University Learning Environments in Vietnam: Student Perceptions on Creative Spaces

Vietnamese universities have paid increasing attention to improving students’ learning environment as a response to internationalisation. However, institutions have yet to sufficiently consider the relationship between physical space and students’ creativity. There has been a lack of research addressing how learning spaces of universities impact the development of creativity among students. This photovoice project addresses this research gap by examining the students’ perceptions about the characteristics which foster or inhibit their creativity in campus spaces at a Vietnamese university. Forty students participating in the study were required to take photographs reflecting their opinions on the physical learning environment and post them on the project’s Facebook page. Participants were encouraged to critically discuss their photographs by leaving their comments. The data collected were analysed using thematic analysis. Findings indicated that the students perceived a creative learning space as a technologically enhanced and re-configurable environment. Here, students would be able to express autonomy and experiment, thereby gaining confidence and developing competence. On the other hand, students expressed concerns related to the accessibility of such spaces and their use by the university, which might hinder their creativity. This raises implications not only for policymakers in planning, designing, or renovating the university premises but also for educators making an effort to use campus spaces for creativity-supportive learning environments.