Building Paradigms: Major Transformations in School Architecture (1798-2009)

This article provides an historical overview of significant trends in school architecture from 1798 to the present. I divide the history of school architecture into two major phases. The first period falls between 1798 and 1921: the modern graded classroom emerged as a standard architectural feature during this period. The second period, which extends from 1921 to the present, has been defined primarily by the growing influence of progressive educational ideas and practice on school design. It is argued that school architecture has changed gradually over the last 200 years by building on existing design trends rather than breaking from them. The article concludes with some speculations about current trends in school architecture

Placing Education: The School as Architectural Space

School architecture is a vital part of the learning environment: An educational facility should actively support learning processes which are grounded on an applied, multidisciplinary curriculum. This paper argues, accordingly, that a school should provide flexible educative spaces which properly enable multiple forms of teaching and learning. Support for this thesis is drawn from spatial theory, John Dewey’s writing on educative spaces, architectural writing and ecological design theory. It is finally posited that we need move beyond certain industrial-era assumptions about learning, in order to lay the conceptual foundation for a dynamic notion of architecture for education

Fostering educator participation in learning space designing: Insights from a Master of Education unit of study

Educators can play a vital role in creating environments that enhance student learning and wellbeing. Consequently there is a teacher education need to empower teachers as learning space designers. The Master of Education program at Queensland University of Technology offers a unit entitled Designing Spaces for Learning which enables students to explore and practice the principles of consensus values-based designing. This chapter outlines the conceptualisation and ongoing development of the unit, which builds upon the doctoral research of Dr Raylee Elliott Burns. By outlining the design and implementation of the unit, the chapter models an innovative pedagogical approach that engages educators (as learners) in the evaluation and conceptual redesigning of learning spaces. The learning experience includes site visits, a charrette (collaborative designing workshop) and the compilation of a theoretically justified design brief and online portfolio. The chapter concludes by discussing how this unit fosters the learning and wellbeing of the educators who undertake the unit, and often also that of their students who engage in school-based designing projects