Drawing on a socio-materialist perspective, this study analyses connections between cultural contexts, the social situatedness of learning experiences and the material artefacts in rural Chilean schools. Our focus on different dimensions of design foregrounds the ways materials and places may act together with other elements to influence human…

In response to tragic school shootings, heightened attention has been devoted to making schools safer through the implementation of security features. However, excessive security measures have a negative impact on school climate, student functioning, and academic achievement. Therefore, there is a critical need to design schools that are safe and…

Research in the field of Education has produced a corpus of studies dealing with the specific relationship between school building condition and student achievement reporting positive results. Yet, studies have been completed reporting no significant difference in achievement scores from students in buildings in poor and good condition. The…

In this chapter we present the findings of an investigation into the ways in which the discourses and practices of school design produce educational spaces which influence the discourses and practices of teaching and learning when the building is occupied. This investigation involved the development of a methodology for systematically analysing…

Improving the school building may well be the most overlooked means of improving student health, safety, and academic performance. Yet in conversations about factors that lead students to academic success, only rarely does the role of the physical environment come to the fore. By downplaying the importance of the building, policymakers and parents…

Purpose: Accompanying the recent concern for the quality of our nation's educational infrastructure, a growing body of research connects the quality of school facilities to both student outcomes including achievement, behavior, and attitude as well as to teacher attitude and behavior. Less is known about the mechanisms of these relationships. This…