Managing Schools Today Not Just Bricks And Mortar May2004

Innovation: School buildings 39May/June 2004

Innovation: School buildings

As we consider fundamental changes to thecurriculum to meet the demands of the newcentury, Caroline Morland believes radicalnew building designs are equally importantto learning outcomes

Not justbricksandmortar

Phot

ogr a

phy:

Chr

is M

adde

n

The Government has announced unprecedentedlevels of funding for the building andrefurbishment of schools across the country,

with the cash being pumped in set to reach £5.1bnby 2005–06: a considerable increase on the £700mspent in 1996–97. The aim is to give everysecondary school in the country learningenvironments fit for the 21st century and to achievea substantial upgrade of facilities in the primarysector. More than this, in an age of greater publicaccountability, the aim is to transform learningoutcomes through this investment.

Most people would agree that high-qualitylearning environments have a positive impact onlearning, and both anecdotal and statistical evidencesupports this assertion. This evidence links improvedoutcomes to factors such as improved morale andmotivation. While these factors should not beundervalued, though, there is a bigger prize to bewon. Environments can act as a catalyst for changeand improvement. Buildings can promote or hindercertain activities and behaviours. If we are going todeliver the learning opportunities that ourcommunities deserve then it is critical that weconvert this investment in bricks and mortar intoimproved outcomes.

Attached to the funding is an explicit remit tostretch our vision of what’s possible, to innovate, to dodifferently, to start with a blank sheet of paper andrecreate the schools, networks of schools and support

services that truly meet the needs of today’slearners. Through building schools for

the future, through workforce

>

Innovation: School buildings40 May/June 2004

remodelling, through new structures topromote collaboration and throughacademies, the gauntlet has been throwndown and we now have the opportunityto invent schools as they ought to be.

This opportunity poses a number ofquestions. What are these new processesand behaviours that we want ourenvironments to promote? What are thefeatures of a built environment that act asa catalyst for this vision of learning? Andhow do we make sure the investmentdelivers the maximum benefit?

A school is much more than bricksand mortar, and so the challenge ofcreating a 21st-century learningenvironment is much more thandesigning a building. A school is anorganisation with the responsibility ofcreating capable learners, with its own setof working practices. A school is acommunity; it has its own culture andethos. All these aspects taken togethercreate a learning environment.

Live and learnThe process of learning is not restrictedto the boundaries of a school. Peoplelearn through the daily act of living. Welearn how to operate the new DVDrecorder, we learn how to bend it likeBeckham when playing football in theback garden, we learn what is anacceptable way of behaving in differentenvironments, from the boss’s office tothe terraces at a big game.

Furthermore, our learning world is notconstrained to the physical environment.Technology now grants us access to vastamounts of information, throughengaging multimedia formats, at a click ofa remote control or a tap on a PCkeyboard. More compelling than themultimedia aspects, though, is the capacityfor the learner to influence the speed,order and type of information presented; alearner can interact with the resources,making choices and get feedback on howthey did, they can track their progress,store their outputs and revisit them whenand where they like. In designing ourlearning environments for the 21stcentury we need to consider the newpossibilities for creating virtual learningenvironments through the use of

technology – and how theseinteract with the physical andsocial learning environment.

Our ability to learn isinfluenced by many factors.These include our physicalhealth and comfort, ouremotional state, our preferencesto learn by doing, to learn byseeing or through hearing.Critically, our learning outcomesare influenced by our desire andmotivation to learn. Do we seethe relevance of what we arelearning? Is it engaging andinteresting? And do our socialnetworks value intelligence?

The current potential oftechnology, both in terms of functionalityand affordability, taken alongside thegreater understanding of the cognitiveand social influences on how peoplelearn, and the opportunity to refocus therole of professional staff on teachingthrough workforce remodelling is puttingthe opportunity to genuinely deliverpersonalised learning within our grasp.

When thinking about the nature ofour future learning environments weneed to have a vision of how a 21st-century school will operate and of thesteps along the way to reaching this newway of working and learning. It is thecreation of this operational vision in thehearts and minds of staff, learners andcommunity that will inform the designof new learning environments.

Thinking about learningenvironments for the future can be adaunting task. A blank sheet of paper, anew environment to suit the new wayswe want to learn and teach, thataccommodates the new generations oflearners and their emerging needs.Where should we start? The capacity tovisualise the potential future forlearning, curriculum, work habits bothof staff and learners and the use oftechnology is essential.

