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Discover the future of teaching and learning in MECD

21 Nov 2019

Find out more about the fantastic new teaching and learning spaces opening in MECD in 2021

MECD Blended lecture theatre floor plan

Manchester Engineering Campus Development (MECD) will be open for teaching in less than two years, welcoming our engineering and material science students to their new home in September 2021.

Some of the most innovative teaching and learning spaces in the UK’s higher education sector will be housed within the walls of the six buildings that make up the development. From a UK sector-first blended lecture theatre to a fully interactive 550 seat lecture theatre and the University’s first maker space, our designs put students and their experience at the heart of MECD.  

Commenting on the design Gianpaolo Vignali, MECD Academic Lead for Teaching and Learning, said: “Our plans for the first three floors of MEC Hall are fully student centred, we are creating sector leading spaces for our students to study, create and meet outside of timetabled teaching time.  Our students tell us that they expect a ‘learn anywhere, anytime environment’ and we are delivering on this.   

Gianpaolo continues: “It is also an exciting time for our teaching staff with MECD offering high density WiFi throughout, plus the ability to blend didactic delivery and group working, high quality small group teaching rooms and better AV support for teaching in computer clusters and laboratories.”

Showstopper elements of the teaching and learning spaces include:

  • 550 and 450 seat lecture theatres with broadcast quality AV equipment with three projector feeds, power to each seat and a layout which means the viewing angle from each seat meets or exceeds national guidelines, which is rare in the sector. 
  • 116-160 and a 160-200 seat blended lecture theatres, which will provide for didactic delivery and group working. 
  • Teaching workshops and a makerspace fully equipped with all the tools and equipment needed to teach our students workshop skills and also allow them to be imaginative and explore their ideas, in a practical space away from timetabled lab or workshop sessions. 
  • Four timetabled computer clusters with dual screen monitors and specialist software. The dual screen set-up means staff can control the second screen to deliver teaching material to their students. These clusters will be available to students outside of timetabled hours. 

Over the next few months StaffNet News and Beeline will be delving deeper into these and other teaching and learning areas to explore the benefits for both our staff and students in more detail.