Designing the Pedagogy of Play

Play is an important learning parameter. With playful environments Rosan Bosch integrates play in the design
of learning spaces to make it a natural part of learning processes.
Play enhances the learning process by triggering several positive chain reactions – from investigation to
transformation of information that ends up being stored as knowledge and new skills. When students are
driven by their curiosity they ask: “what is this?”. They explore, create connections from what they see and
what they experience. They start wondering: “how can I use it within my daily life? This sequenced process of
transforming information ensures that what they learn is relevant to themselves and therefore, useful.
In this keynote speech, Rosan Bosch, the acknowledged Dutch designer who is revolutionizing educational
spaces, will provide examples of how the motivating dynamics of play can be implemented when designing
playful learning environments. In her Copenhagen-based design studio, Bosch works with engaging learning
spaces for schools and libraries as playful arenas – and most recently a children hospital where the play
approach in the design enhances the healing process.
For Bosch, playing means learning. With her imaginative educational spaces, she designs the pedagogy of play.