, which features terraced seating and furniture that enables small groups to learn together.

Guiding principles and other features of the framework

Overall, the framework establishes guiding principles that aim to make designs for learning spaces that are inclusive, flexible, and supportive of wellbeing. It outlines a co-design process in which diverse perspectives are engaged at every stage of planning for new learning spaces. This will help ensure that classrooms are inclusive and meet the needs of all students and instructors.

Students learn not only in traditional classrooms but in many distinct environments across campus that serve different purposes. The framework attends to these needs as well, setting guidelines for a variety of spaces, such as maker spaces, quiet study areas, and breakout rooms, that make different types of learning possible.

Indigeneity is another key consideration in the framework. It identifies the ideal features of Indigenous learning spaces, such as circular seating, connections to the land, and enhanced ventilation for smudging. Spaces built with these features will complement the Indigenous classrooms and gathering spaces recently developed at Queen’s, including the Welcoming Room in Mackintosh-Corry Hall and the Outdoor Indigenous Gathering Space.

The Teaching and Learning Space Framework is the result of broad consultations with the internal and external community held from late 2024 through early 2025. Queen’s also worked with BDP Quadrangle to gain external expertise in learning space design.

“I want to thank all the members of the Queen’s community who contributed to the development of this framework, ensuring that it reflects the needs and aspirations of many people at the university,” says Vice-Provost Watson. “This collaborative spirit will be a hallmark of how we will co-design new learning spaces going forward.”

Read the Teaching and Learning Space Framework and learn more on the Office of the Provost’s website.