‘SPACE AND LEARNING | have been invved in bulking schals for ty years, ding which time many dees about ‘edueton Rave changed, ax Rave the ceria tht afe sped to bldg and arctectare- uth Ste of these developments in time, the spatal theme: that are cert to my designs have ‘emained constant. What has changes it the slocaton of spat esoures - whlch eb Imposes carta constants ~ but not how chien learn nchom you can make space for her todo. ‘Again and again one finds oneself addressing paradoxes that can be resolved primary (or perhaps exclssvey) through spatial means, sch 2s hw > enabe young people to focus on rt {ne thng, while atthe same stimatng ther curoaty by srowng attention to the vices of thal suroundigs. nother one: how to mate the echoc! into a safe, depandable envecment Wile at the same ie opening I up to the word with athe adventures end dangers tht Clon wil need to confront 2t some stage and with which they wll noed to familie ‘themselves. Forme, this makes bung scheals a fascinating que for pata rerources tht an Improve the ciate for both leasing and ving within the dalectes of certainty and rly, Secusion and openness; the reconciton of 4 house with the world Bascal, there aes handful f themes that aways recur in sore form or thorn a my srhtectral design, As an architec, ts imperative to fest being swept up by any specie wen of even and to use Tt as 2 pont of departure for your desgn. Aretee's should not get swoived n debates bout edveation; instead they shoud create spatal conations that wil bene faring 8 {general sense. The buldng should provide a gover ramenark or education an earng, whe Bang euble enough to respond to changing demande and even (m2 spi sense) hold ovt 3 Suggestion of pursuing averues other tan tho id Sonn nthe bit Precisely because most noting ear the chet’ mas,» dng must be durable, nthe sense that must remain usabla and capable of respendng to new views abot education without needing to undergo any fundamental change In sation, expansion Is unavodabe (of ‘ur ten schools completed before 2000, seven have sequted or planed new extensions Of ‘arying sas since they were rst but) Ir te Idea of designing buliings a completes composts, tke scuptres, hat long caved to be relevant, this apps pre-eminent to schoo, whic ae more susceptible tothe restlessness (of eur demanding roe) than any ther bulge, In-ow" designs, we were constantly searching for themes that woud expand the scope for ‘cation and iering stations. Again and ain, tis meant exploring form that sidestepped the “archetype” oF a school bung, wth its rows of chssooms and comers running aor besides them, by designing classrooms loss as enclosed us an the coisrs mare ae learn Spaces, tus expanding the opportunities for lang station, Cornors do not belong schools. Those corre that me dominated everywhere and always by rocksacks and odd its of elothing, and by the endlespuling and showing, E2dgeing sr ‘aping that means they have to be made extra wie, useg wpa lege proportion of whet might ‘thers be Insprtions space, whl they cold instead be del paces for mestng oer, 22 ‘wel as heling to sve the everasting problem of cranoed classrooms, Completely lmnting ‘omiders and aking corner ares, making the space sutae for communal use by verse oupe ‘of pupils, crested greater socal cohesion and rere places for smal groups, wile whois Instetion col continue to take pace in classrooms, In these stations, te troducton of dass concarna partitions that can be ater to produce \Gosed or open spaces trl revoatonses th scope for Mei canoe. ‘The Articulation of Space: Spatial Units Wat matters fest and foremost to artcate the space so as to ceste as many places as possible where peoplo can werk indvidualy or m ours by fufling the necssay spatal fetion. Ths means using all nds of achitectualremurces, from fuheght or hal-heght 2 Tg hes weber erat my ink ese ad Leng: Lesson rac 3 pe 14wal to stops, storeys or elovatd areas, a crcl factor being the sie of these erat, which reed to crnte a sense of Boundaries, protection, and partion fam others, Such s2 may Be provided by bay windows oc recesza, he retaining te overl fel of uty and emmunty. DA spatal unt could be desorbed asa space that srhowes#cetan equim Between» sense of secusor and a sense of communty. Where learhing station Is concerned, te means fuing the condtions that enale you to concentrate on your work while tthe sre tine bang aware others and what they are din, The crucial actor is always the relative mensions of the elements, at least suggest che use or the Sze ofthe group af users, nt stu determining them. Above pata une must be made to appear inviting, for 2 smal or arge aroup, depending onthe design IF a spatal unt 5 conceved as a centre of attentan,afucultng the space wil iereae the schoo's caacty for centres of atenton flowing on fem ths, we ee 9 schoo uldng a8 Conglomerate of as many contre of attention a5 passe, which can accormmodate nex umber of aring stuns ‘Ta tend towards more ard smater groups, and towards more holdual work, cals forthe space to be arteuated, but not fragmented. Spatial cohesion mu always be