For our year-end thematic issue this time we decided to look at the spaces provided by schools and how they influence or determine our experiences. We began by considering physical spaces – the architecture and design of schools (as explored briefly by R L Kumar’s work, described here), the arrangement of interiors (as detailed by the Kalinjiyam team), and the organization of furniture and other elements (as discussed by Seetha Anand Vaidyam). Questions of ergonomics, the proportions and contours of rooms and the colour of walls, are all issues that need to be considered carefully when we think of creating physical structures that are to be occupied by children of varying ages and temperaments, and some of these are explored in the following pages.

But soon we realized that the constitution of space went beyond the physical, that the relationships we create or constrain among students, and, indeed, co-workers. It’s about mood and spirit, and that indefinable thing called “ambience” that is produced by much more than the furniture, the displays and the size of a room. It includes the hopes and the fears that are generated by a group, the tone of discussion, the freedoms we allow and disallow.

So our range of articles widened to include some of these important considerations that structure our emotional, psychological and intellectual spaces, with discussions of inclusiveness, ways to create opportunities for different kinds of activities, etc. We finally emerged with a package that brings together ideas, experiences and viewpoints from teachers, designers, and students.

Kindergarten is a child’s first formal experience of being in a controlled environment. Sizes, colours, shapes, and purpose all matter while designing anything in a kindergarten space. There are many types of standard equipment and structures available in the market to help you design a kindergarten classroom, however a little bit of imagination and creativity would lead to an aesthetic and sensible kindergarten space.

Appealing, comfortable, and minimalistic
While designing or planning the K.G. classroom, one must bear in mind that children come out of the secure and familiar spaces of their homes and sometimes crèches into the kindergarten. The kindergarten should be gently welcoming and instill a sense of security. The space should be appealing and comfortable. Cozy corners with cushions and mats, enclosed with curtains where children can play ‘house’ would be appealing aesthetically and would resemble the home environment and make children feel comfortable with the familiar looking surroundings.

The author works with the Ananda Foundation and is a Kindergarten Consultant, Curriculum Designer and Remedial Therapist. She can be reached at seethaanand@yahoo.com.

This is an article for subscribers only. You may request the complete article by writing to us at editorial@teacherplus.org.

When someone mentions the word “school”, I shudder, because I will always associate that word with a cluster of dull, drab buildings, all enclosed by a high wall with barbed wire or broken shards of glass on top, to discourage errant unwanted visitors from trying to sneak in. That is exactly how my school was. All you could see from the streets was tantalizing bits and pieces, but once you entered the school through the massive iron gates, it was a big U-shaped, boring, blue- grey building housing the various classrooms distributed among its three floors! The classrooms were none too exciting… a square box of a room, painted an unforgettable nondescript shade of white – I think – with all the requisite classroom accessories to hopefully mold us into stellar adults. The rooms were just big enough to hold around 60 eager kids and a frustrated teacher, nothing on the walls except for a clock ticking away, and a calendar to remind us of dreaded exam dates and highly anticipated holidays! And so I plugged along methodically through the various grades and classrooms like all the other kids, and graduated, in pretty decent academic shape to take on the challenges of the real world!

The author is an interior designer by profession and has interests in painting, music, yoga, and gardening. She can be reached at kaminiandraga@gmail.com.

This is an article for subscribers only. You may request the complete article by writing to us at editorial@teacherplus.org.

Let us learn and let us teach: space is not a constraint for creating a learning classroom.

A school classroom is a space where students come together to learn. It is also a space where other types of learning takes place, such as discipline, how to interact with other students, how to listen, on communication and various other aspects. A classroom should be comfortable for students, and exert subtle influence for learning to occur. Most school classrooms have very rigid arrangements with little room for children to move around. But the ideal classroom arrangements are those that are flexible and allow students to move freely. Only a comfortable classroom can be conducive for learning to take place.

Walking into any Panchayat union primary school in Tamil Nadu can be an eye-opening experience for many of us. At first glance it becomes apparent that these are not like other “regular” classrooms. Most Panchayat union schools have very small classrooms, with no more than 300 square feet of space, in which at least five different classes jostle for space and strain to hear what the teacher is saying.

The author is Founder and Director, Kalanjiyam Trust. He can be reached at kalanjiyam@gmail.com.

This is an article for subscribers only. You may request the complete article by writing to us at editorial@teacherplus.org.

When an emergency occurs, immediate rescue operations, supply of food, and rehabilitation of those affected become the primary focus of the administration. The needs of children often get neglected, as the disruption caused to their education does not get the attention it deserves.

