The students, guided by an architect, have the opportunity to discover and develop a way of thinking and approaching architect and designer’s specific issues (design thinking) by making proposals to improve or reimagine their school, being thus engaged in an active learning process in which they use their practical sense and creativity.
It is a project-based approach to learning on a concrete example that they know and use, the school. Students investigate the school, identify building issues they want to improve / change, imagine what they want to do. They document, analyze, and make project proposals, which they will present to potential users. The architect and the teacher are only guides in this process.
In order to stimulate learning and give meaning to what was learned, students will select from their proposed project the feasible part to be built in a given budget they have at their disposal from program sponsors.
Also, the classes participating in the educational program will make a simple funding application to obtain funds from the program sponsor of that year and will send it to the association. The project to be funded will be selected according to the following criteria:
- great impact on the school social life;
- many users will benefit from the project;
- the low cost that best fits in the sponsorship received;
- low implementation effort;
- the capacity to become an example for other schools;
- the ability to involve students in making the project.
All the projects will be published on the ȘCOALA MEA website, the participative design platform we created so that other students, teachers and architects can benefit from the experience gained in this program.
AGE: 12-18 years
DURATION AND OPTIONS:
- one school year – 6th, 7th, 9th, 10th grade – optional / extracurricular
- one school year – a group of maximum 25 students from different classes – extracurricular / students club
TEACHING METHOD: learning by project
CURRICULUM TYPE: interdisciplinary (arts + sciences)
TAUGHT BY: coordinating professor + volunteer architect (resource person) + invited professors various subjects (optional)
PLACE: classroom, school building and school yard
REGISTRATIONS for the assistance provided by the De-a Arhitectura Association during a school year: volunteer architects (in the period between March and August) and the teachers’ grades (during December-March)
DETAILS: office@de-a-arhitectura.ro
PARTNERS: Ordinul Arhitecţilor din România
The program is free for state schools.
This project is supported by the Romanian Order of Architects, from the Architectural Stamp Duty.
KNOW THE PROJECT:
Download the presentation made by arch. Mina Sava, founder and president of the De-a Arhitectura Association, in the second edition of the SCHOOL + HOSPITAL 2017 event in Bucharest, Building Education Bucharest International Forum, a BORO PR & COMMUNICATION concept made in partnership with the Romanian Order of Architercts, about “Architecture in my school”, the participative design program for schools developed by the De-a Arhitectura Association for secondary and high school students.