A comparative study of the physical model as a tool for structural education

Six courses taught by the four authors at four different design faculties, are investigated for their use of physical models in structural education through an open-end questionnaire and peer discussions. Various characteristics of structural model applications are brought to the fore. They show that all investigated courses provide their model application within a project-based, student-centred learning. In the courses structural models are used for the student’s development of structural knowledge, but also as tools for structural design exploration in a studio setting. Through model constructing and testing, students develop sensorimotor experiences with structural behaviour which allows for higher levels of structural cognition. The paper ends with a recommendation for using physical structure models throughout the education programme starting from structure theory to design studios.