Urban Memory and Experiential Learning in Architectural Education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.7577/formakademisk.6629Keywords:
Architectural education, experiential learning, informal learning environments, travellers’ narratives, urban memoryAbstract
This paper proposes a workshop-based framework that applies experiential learning to the interpretation of urban memory through the travel narratives of three visitors to the Turkish city of Trabzon. Grounded in Kolb’s (1984) experiential learning cycle, this study examines a workshop in which architectural students transformed textual narratives into experiential and representational learning processes. The empirical dataset consists of concept maps, urban memory maps, route proposals, fanzines, posters and reflective notes produced throughout the workshop. These materials are analysed using thematic analysis to examine the relationships between narratives, spatial interpretation and representational practices. The analysis identifies three interconnected themes: (1) walking as experiential learning, (2) mapping urban memory, and (3) concept extraction from narratives. The workshop outputs indicate that travel narratives function not merely as historical documents but as pedagogical resources that foster conceptual thinking, urban memory reconstruction and creative representation. By integrating textual interpretation, spatial exploration and design production, the proposed workshop model offers a transferable pedagogical framework for memory-oriented architectural education.
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