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INSIGHT
The Future of Learning Spaces
Education is on the tip of our tongues just now. The most likely first step of an exit strategy for lockdown - re-opening schools - presents a significant challenge for school leaders, facility managers, educators and support staff, let alone for children, parents and caregivers.
For the past few weeks, parents have been leaping across their living rooms for PE with Joe, helping children navigate content on BBC Bitesize and getting to grips with daily learning commitments, while juggling a multitude of tasks to keep work and home life running smoothly.
Home schooling has presented real challenges, thrown the spotlight on the digital and socio-economic divide, and potentially changed the way we think about learning forever.
We’ve gathered our thoughts – and those of industry colleagues and education clients – into a series of discussion points, helping you navigate the emerging challenges and opportunities of designing inclusive learning spaces.
These are grouped into three areas:
+ Feedback (Exploring current concerns)
+ Necessity (Planning for return: What can we do now?)
+ Opportunity (What can we change for the better?)
The current pandemic has brought communities closer together and encouraged far greater collaboration: a convergence of business, civic and academic worlds. Some of the solutions to our new learning challenges will depend on this collaboration continuing. Technology enables new ways of teaching and learning – but we must be cognisant of the digital divide: it is the poorest children with least access to digital resources whose education will falter.
Similarly, schools have generally been designed to be accessible to all: what happens now, when classrooms may be mothballed, routines are turned on their head and social distancing must be maintained at all times? This will be uniquely challenging for SEN children and those who are visually/hearing impaired.
Schools – Stateof the Nation
Wayfinding in schools will need to be reviewed – perhaps taking tips from the health sector, where explanatory supergraphics have helped to reduce anxiety and provide clarity on process and direction.
As architects, we have the opportunity to see space differently – helping you plan for change and capitalise on the opportunity it generates, to create better learning places.
Where do we start?
Images: Jesmond Gardens Primary School
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The Future of Learning Spaces
We started our ‘virtual round table’ discussion reflecting on our own lives pre- and post-Covid 19, reviewing our life values and what we’ve been focused on since lockdown. We discussed work/life balance, the importance of good mental health, healthcare in general and the value of community. This pandemic has also highlighted to the nation the importance of teachers and schools.
Schools do not just provide academic teaching and learning. Schools nurture children, provide childcare, support welfare and offer free school meals. Here, we share some of the questions we asked local authority education teams, estates managers/school bursars, educationalists and design teams. Their responses are anonymised and represent the collective discussion which took place.
Q. Why are schools important?
+ Schools provide respite and relief from the home environment. Some children live in horrific circumstances. The neglect of children whose parents don’t support them through this period or can’t afford to feed/clothe them in the same way is potentially considerable. These are the children we need to be concerned for, when they go back to school.
Q. There are no exams this year. If exams don’t remain, what happens to the curriculum?
+ Should we be reviewing the whole approach to education? And how will that inform the footprint of buildings? As a nation, are we going to be bold enough to do such radical change, and how quickly?
Q. Does education have more value than life and social skills?
+ Since CV19 and with home schooling, the emphasis on music, art, drama and sport versus screen time and academic learning has shifted. Should there be more funding and more of a balance of these subjects?
+ Funding and budgets are restricted, but if we invest in children today - looking at their education, their health, wellbeing, mental health, nutrition and activity – are we going to reduce the impact on the NHS in the future?
KEY TAKEAWAY
The pandemic has highlighted just how much children from underprivileged backgrounds rely on schools for more than just an academic education. Does the curriculum – and
the facilities schools provide – need to change to reflect the
broader social value they offer?
Top Image: ADP Courtyard Interior Concept Sketch Right Image: Aureus School
FEEDBACK
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Q. Should there be more of a focus on the community element of schools: adult learning, family rooms, social and support spaces?
+ We went through a phase of delivering excellent schools – always including community spaces. We consulted with pupils on what they wanted to see. But now we are government funded, everything is driven by what the money is given to us for. Schools we’re building now still provide excellent teaching and learning spaces, but they no longer offer a community space. Moving forward, the notion of community schools may come around again.
+ It would be good to rethink the way school sites are accessed. If there is more emphasis on online learning, there could be a shift to schools becoming more of a social entity and a broader asset for the community.
+ Using school facilities links us strongly to the community. Schools need to be viewed as a community asset, not a teaching entity. In the old days, the community looked after their asset. If they become community assets again, then people would look after them. We can educate people about what we want the building to be used for.
SCHOOLS DRIVEN BY COMMUNITIES
CV19 stories of headteachers delivering food packages and schools providing social care services for our vulnerable children are plentiful. There is a very real need to support parents, students and communities with teaching, learning and their own family welfare.
