Supporting creativity in architectural education: examining the impact of leadership, management and staff development

Universities in Australasia, as they drive curriculum innovation, face a range of challenges that inhibit their momentum. A number of these challenges have arisen in response to the federal government’s compliance monitoring entities, which are focused on academic standards and quality assurance. In addition to this, there is an increased emphasis on research performance, innovation and postgraduate education. Against this backdrop, the present paper examines academic leadership, management and staff development and considers the implications of these overarching processes for supporting creativity (and associated curriculum innovation) in architectural education. Through surveys, interviews and focus groups, with leaders in architecture and design schools across Australasia, this paper provides a critical review of their attitudes and concerns. As part of this study, eleven recurring themes are identified as being relevant to leadership and management issues. These include workload, skills, management, support, health and succession planning. In combination these themes effectively articulate the pressures and concerns of academic leaders. In light of these findings, this paper considers the impact of these leadership and management issues on curriculum initiatives that have the potential to advance and build creativity in contemporary architectural education. The paper concludes that the situation, as revealed through the study, does not auger well for the future even though, through enhanced staff development, some potential exists for producing innovative curriculum structures and learning environments.