During a calamity, school infrastructure is often damaged. This includes the physical space, learning materials, books, learning/teaching aids, etc., which are partially or completely damaged. Children may also be affected psychologically if their homes have been damaged, if they have lost a close friend or relative, or if their educational materials have been destroyed.

Recently, the highest court in India recognized that education is a fundamental right and the State should guarantee this right to all children. This includes children affected by such special circumstances, and it is important that their needs are addressed. The disruption of a child’s education following a disaster may deprive him/her of the positive transformative effects of quality education. Save the Children, an NGO that works for child rights, by addressing the need for continuing education during emergencies, ensures that children have safe spaces for learning, with the necessary support and dignity. Providing spaces for continuing education during disasters also keeps children safe from abuse, exploitation, and other risks.

The situation in Leh
The flash floods in Leh and surrounding areas in early August 2010 caused immense damage to infrastructure. The destruction was concentrated in and around the two districts of Leh and Kargil. This included damage to roads (resulting in access and transportation issues), physical damage to schools, ICDS (Integrated Children Development Services) centres, and health facilities.

Assessing the damage
I was deputed, by Save the Children, to Leh in mid-August to assess the situation and take appropriate steps for providing relief. The focus of my assessment was exclusively on education, with the key objective of understanding the vulnerability of children to access education at that time and place. The assessment required consultations with children, community members, teachers, and senior education officials.

The flash floods had affected school infrastructure in the villages of Basgo, Igoo, Umla, Saspoche, and Tashigatsal in Leh district. It was noted that children here had no safe place either to play or learn. They were worried about the disruption to their schooling, which was a central part of their daily life. They had lost their school books, their schools were nonfunctional due to the damage caused by the floods and many of their families were forced to relocate, finding temporary refuge in either makeshift tents or in neighboring villages.

How the children were affected

• Loss of their education materials (school bags, textbooks, and notebooks) was a primary concern for all children.
• Children who lost their school uniforms felt out of place, since it was their visible connection with school.
• For those whose education had resumed, classes were being conducted in the same school premises under an open sky or under the trees. The issue here was the lack of safe space and a learning-friendly environment.
• Safe drinking water was another major issue. This had an impact on children’s health, and cases of diarrhoea increased significantly.
• Secondary school students appeared under lot of pressure and psychological stress as their final examinations were scheduled for October 2010 and their syllabus had to be completed by September 2010.

The concerns of the community
Parents’ concern was primarily related to the continuity of their children’s education and recovery of their education materials. School uniforms were washed away and replacing them was a challenge. It was evident that the families had no alternate livelihood options and there was no scope for migration.

Concerns of the school management and education officials
The school managements were worried about children’s safety and health due to debris on school premises, where classes were being conducted. Books and magazines in the Book Bank, which functioned as a library, were completely destroyed. Safe drinking water was also a concern. The water streams used by children for drinking water were polluted with silt as a result of the floods, which led to outbreaks of diarrhoea. All the school materials like the furniture and teaching aids were also destroyed. And with the winter season approaching, reconstructing school buildings would be a challenge.

The steps taken
During the consultation process, we realized that the district administration faced challenges to immediately recover learning spaces for children to attend schools and continue their education. Therefore, safe learning spaces had to be arranged immediately for the children to access education and play, which would help them regain their learning abilities and reduce their psychological and emotional stress.

Save the Children coordinated with the District Education Department and immediately provided sufficient makeshift tents to the severely affected schools, so that enough safe space was available for the students to continue learning. Additionally, the schools that had lost their teaching aids/materials were provided with new kits. Educational material was provided to children who had lost theirs. This helped the schools that were destroyed by the floods to begin classes again, and the children to resume their daily schedule.

Therefore, it is always recommended that families, communities, and institutions have a preparedness plan to help reduce the vulnerability of children and promote safe environment. It is always better if disasters and development are looked upon as interlinked rather than as separate.

Tale from the field

“Rebuilding a school – with help from Save the Children”

Name of the Village: SASPOCHE
School: Government Middle School (1^st Standard to 8^th Standard)
Total Students in the School: 44 (27–Girls; 17–Boys)
Number of Teachers: 05

Background: The school in Saspoche has separate infrastructure for the students of primary and middle school. Under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan scheme, three new classrooms were constructed in 2003 for students of 6^th, 7^th, and 8^th standards. For primary students (up to 5^th standard), the classes were held in the old building, which had three classrooms and a verandah.

Impact of the flooding on school infrastructure
The primary school building was washed away by the flash floods and the subsequent landslide. The utensils and groceries stocked for the mid-day meal scheme were all washed away. The kitchen was destroyed completely. All the furniture and the teaching materials for the primary school section were destroyed too.

