From Learning Commons to Learning Outcomes: Assessing Collaborative Services and Spaces

This ECAR research bulletin reviews six recent user studies of the commons model on different campuses, with three highlighted as exemplars. While the studies used varying methodologies, their cumulative results indicate that the commons model cannot be evaluated by focusing only on design aspects of “learning spaces” or perceptions of “library as place.” These features must be balanced by qualitative reviews of service effectiveness and quantitative measures of service delivery. This bulletin concludes with a consideration of change theory as a possible means to extend service evaluations and spatial appraisals to assessments of learning outcomes.

Citation for this Work: Beagle, Donald. “From Learning Commons to Learning Outcomes: Assessing Collaborative Services and Spaces.” (Research Bulletin). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Analysis and Research, September 27, 2011, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.