proseved, Not nly mast the space continue to aon for large groups (ike oé-siyle dasses) to conggat, but the buldng must reman a unfie spat en, as 2 pace where peop se aware of each thers artis and fo! invites ota part open exchanges with han Spatial Cohesion Inthe case of tore complex buldings such as an extended ot community schox (Brede Schoo, 3 tocowaltural complex in which each ofthe patlopating enttas seas to exces te fw ideney, there Is a danger of fragmentation, whch would frustrate the ited hove oF Cooperation of working with shaved fastes. Only spatial theme can sere asa Lindng force, ‘and moreover provge sn oppertunty to engage in real joint ventures and to undertake ates that none ofthe constant nstitutns could have managed on its om, But even wren an architect appears, ram the cutie, to have sveceeded in creting» coheshve ace, the ipace will not necessary function as such. The more complex & bung becomes, the mere it tends to spit in organisational terms) into Separate pats, forall the ‘nial feectation of unity. Fr instance erent sectens are gen seperate entrances hey wil Inevitably st apert, and the commana featres wil searcaly go beyond a shared cent heating Baler ~m ctor woes thoy wil be coined to shred running cont. Ony with 9 sonmunal ‘envance an a intrce square or street from welch people have seeess tothe cfeent unt, fxch of which can be closed of, cana colectve space be created that n princi Delangs 0 a ‘the bling's users, andin whieh thi sence of communty can be expressed, In most casts it snot easy, given the mplacabity of franca esticuons, to fre up aeas fo Communal purposes. that must be ‘appropated’ from the surface ares” of eat of the partcpatnginstutins. The specfeatios ae almost says sown vp at an agregee ofeach Teachers stted reeds for Piso” her task within the schoo to mhch the manage who hes ‘ampied the specieatons has ade a certain percentage fr movement around the hulng, Panned in ‘nis way, schels are im danger of becoming mere calectins ef rove or les utonomeus element, each of wich may fonction wel on fs om but nots awe, We 30 ot have ary aditon ofa comemural area thats shred and woe importance ie reccQied by al, 30 that everyone is wing to make certain concessions i relaton to ther own terri diame “The spatial theme, encompassing the bling a6 whole, does not jstencapauate the sense of onmrunity, tse expresses and enphasies Theoretical speaking, ould actual promote the process hereby each ofthe separate ements aeuirer ts own clear int Not ony the person responsible for defen the spetietiens bat the designer oo wil often fl Into the tap of worying many about smat parts of te whale this happens, the gn may ‘asiy end un beng @ealection of frge and sal solitons instead of suborcinatig a these large and smal souions to a more stracuralprncple tat can accommodate al the diverse itterests, We are therefore interested In devising 9 syle of schitecture ae kd of genetic sytem that generates ‘ened! sluts to te vagus problems, thus leading toa rstonsip Secon at he separate demas stay ste he copatunty fo eve he a2 of 4‘The Sehool asa City 2 spatal comprehensive thame wil naualy arouse associations with a ystam of streets and/or Squares. The astincion between oper shared spaces and closed, exclave ones newtaly recats the puic/private cde whieh withn the urban content serves to define responses, Within 3 bung, ths pine can in teal easly be interpetes by the se of soaring Megs and daylight fom above, these Being primary means ofrefrcng the assocaton with the ey. ‘The higher space, the more ie evokes a sve of commun and publ aceen. Of a late ea Importance in ths conter Is the efference mus, which i the pube zone rates to genera concerns, whereas within areas designated specfealy for teacing purposes ~ much as n butangs wih spect designations in the cy =i rltes primary to meters asin within he frou. I especialy In publ’ areas that You came into contact wih oters, who ae dang Gtferent thing, and its there that you are confronted with 3 larger word than that of you" ‘dassoom or Scheal, of your parte’ section of a seheo ‘This means that everyone can have parteuar demain In which he belongs, besdes the ‘communal space that provides scope for excanges between different domains. omar do ret have to be stronghois. Where. the beundares betwen private and communal space ae permeable and transparent, these wil be preeinetly zones fh whic the ferent sections ‘rors ther ety. eis ely a smal step to hnking in terms of and of shopping street of Teuring street in which te vee domals, such as castoons, can anfest themselves, sch at Reon dtnctive character. With the current less of fath in classrooms as the sole appropriate space for proving ‘seston, some have tended to goto the oter extreme. They Keep everyting open 20 that a Soundaries become blued, cresting a were & ld weld with entenbly idea opportunities for exchanges, The fala to take account of the fact thet such a ureng of denies means theres nothing let to exchange, snee everything flows nto everything ese and nothing has ‘um place any more. inthis situation, people 00 wl be eR without