Mikael Powell...

Mikael Powell embodies the essence of the interdisciplinary scholar. As an architect, interior designer, actor, and screenwriter, and yes, an educator, he integrates disparate disciplines in order to understand how the physical built environment shapes teaching and learning in higher education. In his research Mikael pays attention to what others don’t notice, he looks at the subtle aspects of students’ and teachers’ actions in classroom spaces, actions that change their experience of the space. In doing so he builds a bridge between education and architecture. In the words of one of his doctoral committee members, he is “kayaking people across the river” that divides these disciplines.

Using Freire’s critical method Mikael notes the role that power plays in the decisions made about, and in, the classroom space. He makes powerlessness visible through his writing as he reveals the efforts of students to overcome obstacles to learning. He also suggests a comprehensive method for how learning spaces can be better understood, and better designed. Of course, that includes listening to students.

Mikael’s research offers us a clearer perspective of the complexity of what happens in a classroom. His research will certainly have an impact on the design of learning spaces into the future. His commitment to design as an educator and an architect positions him as a leader and an innovator in this new field.- Dr. Gene Diaz

See

http://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/education_dissertations/20/

or

http://digitalcommons.lesley.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1018&context=education_dissertations