Approved by: Co-Major Advisors

Sound has always been an integral part of the outdoor environment. However, since the onset of the Industrial Revolution, and given the continual emergence of new technological sounds, society’s aural awareness and sensitivity has continued to decrease (Schafer, 1977). While the visual often dominates the perception of the outdoor environment – especially within the design field – all five senses are vital to a holistic experience. A greater emphasis on sound in landscape architecture is critical as landscape architects move toward a more holistic approach to designing the outdoor environment. The primary learning objective of this thesis was to evaluate the effectiveness of soundwalks and listening exercises for landscape architecture students, as a way to increase their aural awareness and sensitivity. The first part of this study established the current status and need for an acoustic education in landscape architecture by examining university course offerings and surveying professionals and faculty members in the field. The remainder of the study involved a listening experiment conducted with landscape architecture students from Kansas State University. Participants were assessed on their ability to listen to and analyze sounds before and after participating in soundwalks, listening exercises, and lessons in interdisciplinary sound terminology