The starting point has to be: “What dowe want, as a community, from ourinvestment in schools?” and: “What do wewant our learners to be, to have?” Figure 1gives an example statement, whichanswers these questions. This statement

describes ideas, hopes, expectations forsomething of the future, yet it can be veryreal and current in the hearts, minds andactions of people in the present.

Once we have the answers to thesequestions, we then need to apply ouringenuity to how we achieve the desiredoutcomes. What are the teaching andlearning processes that will deliver thisoutcome? What is the curriculum? Whatare the structures and organisationsrequired? How will technology enhancethe delivery of this? And what will thephysical environments be like thatsupport and promote this? Figure 2shows some possible answers.

Traditional classrooms can bereconceived as flexible learning studios:spaces where learners can engage in avariety of activities, with lightweightbut robust furniture which can easilybe moved to allow for convenientadjustments to teaching formats.Project studios will provide spaces withample services such as power, gas, waterand data, with work tables andappropriate storage space wherelearners can individually or as teamsengage in practical and experimentalwork over an extended period of time.These spaces allow staff and learners todeliver greater differentiation andresponsiveness to different learningstyles and preferences. They are usedacross the curriculum and not limitedto specific subject or contentspecialisms.

Our graduates are…● Life long learners● Successful students● In touch with themselves● Eager and excited to learn

They have ability to…● Read, write and perform

arithmetic and mathematicaloperations, listen and speak,possess historical, cultural,geographical and economicunderstanding, thinkscientifically, apply scientificprinciples to life, value andappreciate the arts andnurture our own health andwell being

Personal qualities: workhabits and attitudes● Display responsibility, self

esteem, sociability, selfmanagement, integrity andhonesty

Thinking skills● Think creatively, make

decisions, solve problems,visualise, know how toreason

Interpersonal skills● Works well with others

Technology● Work with a variety of

technologies

Statement of Aspiration for Alameda Unified School District…

Figure 1:

Innovation: School buildings 41May/June 2004

Innovation: School buildings

reflect their individual or communityidentity, and spaces where parents and thecommunity can interact with staff andprofessionals in support of young peopleslearning – or re-engage in learning oftheir own. The needs of communities canbe better met by integrating a range ofpublic support services. People’s learningoutcomes are influenced by their health,wealth, aspirations and expectations aswell as their education. Schools areincreasingly becoming a focus of multi-agency services brought together underone roof.

Significant percentages of learners inour schools learn by doing and bymoving. Our current facilities assumethat learners sit still while they arelearning non-practical subjects – but newschools may respond to this need byincluding learning paths and walkways.

ICT is becoming a pervasive factor inall new schools; however, innovativeschools tend to include specifictechnology-rich areas, where youngpeople can conveniently access e-learning resources and activities alongsidetraditional print media, or engage inperson-to-person learning. Areas whereyoung people can make choices and self-manage their way through a programmeof learning will be the nucleus for sharedtechnologies such as videoconferencing,digital studios and editing suites, virtualreality equipment and others. These areaswill tend to use flexible and/or glazedpartitioning to break up the space whilefacilitating good supervision and support.

A variety of spaces and areas could betargeted to the needs of staff, providing

staff work areas in addition tosocial and relaxation areas. A‘learning laboratory’ can allowstaff to engage actively inexperimentation andexploration with newtechnologies and teaching andlearning techniques.

In a traditional schoolbuild 25 per cent or more ofthe floor area is dedicated tocorridors. If these are usedpurely for movement then it’sa hell of a waste of space. Insome schools corridor space is

>

A greater variety of spaces and formatswill allow areas where multiple classgroups can come together for lectures orjoint activity, spaces for small groupdiscussion and collaboration activities,spaces of individual and quiet study,alongside class bases or learning studiosfor 24 to 30 learners.

