Explained | How customised, flexible classroom designs can supplement education

Publicado: 15 enero 2023 a las 2:00 am

Categorías: Artículos

By: Shruti Bansal

Here are some design changes that schools should embrace to ensure the physical and emotional well-being of children.

School design plays a critical role in the student’s learning outcome. The pandemic has made us rethink and reimagine schools. Flexible designs with a holistic, whole-life approach that accommodates the required safety protocols, have become the new normal. The Covid-19 pandemic has made it abundantly clear that students learn from their built environment rather than merely through blackboard lessons. We must remember that actual learning happens beyond classrooms-in the intermediary spaces and outdoor pockets created as buffers and interactive zones.

“A progressive school emphasises learning through hands-on projects and activities, expeditionary learning – and new-age school design schemes should borrow from the same,” said Rachna Agarwal, Founder and Design Ideator, Studio IAAD.

“Studies have proven how incorporating bright colours in the kids’ immediate learning environment and exposure to variations in patterns of light and shadows help stimulate their mental development,” said Aman Aggarwal, principal architect, Charged Voids.

As we all know, for better learning, a robust relationship between school classrooms and the outdoors is very important. So, to understand the importance of infrastructure, even the small details of it in a student’s life, India Today spoke to a handful of experts from diverse fields.

“When it comes to designing schools post-pandemic, two great needs stand out – to prevent infections from spreading by providing ample cross-ventilation and to provide enough spaces for social interactions to strengthen human connections post this isolation that children have been through,” said Vaishali Mangalvedhekar, partner, SJK Architects.

Here are some design changes that schools should embrace to ensure the physical and emotional well-being of children:

1. FLEXIBLE AND OPEN-PLAN LAYOUTS

Flexible spaces can be reconfigured easily to serve multiple purposes in schools. For example, one can replace traditionally enclosed classrooms with flexible and experiential learning spaces to push the envelope and explore the outdoors, kindling self-discovery. Open-plan layouts provide the flexibility to conduct educational activities in different groupings and thus make a space multi-functional.

“Technology and its quick adoption have made educational content more expansive and accessible in the post-pandemic era. This unfurls an opportunity to extend the process of knowledge sharing and learning beyond the school or institutional boundaries deep into the community level. Thus, the process of learning can become a continuous and lifelong activity,” said Uday Goswami, Head: Design, Edifice Consultants.

2. ERGONOMIC FURNITURE

Research validates the correlation between student well-being and flexible, ergonomic seating options. In particular, versatile and portable furniture is a prerequisite in multi-purpose spaces. Children spend anything between 6-8 hours at school. Poor posture puts them at health risk and can have profound mental health implications, especially lack of concentration and reduced productivity.

“Simple design gestures, like keeping in mind the ergonomics of a child, can go a long way in creating an inclusive environment and positively impact the students’ mental health,” said Shubhra Dahiya, Partner, team3.

3. PLAY-BASED LEARNING

It is said that play is the highest form of research, and children learn better when interacting with their physical environment. Such components foster meaningful connections and help children stay more active and socially engaged. Therefore, it’s pivotal for any school design to conjure a learning environment that replaces traditional intimidating institutional architecture.

Collaborative and interactive spaces also give wings to the child’s imagination. In addition, these spaces increase student-teacher interaction and hone discursive educational practice, which is linked to the overall achievements of the child.

4. DESIGN THAT INDUCES A HAPPY MOOD

Post-pandemic, the design vocabulary of schools should focus on holistic wellness by synergising the indoor and outdoor. Expansive windows, glass facades, and naturally lit spaces can create such cohesive spaces. Alongside, harmoniously blending textures and soft hues can induce warmth and snugness in the classroom.

The layout should be clean-lined and clutter-free to optimise volume, extending its domain to an accessible, barrier-free environment that enables the safety and security of children. Sliding glass doors instead of wall partitions can enable a continuous change in the size of the enclosure and catalyse connections between different areas.

5. ARCHITECTURE AS A THIRD TEACHER

Buildings need to be looked at as more than just a facility but as a third teacher, acting as a powerful teaching aid, along with parents and teachers. In today’s day and age, we are witnessing a trend that is moving away from rigid education systems, with increasing value being placed on problem-solving skills, design and critical thinking, creativity, emotional intelligence, and cognitive flexibility.

Contemporary school designs should prod curiosity while accentuating educational experiences to stimulate and invigorate a child’s early year development and positively impact holistic growth.

Therefore, it’s important to rethink and reimagine schools as a child would perceive them and shift from the paradigms of archetypal classrooms.

Source: https://www.indiatoday.in/education-today/featurephilia/story/explained-how-customised-flexible-classroom-designs-can-supplement-education-2321467-2023-01-14

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