Primary School 2030

Why

A famous youtuber, Prince Ea, in his video “I just sued the school system”, pointed out everything evolve through time, while education did not, it kills creativity, individuality and being intellectually abusive. This raise fierce debate on different social medias, in general, most of them agreed education need revolution.

Education system is cruel, student’s prospect polarized when they were divided into different band of school, high graded student deserve better education, low graded just snowballing downward with inferior education sadly, desperately. In fact, some of those student are intelligence in other aspects, while some suffered from psychological disorder, there are  growing amount of diagnose regarding to dyslexia, autism, hyperactivity disorder, attention deficit and so on. These congenital unfortunate directly ruin their live!

Curriculum & education reform each year, while classroom remain the same, one teacher standing at front, student sitting properly with their desk. This relationship last for many centuries, most school architecture precedent concern about environment, greenery, recreation and efficiency, it is time to think about our classroom, properly atmosphere for teaching.

What

Intelligent student survive from traditional education, elite schools is still the best place for them to learn, while others still deserve better education that suit them more. We see internet is evolving, learning resource is evolving, reading is no doubt the mainstream of gathering and transferring knowledge, but make good use of technology can actually help us understand things much faster.

Space can influence human concentration, spatially or psychologically, proper amount of noise control, light, size of room, orientation can actually affect human perception. Different class of student have different syllabus and timetable, it is possible to arrange student to learn and study a specify subject on specifically designed room.

Secondly sports, extra curricular activities & life skill training is extremely insufficient, they are fundamental element to all mankind, but unfortunately exam result is the only thing parent and school usually concern. Some student have diversified development spontaneity but most did not, primary school should provide better platform & place for child to grow up in more multidisciplinary.

Methodology – Future education

World becoming more digital, we understand complex logic and knowledge easier with the assistant of media, diagram, illustrator. From last century, text and verbal teaching is the only solution, from last few decades, our textbook start inserting diagrams, photos, and some include a CD for audio record. Nowadays, richer school even provides ipad, projector, computer for student, future lecture maybe even replaced by 3D projection, VR. Most of the equipment evolve, but how about our classroom? How can it address better spatial solution for student to use high tech product?

Human behave differently on different atmosphere, the spatial expernment of lecture hall and outdoor classroom is not alike the feeling of indoor typical classroom. More than 80% of class looks the same, I do not believe story telling history class should have same configuration of practical maths class. Proper arrangement of light, space, relationship of interaction could bring fun learning atmosphere to draw children attention and learn more efficiently.

Industrialisation aims to reduce repeat procedure, but we see teacher repeat a passage year by year, some will just read through the passage, can it be replaced by video recording with related animation, or even 3D projection in future? If machinery can reduce workload, teacher may have more time to diagnosis individual student and answer specific question.

Final aim – Way to begin

Birth rate dropping year by year all over Hong Kong, Insufficient enrollment leading lots of school with bad reputation closed down, some transform into different building typology, while some just being abandoned. It is cost effective to redesign a obsolesced school with better use of space and equipment, and provide a platform for children to explore their talent on different aspect.

Since Hong Kong have straight policy on standard primary school, no matter public or private, both of them should follow the syllabus and instruction of Hong Kong Education Bureau. While international school have more freedom, sufficient capital and different system of public examination, it should have more room for creativity and imagination.

Precedents

St Joseph’s Primary School   /   dKO Architecture

Birralee Primary School   /   Kerstin Thompson Architects

Fuji Kindergarten  /   Tezuka architects

Singapore University of Technology and Design   /   UNStudio

St Mary of the Cross Primary School   /   Baldasso Cortese Architects

Farming Kindergarten   /   Vo Trong Nghia Architects

Frederiksvej Kindergarten   /   COBE

Fukumasu Base and Kindergarten Annex   /   Yasutaka Yoshimura

Bibliography

Barnes, Emily Ann., and Bess Margaret Young. Children and Architecture. New York City: Pub. by Bureau of Publications, Teachers College, Columbia University for Lincoln School of Teachers College, 1932.

Beltzig, Gunter. Kindergarten Architecture. Barcelona: Loft, 2001.

Gelfand, Lisa, and Eric Corey. Freed. Sustainable School Architecture: Design for Primary and Secondary Schools. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, 2010.

Kotnik, Jure. New Kindergarten Architecture: Guidelines & 37 Case Studies. Barcelona, Spain: Links, 2011.

Ockman, Joan, and Rebecca Williamson. Architecture School: Three Centuries of Educating Architects in North America. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 2012.

Otto, Karl. School Buildings. London: Published for ʻThe Architect & Buildings News ̓by Iliffe Books, 1965.

Scott, Sarah. Architecture for Children. Camberwell, Vic.: ACER Press, 2010.