Session Information
19 SES 06 A, Another Brick in the Wall? School Buildings Between Architectural Vision, Economic Space-Management and Educational Mission
Symposium
Contribution
Chairs and tables can be understood as traditional classroom furniture. They are sat on during lessons and are used for reading and writing. At the same time chairs and tables have other functions. Ethnographical studies show that the manner of their use can reflect the relationship a student has to his teacher and his peers. In order to be accepted by his peers, he has to act „cool“ and demonstrate his allegiance. At the same time there is the institutional context, the school regime, with its constraints and rules, represented by the teacher, who in turn expects respect. Using observations I made 2007 and 2009 at schools in Zürich (CH) and Freiburg (D), I would like to demonstrate how this conflict between peer culture and school regime determines the use of chairs and tables. How, for example, when a student tilts his chair back, it is much less an act of balance, but rather marks and illustrates the limit of his power to the teacher – and demonstrates solidarity with his peers.
Method
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