The increasing recognition that socialand emotional factors and lack ofconnection are significant factors inunderachievement is driving the desire tocreate social and informal learning spaceswithin schools. This can be addressed byproviding areas where learners can takeownership of a space and customise it to

Figure 2:Teaching and learning processesand the physical environment

Our graduates are…● Life long learners● Successful students● In touch with themselves● Eager and excited to learn

They have ability to…● Read, write and perform arithmetic and

mathematical operations, listen and speak,possess historical, cultural, geographicaland economic understanding, thinkscientifically, apply scientific principles tolife, value and appreciate the arts andnurture our own health and well being

Personal qualities: work habitsand attitudes● Display responsibility, self esteem, sociability,

self management, integrity and honesty

Thinking skills● Think creatively, make decisions, solve problems,

visualise, know how to reason

Interpersonal skills● Works well with others

Technology● Work with a variety of technologies

Our facilities and resources are…

We use technology to…

We use technology to…

Our staff are…

Our curriculum is…

Our relationships with otherschools are… Our culture is…

Our values are…Our beliefs about learning are…

Our community and parents are…Our relationships with business are…

Our learningenvironment is…

Innovation: School buildings42 May/June 2004

being dramatically reduced andmovement around the building becomesmore fluid, with learners and staffmoving according to their owntimetables and needs; while in otherscorridors are being expanded to creategalleries, social seating and meeting areas.

There is at present not enough tangibleresearch to evaluate the benefits of non-traditional learning spaces on learningoutcome. However, there is solid evidenceand a wealth of emerging good practicethat demonstrates that progressive methodsof education do work when appropriatelyimplemented. It makes sense, therefore, thatschool design needs to respond to theseemerging practices.

CurriculumSchools buildings are only one piece ofthe learning puzzle. Realising thebenefits in terms of learning outcomesfrom the massive investment in buildinginfrastructure across our schools willrequire concurrent change in operationalpractices. Those schools that feature nocorridors, a diverse range and variety oflearning spaces, and the inclusion ofsocial and informal learning spacesrequire a fundamentally differentarrangement of the curriculum. Schoolscan no longer presume to managelearners uniformly in groups of 24 to 30,with mass movement at prescribed pointsof the day. Learners will need to followmore individualised programmes oflearning activity.

This will necessitate learnersdeveloping greater skills to self-directtheir learning; it will require bettertracking and monitoring processes, both‘human’ and supported through ICT, toensure that learners are guided inaccessing the support and input theyneed. While there is ampleevidence that personalisedlearning leads to improvedoutcomes, the transitiondoesn’t happen overnight.Schools need to engage in theevolution of the curriculum,learners’ skills, staff roles andskills and the use of ICT inadvance of moving into theirnew environments.

Our understanding of learning and ourstrategies for improving outcomes are notstatic and will continue to evolve andinfluence changes in educational practiceover time. Therefore our architectureneeds to evolve and adapt as our humansystems change. Our buildings need tohave internal partitions which can beeasily moved or removed; ourenvironments need to expand andcontract according to the changingdemands of the community. Largeconference and exhibition centres, whichcan transform themselves over a weekendor evening to create completely newinternal layouts and configurations, andthe craft of set design seem more suited tothe needs of an ever-changing andstimulating learning environment. Anumber of recent exemplar designsprovide technical solutions to the ongoingadaptation of the physical environment toensure that the buildings facilitate thetransition from more traditionalcurriculum models to frameworks formore personalised learning.

As a greater range of services cometogether in a single building, leading tocollaborative practice across agencies, sothe leadership, management andgovernance of these services becomesincreasingly complex. The range of skillsand expertise required to manage andgovern services across health, education,social services and other professions is

going beyond the existing roles andexpectations of head teachers and schoolgoverning bodies. New structures andnew leaders need to emerge in line withthe new multifaceted environments andcampuses.

Ultimately, school buildings are onlyone piece of the learning puzzle. But theco-ordinated rebuild of networks ofschools within the same communitygives a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity toreinvent our schools as they should be. Itis our duty to aspire to better learningsolutions, to visualise the operationalprocesses and structures required todeliver the vision, and design ourenvironments around this future view.Our environments need to be flexible toadapt over time as we continuouslyimprove our systems – but we shouldn’tuse this flexibility as an excuse not tostart changing our operational models,processes and behaviours now.Irrespective of their participation in abuilding project, all our schools andcommunities need to explore andvisualise learning solutions for tomorrowand begin the journey towards thisdestination today.

Caroline Morland is a director of Learning

Led Design Edunova Ltd. She works with

both public and private sector organisations,

exploring innovative designs for learning

environments