Data collected (from post occupancy evaluations) highlights the value of community spaces to parents and families – often being utilised beyond capacity. Adult learning spaces and spaces for parents to have a cup of tea and support each other are vital if the wider school community is to thrive.
With area schedules today, these spaces simply aren’t allowed for unless they are self-funded.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Moving forward, can we make a case for at least some
of the school estate being designated as a community
asset, supported by alternative funding streams?
Top Image: Rose Hill Community Centre Right Image: Clay Farm Community Centre
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Q. Flexibility in design is important: what works in your schools?
+ Flexible furniture (light and different heights) – it’s very important to have working areas you can stand at.
+ Don’t restrict spaces by interiors and finishes (dado rails, or anything stuck to the wall).
+ Focus on, and always ask, ‘How will a child cope in this type of environment?’
INTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
Q. If the wellbeing of staff and students is becoming increasingly important, what small changes can we make to the internal environment in order to make a big difference?
+ Glazed screens adjacent to the classroom door allow for cross corridor connections between staff, and provide visual support between teachers. They enable passive supervision and support for both students and staff.
+ It’s important to create a sense of belonging and ownership through art: we’ve seen great success stories of children being involved in art installations.
+ Location and size of staff spaces: it’s crucial to consider the wellbeing of staff. Don’t internalise staff spaces: no one wants to feel stuffed in a cupboard. Nor should staff spaces be tucked away at the end of the school. They should provide a safe place which is easily accessible, that staff can share and feel comfortable in.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Don’t lose sight of the importance of adjacencies
and locations of spaces. Transparency into rooms
provides passive support. All spaces should have the same
quality environment, whether they are for pupils or staff, and natural daylight is important in any staff or learning space.
Image: Haddenham St Mary’s Church of England School
Top and Right Images: Jesmond Gardens Primary School
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Q. We appreciate that budgets are tight and often the landscape takes the hit when it comes to school design. Should there be more outdoor learning at all ages?
+ With restricted budgets, we focus time and effort on indoors and what’s left gets used for the externals. When we look back at schools, we can see the ones where we have spent time and effort on the external landscape do work, and deliver better. We always have to make a choice. We try to leave the school in a position where the basic infrastructure is in place, so they can build on it themselves over time.
Q. Should there be more investment in creating opportunities to make external spaces more attractive?
+ Spaces are under-utilised when schools are shut. We need to think about the location of spaces within school sites that could be opened up for all. Moving forward, some of our schools are vast sites, but locked at 5pm and that’s it.
Q. What’s happening with Forest Schools?
+ We would always try to introduce one if schools are willing, but you need a champion within the school to take ownership and run it.
KEY TAKEAWAY
Why don’t we invest more in landscape and the natural environment? Why don’t we
bring the outdoors inside and take learning outside?
Encouraging staff to champion outdoor learning is just one
piece of the puzzle – we need to design schools so that
external environment can be accessed by the community, increasing their social value
beyond the school day.
EXTERNAL ENVIRONMENT
According to eminent biologist Edward O. Wilson, humans have an innate tendency to seek connections with nature. If we lose that relationship for a long period, we can start to show signs of stress.
The external environment plays just as much a part on children’s health and academic development as the internal environment, affecting development academically, emotionally, socially and physically.
Exposing young people to nature and taking them away from technology opens up a range of educational experiences.
Top Image: Cringleford Primary School Right Image: Soar Valley College
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EDUCATION AND TECHNOLOGY
Technology has stepped up to bridge the gap during lockdown and should continue to play a key role in educating our future generation.
However, not all schools and students have equal access to IT to provide education virtually. Some schools are supporting this by issuing worksheets and lesson plans, others more actively, with live lessons and Google meet-ups.
A recent report by the Sutton Trust suggests that only a third of pupils are taking part in online lessons while schools are closed. 24% of teachers surveyed said fewer than 1 in 4 children in their class are returning work they have been set.*
*Source: https://www.suttontrust.com/our-research/covid-19-and-social-mobility-impact-brief/
Q. Technology has stepped up, but what are the obstacles we face?
+ Technology provides access to knowledge; however, the teacher is there to teach application. Children learn from their peers and teachers: learning from home raises concerns around parental involvement.
+ Home learning has a great reliance on parents and they equally need support to teach their children.
+ Do all schools have adequate technology and IT systems?
+ Do all families have adequate IT and broadband?
+ Technology isn’t the answer for all ages, certainly not for KS1–2.
Q. Are the generation we’re designing for defined by technology?
+ Phones, tablets and laptops: children are using devices to connect to friends every minute of the day. Do our schools reflect their needs more?
+ Are we ready for the technology? Do we have the right technology, skills and teaching methods to make changes and prepare the next generation? How can we make it more inclusive with virtual lessons and virtual online teacher support?
