Learning Through Competition: Educational Outcomes for Architecture Students in Competitive Environments

Abstract

Historically, the architecture field has fostered a competitive mindset, evident in both professional practice and education which has been observed to demonstrate a more pronounced culture and usage of competition than others. The aim for this thesis was to discern what impact this culture of competition has on the learning of architecture students and if there are differences between male and female students in this regard. The study was based on semi- structured interviews with second- and third-year Architecture and Architecture and Engineering students at Chalmers University of Technology and practicing architects. The results indicate that competition in creative project-based education can affect learning both positively and negatively, through dual effects on motivation, peer learning, creativity and stress. There exists a gender gap regarding some aspects of the subject. However, this gender gap is not as significant in this context compared to prior research. As one learning objective of architectural education is competition skills, future research is suggested to further evaluate competition’s importance as a learning tool in this context.