a pace they can al the ‘un and Rave to navigate a confusing worn the manna of nomads ‘isnot jst busnge nat read st-utire: people too need st/uctured envionment, a whlch ‘ech person can feel at heme, You need s home base to which you ean sways return, an from ‘ich you ean venture out to ere the wor ‘Schoo! as Home ‘The igor 3 school biking becomes, the greater the danger of chen fein les. While you want 19 provide the maximum sn terms of ich and varied experience, is atthe same tne ‘rset to gard agains alienation to ensure that clen fee! at home and have the sense of ‘Ssouity tht comes from sufflent clay 28 to where they belong. Numerous studes have Shown that chiren aed heme sureundgs that provide a kid of retreat, with space fr fersona atrbutes end accessors, nthe mare to whch they are accustomed at home = OM, Some ease, ina manner tat may be qute lacking 3 hme any architects (and eduetonalsts too) hol fast to the rained Busion of a neat and tidy ‘wold, rating a sense of err, in which the beautfulycenceved forms, materi and curs ‘se expressed as ley a0 posable. The everysoy reaity of school presents a picture that may ‘Stem = (othe eye untaned in ths fa both chetc and banal beneath which the architect's ‘rignal estete intentions can easly be submerged. Just as one cannot exerci any control ‘over the nterir ofa eng (aside fom the occasional owner with an urusaly wel-developed ‘respect for architecture}, na schoo! to, the orgarisaton ofthe bulding’s interes desigred to ‘ves users a sense of being in far surcunangs, So that they fel at home thee, a ach 1 posible ‘The ‘persona’ appropriation of the bung by its ‘residents’ goes beyond Isleted items of fariture and sccaneores; algo requres a certain encsuragement in eements tat ae Sed ‘sien we corstarty ty) to ieude ining slements or istements, and not nfequenty ‘halenge the buldng’s users todo someting with her “Town squa ‘The wider the range of facies provided by 2 school ~ nclusng aftenschee actin, for instance and the more these addtond faite are embeded nthe local neighouthood, the page 4‘more they come to exress 2 sans of tooethaess that offers opportunites for community: Sased actin els preferable for af the chien, tacos and parents tobe able to aterd (> fh event. We therefore ensire tat eath schoo! design neues a centr! square arsngin |) vay unique to the space concerned. Ths is achieved though an organstional pine tat “7 3iows seas provided for inthe progranme of specfeatior to be comsied in 38 open Way 8 poss, co proguce a single spatial ent. Ths becomes 1 space that everyone can use, space. | >) Irie the itera sections are confented with one srothar in natural way, thus merging © ‘with one another. What each contioutng section relishes In tems of terteral clams 1 rely ofset by the benefit of having 3 fr larger coletve area atthe spor which provides ‘ope for contontatien ar meeting “thers Ths renfoces the association with the Sy %0 Such an extent that ts uy to escape anyone's atten. Playground as Street Ice aways an enous callngs to prevent schools fom beng ensconced bend fences, and to deign them in sucha way that the area that bongs tothe shoot sity speaking, temas partof the street and hence remain acess to chldren em the suToundhngneighbounood. ‘The schoa’s relationship with ite naghbours la aways complested business Where people focus on thar own interests, both ses experience sane and 2 sense of Fitton such 35 {22% of vandalism (however tii), the use of paring spaces, the nie and crush assoiated ‘ith the Begining and end oF the schoo! day, fers revel around paces where yuna people abiwaly "hang sound and the noe of chien plyog outsde. We proceed on the {ssumption that schoo! cod tea oral pant Yr the ebourhod, ene tat actualy fosters foci cohesion ‘After al Socal cobesion a genera is in a bad way. So espeiy nthe case ofa school, certiniy ‘ne with “wide” faces ung all those functions Uat can benet a neghbouthood, we “Should be conrtanty on te lookout for devess tha can porate harmony Between schol and ‘optbouthood, With the relentless eve towards didualesten, foo many sod systems that ‘nee provided sldaty and cohesiveness have been ered cemented together, we Stpeste prvate interests are neresengly dominant. hing behind rights and rues that ae ttanaatedsrchitectoraly Into wal ond fenem, ab of whe lec inexorably to excuson and etacert. f this continues, there Is» danger of cur ofen culture rapily dsintegrting into Impaeesbie lane of secur and safety. We are increasnaly ruled By fear, whch can cast 8 ‘Saud vera rationships snd ike rth undermining the eanesiveness of soley. ‘fencugh wal have been torn down within the cuter wal ofa school, costing transparent leaning enveorment, te next challenge is to extnd ths Wanspareney Outsce the school, tO promote greater soci casio in a wder context ed cohesion s based prmany on mutual understanding and commitment, rust, rspect ot tomentin the resaation that tis cohesion tm eveyone best terest Is obvious that he Epaal context i high Mfuenal n Ws respect, and we therefore se It a5 PEt of ou task to develop prototypes fort barman Hertaberger puget