Case study Rémi Huneau - architect and research teacher

The testimonial of Rémi H.

• His occupation: Architect and research teacher at ENSAG (Grenoble Higher National School of Architecture).

• His classes: He teaches in the field of ATR/RA (representation in architecture)

• His pedagogical approach to teaching: " Personally, I need to teach hands-on drawing to my students, besides I am not the Picasso of digital. "

With the successive lockdowns, distance learning has become widespread in schools. This kind of teaching is now taking all its relevance, and it is possible to make it more dynamic by adopting adapted methodologies and good practices.

Rémi has long been looking for a simple and affordable solution to conduct his distance learning courses and recover the pleasure of teaching through drawing. For him, the visualization of his drawings is extremely important because it improves the understanding of his students. Sketching on a digital whiteboard, digitizing the pencil and managing the layers now punctuate Rémi's classes and allow him to do what he likes best: to transmit his expertise to his students whilst drawing.

Repaper

The simplicity of pencil and paper, the power of a graphic tablet

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"I used to use an overhead projector. The trouble was that my drawings were static. "

Prior to Repaper, Remi used an overhead projector/visualizer. A camera was positioned above his hand and he would draw his diagrams to his students. The camera view was projected live on the giant screen of the auditorium. A convenient but not very effective method since his drawings were static and raw and his hand was hiding part of the drawings. The comprehension of the different construction stages of geometrical shapes was thus even more complicated for his students.

"I have had distance and hybrid teaching. "

With the different lockdowns and sanitary restrictions, Rémi has seen his teaching evolve, several times. At first his students were 100% remote while a few months later a "hybrid" teaching could be set up. The hybrid teaching allowed him to have half of his class in the classroom and the other half at home.

"There was a gap in comprehension between the groups. "

From the beginning of his hybrid teaching, Rémi observed a gap in his students achievements. He admits that it was more complex for them when they were not all in the same conditions. Despite all the advantages of this teaching, he realized that the level of understanding of his course is not the same whether in the classroom or at home.

"I need to teach hand drawing to my students. "

In his classes, Remi needs to draw by hand, especially the geometric principles that underlie the various projections of the architectural profession. That's why he adopted the Repaper graphics tablet.

The key benefits of Repaper

"It's been a huge time saver for me!"

Previously, to explain all the construction steps of a single drawing, Rémi made about twenty sketches. Thanks to Repaper and Repaper Studio's layer management feature, Remi can decide to hide or show the layers, and thus display the step-by-step sketches to his students whenever he wants. No need to make 20 drawings. One is sufficient.

"My students understand more easily."

Rémi can now take advantage of the dynamic nature of real time. He traces lines, sketches a design: his drawings are no longer static, but are transcribed live onto the screens of his students. "The students therefore have all the elements in hand to better grasp the somewhat complex concepts, which are sometimes very abstract for them".

"The average level of the class is higher than in the previous years."

Rémi has seen very good results this year. In fact, he even admitted that the average quality of the class was higher than in other years, when he was drawing on the classroom blackboard. "I have fewer failures this year" he proudly confided.

His tip: use layers on Repaper Studio

"I have had great feedback from my students on the fact that they can access my drawing breakdowns."

As a teacher in an architecture school, drawing, geometry, the timing of the line and their sequences are very important for the comprehension of the students. This is why Rémi systematically uses layers on the Repaper Studio application. Students can observe and learn the chronology of strokes that will allow them to build shapes. Rémi then shares his drawings with them in video (Timelapse) or PDF format.

"Drawing on the blackboard is not that easy. [...] So, in the end, Repaper also works very well in lecture halls."

On the blackboard, Rémi observes that it is inevitably necessary to be very close to the writing surface, but also, that it is necessary to make very large drawings so that they are visible until the back of the auditorium. This requires a lot of discipline and imagination to be able to imagine. It was an exercise that required a lot of concentration. Repaper is therefore also a solution when he teaches in class and in the lecture hall. It allows dynamic and very large sketches to be displayed. His students also value this new method.

Repaper Studio: Remi's favorite features

The Repaper Studio Whiteboard

With the Repaper Studio application, Rémi uses the whiteboard function to draw the major geometric principles that are at the heart of his teaching. He shares, live, the construction of shapes, curves, extensions... Remotely, he uses the screen sharing function of his video conferencing solution.

Digitizing the pencil

Seeing the pencil on screen allows him to point, but more importantly, to help his students understand the stroke constructions. "They can see where the line starts and how far it goes," which is very important in architectural studies that constantly relies on hand gestures.

Managing layers

Rémi systematically uses layers for the creation of his classes. This method allows his students to visualize step by step the construction of his sketches. With all the layers created in his lessons, he then creates a single document with all the stages. He then transfers it to his students.

Repaper

The simplicity of pencil and paper, the power of a graphic tablet

Discover