The e-Learning Café project of the University of Porto

By ligia ribeiro, Andrea Pera Vieira, Pedro Leão Ramos Ferreira Neto, Maria Pinto. The e-Learning Café project of the University of Porto: innovative learning spaces, improving students’ engagement in active and collaborative learning.
This paper reports the ongoing research project headed by the University of Porto and the research group Centre of Spatial Representation and Communication, from de R&D Centre of its Faculty of Architecture (FAUP), which aims the design and study of hybrid spatial environments.  
E-Learning Centres. Our main objective is to present and discuss the contribution of the E-Learning Café project of the U.Porto and of the successful implementation of its program, focused on learning physical spaces able to combine social interaction with diverse pedagogical and cultural activities. All these have proven to be an important relational dimension for all the people working or studying at U. Porto and an asset to foster the openness of the University to the society.