🧑💻 Join our Free Info Session to learn what PeerSphere can do for you!
Join our Free Info Session to learn what PeerSphere can do for you!
Learning Spaces
People, Place + Pathways
January 24, Saturday | 1:00-5:00PM
Nanjing International School
Sponsored by EIW Architects
Event Sponsored by EIW Architects
This event is free for all participants thanks to the generous sponsorship of EIW Architects. Their support makes it possible for us to bring together educators and school administrators for an afternoon of shared learning and collaboration, at no cost to you.
In today’s international schools, we celebrate diverse learners and embrace an expanding range of educational pathways. Yet one critical ingredient is often left unexamined, the spaces in which learning happens. This Peer-to-Peer event, hosted by Nanjing International School and sponsored by EIW Architects, invites educators to explore how our physical and cultural environments shape learning behaviours, community connection, and the freedom to grow.
The keynote, delivered by international award-winning architect Philip Idle, will challenge us to consider the vital interplay between people, place, and pathways. Drawing on three decades of experience with learning communities around the world, Philip will ask: Do our learning environments reflect our values? Are we designing with purpose, or replicating outdated models? And how might we create spaces that don’t just support learning, but spark imagination and a deeper sense of belonging?
Following the keynote, participants will break into small groups to reflect, question, and share their own school contexts. EIW Design Director Chloe Summers will also be there to facilitate discussions and articulate the design concepts. Whether you’re a teacher shaping daily routines, a facilities manager navigating constraints, or a leader setting long-term strategy, this is a chance to learn from peers and reimagine the role of space in your school, together.
Key Benefits
Challenge your thinking
See how learning spaces can align with your school’s values.
Learn from global experience
Gain insights from Philip Idle’s three decades of work with schools worldwide.
Collaborate with peers
Share challenges, ideas, and solutions in interactive discussions.
Keynote Speaker
Philip Idle
Philip Idle is the Founding Director of EIW Architects, an award-winning Australian practice built on the belief that architecture is a living collaboration. With over 30 years of experience working with schools across Australia, Southeast Asia, and East Africa, Philip helps learning communities turn challenges into purposeful, people-centred design. His approach, described as a blend of structure and spontaneity, brings energy, creativity, and a deep respect for human experience. From planning to delivery, Philip’s work focuses on creating spaces that spark imagination, support growth, and reflect the values of the communities they serve.
Host
Sandra Chow
Director of Learning
Nanjing International School
Sandra Chow has taught in public and international schools in Toronto, Taiwan, and Beijing, and is currently the Deputy Director and Director of Learning at Nanjing International School. She brings over 20 years of global education experience. With her diverse professional background as a professional accountant, educational consultant, and cross-cultural educator, she offers a unique perspective to her leadership role. She enjoys meaningful connections and community, and is passionate about empowering students and educators to thrive in a globally diverse society.
Agenda
Welcome & Framing
Keynote
People, Place + Pathways
We celebrate diversity in our students and embrace a range of learning pathways, yet the role of place is often left behind. At EIW, we see architecture as a creative collaboration that transforms limits into opportunity.
This keynote explores how learning environments can better reflect the dynamic, evolving nature of education today. What if our spaces didn’t just support learning, but sparked it?
Let’s reimagine places that empower every learner, foster community, and open the way for growth, wherever the journey begins.
Breakout Room Session
Participate in one of the following Breakout Rooms:
- Outdoor Spaces: Beyond the Walls
- Indoor Spaces: Learning by Design
- Community Spaces: Belonging in Every Corner
- Making the Most of New Spaces
Refreshments Break (30 minutes)
Market Place
Panel and Closing Remarks
Panellists will share how they’ve measured impact and promoted diversity and inclusivity, wellbeing, agency, and belonging through intentionally designed space. Expect diverse perspectives on what makes a learning environment not just functional, but truly empowering.
Breakout Rooms
Outdoor Spaces: Beyond the Walls
Outdoor environments can be some of the richest, most underused learning assets in a school. How can we design outdoor spaces that invite movement, curiosity, and creativity, not just during PE, but across the curriculum?
Guiding Questions:
- What routines or behaviours currently shape how outdoor spaces are used in your school?
- How might outdoor environments support wellbeing, inclusion, and risk-taking?
Indoor Spaces: Learning by Design
From hallways to homerooms, our indoor spaces shape how students and teachers connect, focus, and feel. How well do our current environments reflect the behaviours and outcomes we value most?
Guiding Questions:
- In what ways do your classrooms and shared areas support, or limit, collaboration and independence?
- What simple shifts could better align your spaces with your school’s learning philosophy?
Community Spaces: Belonging in Every Corner
Shared spaces (cafeterias, libraries, lobbies) can foster connection or amplify division. What makes a space truly communal in a multicultural, multilingual school setting?
Guiding Questions:
- Where in your school do students and staff feel most seen and included, and why?
- How can we intentionally design spaces that reflect a shared sense of purpose and identity?
Making the Most of New Spaces
Just opened a new building or completed a renovation? In this session, we’ll talk about how to bring these spaces to life in everyday teaching, learning, and community activities and how to tell if they’re having the impact you hoped for.
Guiding Questions:
- How can what we learned during design and planning help us measure the success of a new space once it’s in use?
Venue
Nanjing International School
Xueheng Lu 8, Xianlin University City, Qixia District, Nanjing PRC 210023
Get inspired, get connected, and get ahead with us!
© Peer Sphere. All Rights Reserved 2023
© Peer Sphere. All Rights Reserved 2023