Research in Commonwealth Architectural Schools

The question in the survey about research reveals that there is a wide discrepancy in the quantity of research undertaken in the schools. Generally it may be said that there has been an enormous increase over recent years. On the other hand, in some schools there is little research done despite the encouragement given by most member institutes and by CAA. A strong research programme requires staff members with both the ability and the time to devote to research and there is evidence that in some schools staff have little time to spend on research after dealing with their teaching programmes. The educational institutions in which schools are located in some cases should be reminded that additional resources, including staff time, research assistants and funds for maintenance and equipment are necessary to enable the important task of undertaking research in the environmental design field to continue. Having said that however, it must be acknowledged that in a number of schools which have well developed research programmes there now exists a situation comparable with research undertaken in other fields of study. This is more general in the older schools and especially in the older schools in the universities than it is in the more recently established polytechnics and colleges of advanced education. There are however some notable exceptions, especially in the United Kingdom.

The growth in research activities in recent years is revealed by the considerable amount of material sent by some schools to accompany the questionnaires. Indeed a separate study of research in the Commonwealth schools of architecture and a separate directory of research may well be warranted.

The range of research topics reported, as might be expected, is very wide and includes topics which come under the following general headings:

Acoustics and noise Alternative technology Architectural education, student selection Architectural history Architectural psychology Art history Building legislation Building material research - traditional materials, timber, concrete, brick, etc. Building performance studies Building technology and technical innovation Building types including churches, department stores, factories, farm buildings, public buildings, schools, theatres

Climate Community architecture Community participation Computer aided design, computer graphics, computer decision making Condensation Conservation of buildings Construction techniques Cost studies

Creativity Decision theory Design theory - design teaching methods Earthquake architecture Energy consumption Environmental horticulture Environmental science Ergonomics Fire and smoke Form studies Health facilities, medical architecture Historical buildings, preservation and restoration Housing - low-cost housing, self-help housing, rural housing, suburban housing, traditional housing, multi-storeyed housing, housing standards, hous- ing for particular climates Industrialized building techniques Information retrieval Landscape design Lighting - natural and artificial Low energy building Management Measured drawings Modular co-ordination Office building and interiors Perception Photography Politics of building Professional practice, arbitration, architect- builder-client relationships Provision for special groups - elderly, handicapped, etc. Semiotics Social environment Solar energy Specification preparation Structural research Thermal performance Third world studies Traffic studies Urban planning, urban spaces, urban renewal User studies Utopianism Vernacular architecture Visual studies - optical effects of colours Wind effects on buildings