Changes in the way education is delivered has contributed to the evolution of school architecture in Zurich, Switzerland. The City of Zurich has revised its guidelines for designing school buildings, both new and old. Adapting older buildings to today's needs presents a particular challenge. The authors explain what makes up a good school building…

The quality of education is intimately linked to its architecture. Any urbanistic/architectural project must stem from an in-depth study of the area's characteristics, taken in the broad geographical, climatic, cultural, functional and ideological sense. The site should provide the conceptual energy from which a campus draws life. This requirement…

Open plan schools have been largely contested in Portugal; many teachers, administrators and even parents consider this model of schooling inappropriate and therefore a failure. Recently however the Escola da Ponte, one of the open plan schools that has survived, was recognised as one of the country's most innovative educational facilities.…

In presenting this case study of an innovative school building in Scotland, the author describes its unique design features, conveys the viewpoints of the users, client and design team, and reveals the lessons learned. Dalry Primary, North Ayrshire Introduction Dalry Primary School in North Ayshire is the latest case study featured on the Scottish…

This recently completed primary school illustrates how architecture can contribute to creating a safe and warm environment in a difficult area and can meet the particular needs of the student community. In its first year in operation, Cherry Orchard National School is proving to be a successful project. Presented here are the architectural…

Educational facilities became important public and specialised buildings since governments began to face the right of populations to education. Policies to provide educational buildings that respect modern notions of comfort and hygiene led architects to develop architectural concepts that corresponded to new demands on education. The need to…

This article describes the design of a flexible school for childhood education in Milan, Italy. The architecture of this school takes into account children's development and the different ways they experience space according to their age. The facilities will include not only a nursery school and kindergarten, but also a drop-in day-care centre, a…

Brazil's Sao Paulo Metropolitan Region is conducting a performance evaluation pilot study at three schools serving disadvantaged populations. The objective is first to test methods which can facilitate Post Occupancy Evaluations (POEs) and then to carry out the evaluations. The preliminary results are provided below.

Educational buildings and grounds can provide a supportive and stimulating environment for the learning process as well as contribute to greater community needs. These issues were addressed at an international conference entitled "Making Space: Architecture and Design for Young Children". Described here are the importance of outdoor…