Good Design + Education 1
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Issue 06 Good Design + Education 1 The Office of the Victorian Government Architect provides leadership and strategic advice to the government about architecture and urban design. The Office of the Victorian Government Architect supports the Department of Education and Training with advisory initiatives, including the design review of new schools, collaborative workshops, design quality teams, desk top reviews and input on briefs. Good design plays an essential role in enabling high-quality education environments that support the learning needs of every student. Our aim is to encourage awareness of the importance of good design to the quality of educational environments for students 02 and staff. The primary audience includes those working on education projects in state government departments and Aspects of design and environmental conditions that impact on learning in local government. include noise, temperature, seasonal variation, humidity, air quality, ventilation, air flow, thermal comfort, 01 building age, quality and aesthetics, natural and artificial lighting, school size and class size. There is strong evidence that the quality of a school building and the open space around it can have a profoundly positive impact on student concentration, attendance and educational outcomes. Spaces that support students learning from each other and through their own self-directed activities are vital to contemporary learning. In addition, a well-designed school provides a better workplace environment for teachers by contributing to recruitment, staff productivity, retention, morale and reduced This publication is the sixth in a series that is helping to raise awareness absenteeism (Zimring et al. 2008). of good design and promoting discussion supporting its benefits and Schools should be designed as value. The publication has been developed by the Office of the Victorian welcoming, safe and stimulating Government Architect together with the Department of Education and environments to complement their role Training. It highlights key design principles and outlines some effective to nurture students, support staff and approaches to achieve good design. foster local community identity. School Learning is determined by effective teachers and motivated students, but environments include not only social, increasing evidence demonstrates that students’ learning outcomes are cultural and physical aspects, but also related to the quality of learning spaces and building performance. natural, built and virtual environments. Cover 01 02 Camberwell High School Enterprise Centre Birralee Primary School, Doncaster Mac Roberston Girls School, Albert Park Architect: Hayball Architect: Kerstin Thompson Architects Architect: Seabrook and Fildes Photography: Dianna Snape Landscape: Simon Ellis. Photography: Derek Swalwell Photography: Peter Bennetts 2 Building quality and lifecycle Community vision, Masterplan integration and school culture Over the life of a school, evidence shows An important starting point for any that bad design ends up costing money, The link between the built environment school is the design of a masterplan. for example through higher maintenance and learning outcomes relies on teacher– A masterplan provides the spatial costs, while good design is cheaper in student relationships, the quality of the framework for an educational the longer term and adds real value. built and natural spaces and the school environment fully aligned with a Good design can increase the value for culture. If learning spaces are designed school’s mission and opportunities and money that school buildings provide to support physical, intellectual and constraints arising from its site. It helps across their whole life. Well-designed emotional wellbeing then there are coordinate diverse considerations into school buildings are cost-effective and benefits for students and teachers. a strategic long-term plan for facilities. provide a long-term community asset. Schools at their best function as the A masterplan helps provide for staged Participatory pedagogy centre of the community and offer delivery that is reliant on future funding, the opportunity to share facilities. helps integration with community Contemporary education is no longer Many schools and communities work facilities and helps deal with potential based on a ‘chalk and talk’ teaching together to share library facilities, changes in student numbers. It informs method that is carried out in a sporting facilities, meeting spaces, the outdoor spaces between buildings traditional classroom. Contemporary performance spaces, holiday programs, and the linkages and opportunities learning requires a variety of settings, and co-location of early learning beyond the school. technology and opportunities for centres and before and after-school interaction. New learning spaces need programs on school grounds. Close links to be flexible, both pedagogically and between a school and its community physically, to ensure that teachers can enhance student learning, public can refine their approach and use An enduring legacy safety, health and economic wellbeing. ― information and communication Interconnectivity between the school of any government is technologies (ICT). Successful and community can assist in culturally collaboration relies on appropriately the quality of school diverse and disadvantaged areas. designed physical spaces and buildings that it delivers consideration of their interrelationship. Schools are one of the few types of public building still being built in new Innovative approaches to pedagogy communities. They help set the urban are successful when the school structure, create legibility and provide community, teachers and students a landmark in the landscape. Good prepare for them before new urban design integrates schools with buildings and spaces are designed. surrounding communities through Input from students and educators careful consideration of building is necessary to initiate innovative form and scale; the location of access pedagogies and support contemporary routes and surrounding infrastructure; student learning in the design of new and by considering the co-location buildings and spaces. Pedagogical of related uses and activities. change requires time and teachers need to be given the professional skills, resources and tools to benefit from 03 good design and change their practices. ― Each school belongs to a unique place and community 03 Dandenong High School, Dandenong Architect: Hayball Landscape Architect: Outlines Landscape Architect Photography: Peter Clarke 3 A collaborative brief 04 A carefully conceived, documented and thoroughly reviewed project brief is the most critical driver leading to high-quality design. The brief must outline the objectives and needs of the project, setting the design ambitions without prescribing a solution. Ideally the brief is developed collaboratively between the design team, education policy makers, educators and students so that underlying assumptions throughout the design and development process are challenged. Schools that are developed in a collaborative partnership create better communities and more engaged students. Procurement of design services and buildings Internal learning spaces The procurement of a well-designed All learning spaces should inspire It is important that learning school starts with the appointment students and promote learning as an environments are designed for all of a quality design and project team. activity. They support both collaboration students and teachers using universal Design teams are generally selected and personalised learning. design principles. Universal design through expressions of interest (EOI) and recognizes that there is a wide Studies have found that the quality requests for proposal (RFP). The design spectrum of human abilities, including of educational environments has a team includes architects, landscape physical, perceptual and cognitive profound effect on the performance, architects and specialist consultants, abilities as well as there being different health, safety, self-esteem and wellbeing such as heritage architects. ages, body sizes and shapes. of students (Kube 2006). Learning spaces Procurement methods have a significant and settings should be designed to The design, flexibility, function and impact on the quality of the final cater for a range of learning styles and quality of furniture is another crucial building and its operation. Education group sizes. They should include areas factor in achieving pedagogical aims. projects are more commonly procured for: collaboration and incubating ideas, It is important the designer is involved using a traditional lump-sum contract. group learning, presentation, specialised in the selection of furniture to ensure While good design can be achieved with focus labs , project space and wet areas , the learning spaces achieve their all procurement methods, some make display areas, student breakout, teacher intended purpose. Furniture can help it seriously challenging unless potential meetings , reflective and quiet spaces , transform open flexible learning spaces threats to design quality are understood individual student home bases. and should be able to be moved by and managed. staff and students to optimise learning A key challenge is to design with and opportunities. integrate existing 19th and 20th century ‘Where the physical buildings and to ensure ageing school The choice of colour in learning areas environment is purposefully