Session Information
27 SES 13 A, From Design to Practice in School Environments (Part 1)
Symposium to be continued in 27 SES 14 A
Contribution
The physical environment in schools has in the literature of late been gaining recognition as a potential factor supporting educational change (Blackmore, Bateman, Loughlin, O‘Mara & Aranda, 201; Gislason, 2010; Veloso, Marques & Duarte, 2014). A collaborative design process, involving important stakeholders from the very beginning, has been considered essential in changing traditional school design to better fit our needs for effective learning environments (Woolner, 2010; Sanoff, 2009). Educational benefits as well as the democratic value of including students in the process have been noted (Woolner & Clark, 2014). This paper draws a single case out of a research sample of 20 schools in Iceland to relate an inventive design process as the school was being developed and investigate the current state of established school practice. We relate how one of the most innovative schools in Reykjavík was initally conceptualised and designed to examine how the idea has turned out in reality of some 10 years of practice in a new school building. Results in areas where the school in case might be different from other schools are compared with results in the other 19 schools in the sample of our extended research project. Data includes observations, surveys among staff members, and interviews with both school leaders and teachers. The school was carefully designed following a Design Down Process (Copa & Pease, 1992; Jilk, 2005) and a local policy emphasising individualised and flexible learning, student initiative and possibilities to influence the learning process by making individual plans and real choices, both on methods and content. Variety, flexibility and open learning spaces were assumed to promote high levels of individualised practice, while closed, traditional classrooms were not (Reykjavík City Department of Education, 2005). The school was designed as an open plan building intended to enhance individualised learning and team teaching with strong ties to the wider community. A decade later the original policy is still relatively firmly in place, in particular at the primary level, while teachers at the lower secondary level have been bending somewhat the initial design plan, leaning towards traditional teaching methods and more confined classroom layouts.
References
Blackmore, J., Bateman, D., Loughlin. J., O‘Mara, J., & Aranda, G. (2011). Research into the connections between built learning spaces and student learning outcomes: A literature review. Melbourne: State of Victoria (Department of Education and ECD). Copa, G. H., & Pease, V. H. (1992). A new vision for the comprehensive high school. Preparing students for a changing world. St. Paul, MN: University of Minnesota. Gislason, N. (2010). Architectural design and the learning environment: A framework for school design research. Learning Environment Research, 13, 127–145. Jilk, B. A. (2005). Place making and change in learning environments. In M. Dudek (Ed.), Children’s spaces (pp. 30–43). Oxford: Architectural Press. Reykjavik City Department of Education. (2005). Measurement tool on individualized and cooperative learning. Reykjavik: Reykjavik City Department of Education. Retrieved: http://www.rvk.is/Portaldata/1/Resources/skjol/svid/menntasvid/pdf_skjol/skyrslur/einstaklingsmidad-nam_enska.pdf Sanoff, H. (2009). Schools designed with community participation. In Walden, R. (Ed), Schools for the future. Design proposals from Architectural psychology (pp.123–142). Göttingen; Hogrefe & Huber Publisher. Woolner, P., & Clark, A. (2014). Developing shared understanding of learning environment. In P. Woolner (Ed.), School design together, pp. 167–183. London: Routledge. Woolner, P. (2010). The design of learning spaces. NY: Continuum.
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