Obinna Emmanuel Ukanwa (AUTHOR)
Department of Architecture, Imo State University, Owerri, Nigeria
Corresponding Author’s Email: emmanuelukanwa6@gmail.com
ABSTRACT: Contemporary cities face increasingly complex socio-spatial, environmental, economic, and infrastructural challenges requiring innovative and evidence-based approaches to urban design and architectural education. As urbanisation accelerates across diverse contexts, architecture graduates need not only design competence but also the analytical capacity to understand urban systems, diagnose spatial problems, and develop contextually responsive interventions. However, many urban design studios continue to prioritise final design outputs over systematic investigation of urban conditions, creating a disconnect between research and architectural intervention. This paper proposes a Two-Phase Research–Design Framework for Urban Design Studio Education that integrates urban documentation, spatial analysis, and architectural intervention into a coherent pedagogical model for postgraduate architectural training. The framework positions studio learning as a continuum from urban inquiry to architectural response, with Phase One focusing on contextual investigation, urban documentation, spatial analysis, and strategic urban proposals, and Phase Two translating identified urban challenges into architectural interventions addressing specific community needs. Drawing on studio-based, experiential, problem-based, and research-led learning theories, the framework positions urban analysis as a foundational component of architectural pedagogy rather than an isolated preliminary exercise. The model strengthens evidence-based design thinking, urban literacy, research competencies, and the relationship between urban-scale investigation and building-scale intervention. It also provides a transferable structure for architecture schools seeking to reform studio pedagogy in response to emerging urban challenges and professional expectations. Integrating research and design through a structured framework can enhance postgraduate students’ capacity to develop context-sensitive, socially responsive, and environmentally sustainable design solutions.
Keywords: Design studio; Studio pedagogy; Architectural education; Spatial analysis; architectural intervention; Architecture training