Challenges faced by the school teachers
The school management approached the Village Education Committee (VEC) for support in identifying rooms in the locality where classes could be conducted. The VEC suggested that classes be conducted in the greenhouse*, which the teachers felt was inappropriate.

Inspite of the damage, four teachers managed to start teaching from 7^th August 2010. The classes were held in the three rooms that were unaffected. It was extremely difficult to conduct classes for all the standards (primary to grade 8), under one roof. Teaching children without any teaching aids, blackboards, learning materials also posed challenges, as it is hard to retain a child’s attention without these.

Difficulties faced by the children
With children of three grades crowded into a single room, the students were unable to concentrate and felt suffocated. The teachers began to hold classes in the open, exposing the children to the intense summer heat. A few parents did not allow their children to attend school as classes were being held in the open. There was no drinking water available on the premises and the mid-day meal was stopped.

Save the Children intervention
The Save the Children team consulted with the Chief Education Officer and shared its concern for the children and teachers who were using the outdoors for teaching and learning. To solve this problem Save the Children procured high-quality, spacious tents that could serve as makeshift classrooms.

Impact of Save the Children response
The Pre-primary, 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd grade, classes are now conducted in these tents. Occasionally, two classes need to be accommodated in a single tent, which can be extended. The level of noise and disturbance that the students face has now been reduced considerably.

The tents also protect the children from heat and dust, providing a far more comfortable learning environment.

*A greenhouse is constructed by fi ber sheets and other local materials meant to store vegetables and other fodder items to be used during winter season. One of the teachers said, “Classes cannot be held in this as it radiates heat and children will be vulnerable to diseases.

The author has worked in the social development sector for over 10 years taking care of assessment and relief operations during natural disasters. He is currently working with Save the Children, Andhra Pradesh as a Programme Coordinator. He can be reached at k.ranganathan@savethechildren.in.

Spaces in a Waldorf school… the theme first of all begins with inner space expressing itself as outer space. Do we in our schools have inner spaces for our children or ourselves as teachers? Should a five year old learn about the solar system… where is the inner space to wonder about the ‘moving sun’ or the ‘moving moon’? As a teacher am I bogged down by the need to complete my portion… or can I have the time and space to learn as I work with the learners…wonder with them before thinking about something?

Are ‘thoughts’ and ‘thinking’ the same? The former fills space, while the latter creates space within our minds. As educators how seriously do we take this question of space? Our lifestyle seems to be symptomatic of schools – success somehow is equated to ‘the more one accumulates’… it begins at schools with ‘more marks’, ‘more stuffed in the memory’, ‘more books’, and so on. Yet, there seem to exist small oases where ‘more’ is not the mantra. The number of flowers accumulated as a bouquet can somehow never match the quality of a lotus quietly blossoming in a roadside pond… (well, if there is one in our cities that is…).

Today as I walked into my class, I saw the radiant faces of my children matched only by the radiance of what they were watching, a water lily in bloom. They were stretching themselves across the bamboo bridge over a small pond we have at school. I had no heart to call them in to teach them… they were learning from the greatest of all teachers – Nature. They were learning joyfully, supportively, and most importantly – what they wanted to learn; not what I wanted to teach.

It is hard to describe the wisdom behind Waldorf education – but one way of viewing it is that it springs out of an understanding of the ‘inner space’ of the growing human being. What does this inner space at each developmental phase require as its nourishment?

The Kindergarten years of a child (0-7) requires that we allow the child to grow in health. How do we do this? The inner space of the child during these years requires nourishment through all the senses. The food they eat needs to be nutritious. The habits of eating must be filled with rest – not hurried in front of the TV, for instance. The sense of touch needs nourishment through natural experiences – hence wooden logs, simple puppets made of cloth, cotton material, sand and water for play, subdued colours as against loud and jarring ones. The same goes for sounds – soft spoken teachers who can sing like angels, pleasant sounds of instruments, speech, and stories told as grandmothers tell them – without being affected by artificial drama…

Anyone who sees a Waldorf kindergarten will fall for its sheer aesthetics – the whole space reflects the commitment of the curriculum not to ‘invade’ the senses of the child, but rather nurture it. Cosy corners, doll’s houses, spaces to eat, paint, or draw are all part of the space planning. An ideal kindergarten might have rooms in a circular fashion – a form that gives children immense inner security and warmth.

Then come the grade years – 7 to 14 – a time when children learn out of their love for adults. The adults understand how important it is to plan the spaces aesthetically. Enthusiasm for learning can be awakened through a sense for beauty. The classrooms always have enough natural light and are airy. The rooms of younger children have little corners, where the mood of Nature is reflected within the classroom. All rooms usually have pin boards to pin the artistic work of children. The blackboards are large with wings on either side, giving enough scope for the teachers to use them creatively. More often than not beautiful blackboard drawings adorn these boards – since art is viewed as an awakener of intelligence.

