In reflecting on my Action Research Project (ARP), I needed to think carefully about it as a whole: its purpose, structure, and the position I bring to it as an educator. Learning as a student is generally enjoyable, but I have also found it to be deeply stressful at times. Throughout my professional career, learning has largely taken place through practice — through evolving projects, collaboration, and reflection — rather than through formal academic research. Undertaking the PGCert, particularly through the in‑person workshops, has made me more aware that delivering an Action Research Project with depth requires a different kind of learning. It requires me to start with myself: who I am, what I do, and why this research matters.
POSITIONALITY: Who I am
My name is Sarah. I am a white woman in my fifties, born and raised in the Midlands in the UK. I have a BA in Interior Design and a Master’s degree in Interior Design and Architecture. Since completing my MA, I have worked within design and architecture practices across a range of sectors, including retail, exhibition, and workplace design. These varied contexts allowed me to explore design outcomes at multiple scales and contributed to a broad, practice‑based understanding of spatial design.
In 2004, I joined an architecture firm where I led the interiors team. This role enabled me to consolidate my professional experience and shaped my collaborative approach to practice. In 2012, I began working independently while teaching part‑time on the BA Interior Design programme at Regent’s University London. I taught across year groups, drawing on professional practice to support students’ understanding of design processes. Over time, my teaching responsibilities expanded to include the Integrated Foundation programme and, later, leadership of the 3D module, where I developed curriculum content and briefs to support consistent design learning at Level 3.
Since 2019, I have worked as an Associate Lecturer on the Foundation at UAL Central Saint Martins (now the UAL School of Pre-Degree Studies), teaching Architecture and Spatial Design. I also teach on short courses, the InSights outreach programme, and as an Academic Support Tutor. Teaching predominantly international students at Regent’s and a mixed cohort at UAL has enriched my understanding of cultural diversity and strengthened my commitment to inclusive and decolonised pedagogic practices. The reciprocal relationship between my professional practice and my teaching continues to energise and inform my work.
As Sarah Homan writes in How to Write a ‘Positionality Statement’ (and Why Positioning Identity Matters in Decolonising Research and Knowledge Production):
” one of the (many) ways I can contribute is to reflect on my identity, including my beliefs, attitudes and behaviours, and also my work and practice. In doing so, I acknowledge that my work is shaped by what I know and what I know is shaped by who I am and what I’ve experienced”
This reflection underpins my approach to this research project.
WHAT: The aim of the project
The aim of my Action Research Project emerged from an intersection of my spatial practice, my role as an educator, and the relocation of the UAL Foundation in Art and Design to the Lime Grove campus in Shepherd’s Bush. The project sought to enhance students’ learning experiences by better understanding — and ultimately improving — the spaces in which they learn.
CONTEXT:
The merger of the CSM and CCW Foundation courses in the previous academic year created significant challenges for staff and students. Teaching across two sites, unclear communication, and a hurried amalgamation of curriculum content contributed to uncertainty and disruption. This academic year marks the consolidation of the newly formed School of Pre‑Degree Studies (such a mouthful!) into a single location at Lime Grove. While intended as an improvement, the relocation involved substantial compromise and became the catalyst for my research project.
During the previous academic year, I noticed increasing unease among students regarding how and where they were learning. Many required additional one‑to‑one support during the taught sessions and outside the studio environment. Perhaps my awareness was heightened by my role as an Academic Support Tutor? Nevertheless, it was clear that the learning environment was affecting students’ engagement and sense of belonging.
The first week in the new space was overwhelming. The teaching studio was overcrowded with furniture and desks, circulation space was restricted, and the environment felt oppressive. If I felt overwhelmed, I questioned how students must have been feeling. This prompted me to research how learning spaces are designed, how emotional geographies shape experience, and how spatial environments can support creativity.
I explored UAL institutional approaches to student feedback, including standard surveys such as the NSS and additional internal feedback mechanisms. While universities frequently claim that student feedback inspires change, I was sceptical about how much meaningful consultation takes place before spatial decisions are implemented. UAL states that:
“Every year we survey students to help inspire change” UAL Internal Communications (2022)
After reading this, I was intrigued by how much change is actually implemented. In the UAL web Story ‘Enhancing our physical spaces’ (2023), the Student Communications team states, “We’re actively improving our campus environment. We’re investing in our spaces, not only to accommodate more students but also to enhance your overall learning experience and broaden our academic offerings, in line with Guiding principle3 of our Strategy and in response to your feedback.”
