Architectural education: evaluation and assessment

The challenges to architects and educators regarding architectural education are sometimes daunting. General education and specialized study must be balanced to "meet the complex demands of the profession". Boyer and Mitgang concluded in "Building Community: A New Future for Architecture Education and Practice" (1996), "that architectural education is really about fostering the learning habits needed for the discovery, integration, application, and sharing knowledge over a lifetime". Architecture programs often have a variety of accreditation agencies to answer to. Evaluation and assessment are essential to the accreditation process. Additionally, continual assessment of the successes and challenges of any program are essential to its thriving. The University of Hartford\´s Architecture Program is based on the blending academic-based theoretical studies with industry-based problem solving. Our practice oriented architecture department has developed and implemented an innovative assessment plan. This plan implements both traditional and innovative methods for evaluation.