KEY TAKEAWAY
Any strategy for online tuition moving forward must
address the issue of digital poverty. Until we can ensure
all children under the age of 16 have equal access to education (of equal quality), then virtual lessons can only play a small part in our education system.
Images: Jesmond Gardens Primary School
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Impact of the Crisis: Short-termPlanning for social distancing
Government guidance on primary schools re-opening is now emerging. Earlier in lockdown, we gathered insights from trusts, schools and education professionals on the challenges this would create.
Topic: Supporting Health and Wellbeing
+ How do we manage support for children, staff and parents? Is this the right time?
+ How do we improve the acoustics of larger teaching spaces, if they are to become class bases?
+ Can we make social distancing graphics fun AND educational? There are great examples in paediatric healthcare – friendly faces linked to apps which support wayfinding, reduce anxiety and enhance wellbeing.
+ How and when do teachers’ unions need to be involved? What conditions do we need to provide for staff?
Topic: Everyday Practicalities
+ Can we stagger drop-off times between year groups?
+ Do we introduce PPE for teachers? Monitor health of children and teachers before they enter the school? Check temperatures? We’ll need to establish processes and protocols for these.
+ Getting to school: can we encourage walking, cycling or parent drop off?
What are the implications of this for our (green) travel plans, health and safety and risk assessments? How are we engaging with Local Authorities creating guidance for using public transport, school buses, walking buses and trains?
+ For younger age groups, can we drop off directly into the classroom or review safe external drop-off zones? Is it possible to implement a strategy to get all children to their desks safely and maintain social distance?
+ Circulation – a one-way system (check practicalities of routes, toilet location & fire exits).
+ Can we stagger break times and monitor toilet breaks to ensure social distancing is maintained?
+ Is it possible for students to be self-sufficient: bringing their resources and lunch, and with no gathering?
+ Can students stay in class and at their desk, and teachers move around and deliver the full curriculum? If not, what needs to flex?
Topic: Curriculum Challenges: Teaching and Learning
+ Potentially operating with a reduced classroom size, running at 25-30%.
+ Review the curriculum: what subjects can be taught without social contact? How could this be managed with clever timetabling?
+ Establish what elements of the curriculum can be delivered at home, in school and outside.
+ Working outdoors: could schools utilise their external spaces to help alleviate clashes in timetables, using sheltered external spaces which are relatively quick and easy to construct to provide extra capacity? This is more useful in the short term, in summer months and with controlled use in the wider landscape spaces.
+ Can we create allotment beds for children to gather in small groups for relaxation/wellbeing and to alleviate stress?
Topic: Operational Challenges: Reopening and Timetabling
+ One size doesn’t suit all: it depends on a school’s size, age range, location and catchment area.
+ There are a range of options for staggering the days or weeks – examples include:
- One week on, one week off.
- 3hr morning for one set, deep clean, followed by a 3hr session for the next set.
+ Review the students to attend in person: can the class still be broadcast to the home?
NECESSITY
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Top Image: Oldfield Primary School
Impact of the Crisis: Long TermWill this pandemic change schools, education and design in the future?
Q. Has this pandemic questioned the education system and purpose of schools forever?
+ It’s a step change. We can only carry on as we are now and await direction. But we’ve all got to prepare for the “new normal”.
Q. Are Schedules of Accommodation still relevant?
+ We’ll always be restricted by BBs and GIFAs – but we can be more creative to create schools in a certain way to deliver the curriculum. Our school designs need to be agile and adaptable for the future.
Q. What if they do change the curriculum?
+ High-level debates are happening now about the curriculum. If the curriculum does change radically, it would be a wonderful opportunity and we have some fantastic school sites/buildings out there.
+ Hopefully, school sites will remain the hub of everything that needs to be brought together.
Q. Do we teach, learn and design schools for the future of the next generation?
+ Teaching: academic learning, life skills and vocational learning for the 21st century.
+ Learning: resilience, emotional intelligence, creativity, critical thinking, teamwork.
+ A balanced life: work, mental health, nutrition, health & activity.
“I just hope the opportunity isn’t missed for radical change. How wonderful to be on the cusp of something more exciting. We can all work in a way to make things flex to our benefit.”
OPPORTUNITY
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CLAIRE MANTLE Schools Sector Director
Contact
LONDON [email protected]
DELHI [email protected]
NICOSIA, [email protected]
ADP
Claire Mantle [email protected]
Craig Cullimore [email protected]
Wayne Dobbins [email protected]
David Jovetic [email protected]
Herpreet Rayet-Boughey [email protected]
Sarah Birkby [email protected]
WITH THANKS TO:
Guests + MACE
+ RIBA
+ Science Oxford
+ Stansfeld Park
+ Sandwell Council
+ Speller Metcalfe
+ United Learning
+ Educationalist, Ian Moore
