Book Description

Educational policies and trends are continually changing, and consequently design briefs for school buildings are also in a constant state of flux. School Builders introduces 29 school projects from across the globe, each of which bears testimony to the many changes affecting school buildings. Through these projects, the book also presents a number of pressing and sensitive issues relevant to architects, school governors and anyone else involved in school design. Representing the work of an international range of architects, the featured buildings cover a wide range of briefs: from the technology-led classroom to the sustainable 'green' school; from the tight urban site to wide expansive fields; from the small to the large; from children's involvement to the community's involvement; from state to private; and from safety and security to freedom and horizons. Within this range of issues, new technologies emerge as the main driving force behind the most rapid changes in school design. Technology has allowed schools and learning to change, in terms of both the physical space and the type of activity taking place within it. School buildings must therefore offer more and more flexibility in their design: they need to be able to accommodate potential changes concerning technology, demographics, sustainability policies, urban regeneration, safety and security, and all within (mostly) public budgets - and on top of this, to do so using creative design solutions. The buildings featured here will offer inspiration to anyone seeking to tackle these complex issues of school architecture.