Phillip Arena

Boola Katitjin, which translates to “lots of learning” in Noongar, is a newly built, sustainable building that amplifies the Murdoch experience with new places to learn, study and socialise, while reflecting the University’s commitment to both in-person and online learning. With over 60% of the university’s classes able to be timetabled in the building in 2023, the Support for Academic Learning team piloted a team-teaching model to deliver communication skills units to undergraduate and postgraduate cohorts. At the centre of Murdoch University's Perth campus, Boola Katitjin provides a mindful and technology-rich educational experience to learn, connect and belong. Students, staff, and industry alike can meet, work, and engage in the building’s 21 large flat-floor format teaching and learning spaces, technology-rich labs, and immersive industry collaboration facilities. These spaces have been designed to put students at the centre of a social learning environment, enable innovative teaching methods with technology-enhanced features and aesthetic furnishings that encourage active and collaborative learning. Together, we embrace the pedagogical and technology affordances that the new building provides, to deliver memorable and impactful learning experiences for our students. This paper will explore how understanding ways to effectively use the learning spaces plays a significant role in teaching and learning, enabling both students and educators to construct meaning through their interactions with the content, and with one another, within the environment.