Witnessing the changes at Lime Grove firsthand and knowing that students had not been significantly consulted reinforced my concern. But rather than focus my frustrations on institutional policies, I saw an opportunity to create a platform for students to articulate their experiences of the spaces they were learning in.
HOW? Research Design and Methodology
My research was guided by McNiff and Whitehead’s action research framework, which emphasises reflective enquiry, participation, and improvement of practice through cyclical processes. This framework encouraged me to move beyond personal perception, practice and experience and ground my concerns in evidence.
To achieve this, I adopted an ethnographic approach aligned with practitioner‑led research. Ethnography enabled me to explore how students experience learning spaces in real contexts, capturing insights into the relationship between space, behaviour, and learning. Gathering data directly from students ensured that the research reflected their lived experiences rather than my assumptions.
Timing was a critical factor. I chose to work with my own students in the Architecture and Spatial Design pathway in Unit 2, once the specialisms had been allocated and relationships had begun to form. Ethical considerations informed the development of consent forms and questionnaires, which were written in accessible language to support inclusivity, particularly for international students. Prior to completing the form, I spoke with my colleague Ursula Dimitirou about the activity and aim of the research project, discussing the tone and language I would use. She was supportive and helped me understand that by keeping the language clear and the activity simple, I would be inclusive to all students.
The activity was conducted across two cohorts, with participation remaining voluntary and anonymous. Attendance across sessions was approximately 65%, with a participation rate of around 63%. While willingness to engage varied between cohorts — influenced by project deadlines and student stress levels — the overall response was sufficient to identify emerging themes.
Students were asked three questions:
- What do you need in a space for learning?
- What do you want in a space for learning?
- How do you prefer to learn (online, face‑to‑face, or hybrid)?
These questions mirrored professional design processes by distinguishing between needs and wants, while also acknowledging the impact of post‑pandemic learning experiences.
Evaluating the responses on the activity sheets, I noticed themes emerging. Using thematic analysis (see reference), I coded the responses to identify a series of themes that would inform my analysis.
REFLECTING ON THE PROCESS
Although full analysis of the data is still in progress, reflecting on the activity highlighted areas for improvement. The timing could have been more sensitive, and the activity itself, while student‑centred in outcome, lacked an element of enjoyment or engagement, which wasn’t the intention.
This realisation was reinforced after attending peer presentations in December 2025, particularly Genevieve Muwana’s work on experiential learning, which emphasised active engagement, meaningful experiences, and student‑centred outcomes. Her presentation prompted a key insight: teaching — and research — should feel experiential and engaging.
In line with McNiff and Whitehead’s framework, I now recognise the need for further research cycles. Revisiting this activity with a more experiential emphasis will strengthen both the data and the students’ engagement. While subsequent cycles are yet to be undertaken, this initial phase has already deepened my understanding of action research as an iterative, reflective process.
By embedding ethnographic and participatory methods, I believe the project’s plausibility and purpose have been strengthened. The research remains grounded in students’ experiences and aligned with the core aim of action research: to improve practice through reflective, evidence-informed change.
NEXT STEPS
- By consolidating the data analysis through coding and identifying key themes (TA, ), I have begun to reflect more critically on how these insights can shape the next stage of the research. This process has helped me recognise that the emerging themes should not simply sit within the analysis, but actively inform future activities that respond more directly to students’ lived experiences.
- I am working towards developing a workshop-based activity that encourages students to engage through creative and visual responses. Drawing on approaches used in the recent Into the Forest introductory activity, I see potential in using drawing and other visual methods to increase participation and deepen engagement. I believe these approaches may enable students to express their experiences of learning spaces in ways that written responses alone cannot, while also contributing to a richer, more layered visual body of research that underpins the conversation and legacy that this year’s students have established.
References:
Homan, S. (2025) How to Write a ‘Positionality Statement’ (and Why Positioning Identity Matters in Decolonising Research and Knowledge Production)
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09518398.2025.2452989#abstract
George, T. (2023, April 21). What Is Action Research? | Definition & Examples.
Scribbr. Retrieved 5 January 2026, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/research-methods/action-research-cycle/
https://www.aude.ac.uk/media/hahj44f4/ci_gettingstudentspacesright_final_lowres.pdf
(2022) Guiding policy 3 | UAL. Available at: https://www.arts.ac.uk/about-ual/strategy-and-governance/strategy/guiding-policy-3 (Accessed: 12 January 2026)
Richardson, C. Mishra, P. (2017) SCALE Support of Creativity in A Learning Environment.