The adolescents are happy to work in a laboratory… makes them feel grown up. And then there are the common spaces – library, a large hall for assembly, or presentations. Spaces for specialized music teaching. The outer spaces are planned for specific artistic activities like wood work, pottery, metal work, and so on. Of course, there is then the need for open spaces for children to run and play and be agile in their bodies.

To have inner and outer space means ‘not to invade’. I believe that primary commitment of education must be – ‘not to be invasive in the name of teaching’. There is not a day that passes without a silent gratitude (along with many colleagues at school and in the Waldorf movement) towards all these expressions of space that we believe are important aspects of living with intelligence.

The author teaches at Abhaya, a Waldorf school in Kompally, Hyderabad. She can be reached at vijuanu@yahoo.com.

Of the myriad rooms in the school, the staffroom is, barring the principal’s or viceprincipal’s offices and the doctor’s room, possibly the most hallowed, intimidating, mysterious and forbidden room, with almost all the simultaneous dread and intrigue of Bluebeard’s chamber. To the students, that is. To teachers it is an island of retreat from the chaos around. I will try to discover this contradiction a little further, and hopefully dispel some of the mystery the staffroom poses to those who have only known it as a student, and at the same time resonate with those who have known it as their haven between classes.

The staffroom is where teachers converse with each other, discuss work, eat, drink, and socialize. It is a place to work (office), a place to eat, drink, and talk (café), a place to escape to (refuge), a place to keep books (library), a place to store personal belongings (store room), a place to find out information (notice board), and even a place to teach (work), when other rooms are full (classroom).

The author is a freelance educational consultant and a former principal at AMM Mat. Hr. Sec. School, Chennai. She can be reached at annageorge02@gmail.com.

This is an article for subscribers only. You may request the complete article by writing to us at editorial@teacherplus.org.

Anyone would think a playground is a harmless place. But it is the most common place for injuries considering that children are energetic and carefree when on a playground. Children need all the physical and mental stimulation they get through play. Therefore, when providing natural play environments for children, safety is of paramount importance.

Every year more than 20,000 cases of playground injuries are reported in the United States. There is no such data available for any of the developing countries, including India. However, according to a study on parental awareness of childhood injuries published in the Indian Journal of Pediatrics, the most common cause for injuries among children in India is falls. The study further says that the maximum number of children vulnerable to injuries during play is between 5 and 14 years of age.

Many of the injuries that occur during play are easily preventable. The playground can be checked for likely dangers that can cause accidents. Adult supervision is a pre-requisite for younger children who are unable to foresee hazards during play. Older children too are at risk when they try to show off to their friends or test their own limits while negotiating the bars of a jungle gym or other play equipment.

The author is a freelance writer based in Hyderabad. She can be reached at sujata117@yahoo.co.uk.

This is an article for subscribers only. You may request the complete article by writing to us at editorial@teacherplus.org.

Achieving continuous improvement in educational outcomes has always been an area of concern for educators and this keeps them constantly alert. Yet, classroom design and its psychological impact on learners is often overlooked as a contributing factor. Certain areas of psychology that relate directly to classroom design and the learning environment are:

• environment
• education
• human factors (engineering)
• social psychology

From the knowledge of environmental psychology of teaching and learning we understand that taking care of the nitty-gritty while designing a classroom goes a long way in aiding the learning process.

The author is an interior designer and is currently pursuing a course in counselling psychology. She can be reached at sanramchandani@gmail.com.

This is an article for subscribers only. You may request the complete article by writing to us at editorial@teacherplus.org.

Crowded classroomses, learning for marks, low motivation among students and falling attendance in my class made me sit up and reflect. I am a teacher at Pearl Academy of Fashion in Delhi. I have chosen to be a teacher instead of a practicing graphic designer because I love teaching and I think I am a good teacher. But facing a half empty classroom indicates problems. Could I do anything to improve the situation?

While I initially blamed the management (for taking in too many students) and the students (for their lack of interest and motivation), all along I knew as the teacher I had a large role to play. How could I motivate the students to learn deeply? I needed to change my teaching method so that students got more involved in learning and produced better work. At the same time, for me, it was a challenge, and it was important to develop critical, creative, and independent thinking abilities in the students, because these are essential abilities in a professional designer.

The author is Head, Communication Design Department at the Pearl Academy of Fashion, New Delhi. She teaches typography to undergraduate students. She welcomes interaction on peer learning and creativity. She can be reached at sumitasarkar@yahoo.com.

This is an article for subscribers only. You may request the complete article by writing to us at editorial@teacherplus.org.