My initial research began by looking into the trends in school facilities particularly in urban locations. One case study focused on the school district in New York City which initiated a reform of twenty-two schools. The focus was to create smaller school environments. The results from the initiative showed increases in students’ academic performance, and higher graduation rates. Additional research in school design philosophy encourages community involvement. This included extending the usage time of the building beyond the time the students were there. The school could begin to function as a community center and neighborhood revitalizer. As the traditional program of a school expands to include community needs, various issues and questions begin to arise.
Flexibility and Adaptability - such to accommodate large or small student and/or community groups
Technology – The incorporation of technology and the internet into the classroom and the surrounding community. The ability to connect with others in the city, country and the world.
Safety and Security – How to control, regulate, and observe those entering the facility. Who has access to a particular area and when? What are the dynamics of overlap?
Healthy Environments – Inclusive of natural light and ventilation. What can the school give back to the community and the city?
How does the exterior of the building and overall aesthetics strengthen the school’s identity and purpose?
What can the building itself teach the students? Can the design of the building facilitate learning beyond the classroom?
How to plan for the future? Will the building always be a school?
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4 comments:
the question of a school is always tied up in the programming of that school
they are mutually supportive and i think rely on each other possibly more than any other typology in a very forceful way - sure a theatre has a symbiotic relationship but the ideas and relationships remain relativily constant. Schools are always puhing thier program adapting growing - shrinking - altering thier personailities with every new class, technology or theory that is introduced.
yet the school is also a place of stability, and foundation of socity this inherent dichotomy which makes the school interesting.
the qualities that you identify are important - which ones will sit in the drivers seat and which will ride shotgun will be decsiisons that have ripple effects through the semester
Kristin-
Good questions to ask. Some are obvious givens: security, a healthy environment, for sure, the highest level of technology. Others give pause and may require you to take a stand and pursue that relentlessly:- flexibility and adaptability vs the overall aesthetics and image, and what happens in the future? If it is desirable that it may change its fundamental program in coming decades, then shouldn't it be totally flexible and fully adaptable? And so, is an iconic identity a detriment to that? Should it blend so seamlessly into the community that it cannot stand out- at any point in time- as an institution quite separate? Issues to discuss.
Kristin-
Not sure when your studio jury is, but I AM indeed looking for some new material for you to post before our next face-to-face meeting. As you know from last week, I think there is the general feeling that its OK to design a nice little well scaled school (and you have case studies for that), but the bigger challenge is finding out about the community that surrounds the school parcel such that you can identify the social issues, ethnic groups, and physical deficiencies in the area to program into your school. If you could find some community activist- some real person from some real Phila neighborhood, that person would point you in the right direction. Maybe Sally Harrison has a name of someone you could talk to. I don't know if you have a good case study of a school with a strong neighborhood outreach, but that would also be so so desirable. jp
Kristin,
(I apologize if I'm spelling it wrong I have 3 friends all with different spellings (Ch-, Kri-, Kry- so please set me straight on this)
I've contacted my friend who is the director of Landsdowne Friends School, a quaker school in the Philadelphia tradition of Quaker schools. I predict that while she is busy, she will be open to your questions, maybe even you can take the Regional Rail down there and see it all for yourself (hint, hint) I've done it myself on previous occasions it is very easy.
here's their web address, specifically to their teaching philosophy:
http://www.lansdownefriendsschool.org/about/
First things first -
YOU MUST UPDATE YOUR BLOG!!!ASAP!!
Ok, now that' that's out of the way. I'm going to put in my notes from the pin up and then also some more info on directions and information you should be exploring and gathering.
Your big issues, that I can think of are going to be which aspects of education and architecture are you wishing to focus on? and Site.
I think it might be helpful to tally these issues, their contributing factors, what it is that they will do to potentially direct the thesis forward. You can come up with your own way of doing this, but we all saw how paul's having those simple images ready to go helped the conversation immensly
I can think of a very diverse feild of schools for you to start becoming aware of, as I said to Adam your most powerful passport is the fact that you are a wide-eyed college student interested in learning anything that someone has the patience to tell you. And everyone has an opinion they want to give (your reading exhibit A).
Schools in the phila region to get in touch with (keep a list and add contacts and information as you get it)
Private:
Lansdowne Friends School (previously mentioned)
SemiPrivate
Catholic schools?
The School of the Future: school in west philly sponsored by microsoft/Bill gates
http://www.microsoft.com/education/schooloffuture.mspx
CHAD - architecture charter school
Public:
Philadelphia Public Schools (in general)
-The school adjacent to campus
Philadelphia magnate or selective schools (the Girls school, the arts schools)
All these are resources to plug into to start collecting information, and lining up visits to go see them and see what is working and what you think needs help.
SITE SITE SITE
you expressed that you want this school to be a community transforming place that makes site essential. The Stewardson site is an obvious and not at all innapproriate to this thesis. If your happy with it that would be fine. If not, I'm sure there are other places to develop as well.
As I noted to Paul, it is important that you get a good knowledge from the a site it will help you flesh out the more nuanced detailing that will be needed in your project as it progresses.
DEFINTIONS
You used the words 'transformative object' and i think we can have alot of discussion generated by that, but we need to know better what YOU mean by that, or the variety of meaning you mean by that term - which i think in and of itself can be interesting and multi-faceted.
I am recomending to everyone to start working on a schedule for yourself that outlines issues you feel you need to look at, timelines for when you would like to have decisions by so we can keep tracking progress forward. Now that you are free from studio your thesis deserves more time. This schedule can always adapt and be updated but it would be good to have it in mind.
-Andrew
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