Master Planning for School Modernization Project in Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Department of Education, Public Buildings Authority & Public-Private Partnerships Authority
Architects & Change Agents for Creative Learning Communities 1 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Acknowledgments Fielding Nair International would like to acknowledge the participants of the March 2010 Discovery Workshops as well as everyone who worked closely with our team on our follow up visits over the past two months. The contributions of all the Puerto Rican students, parents, teachers, staff, faculty and other members of the school modernization team have been essential to this ongoing collaborative process.
Leadership
Consultants
FNI Team
UNIPRO Team
David Alvarez Casta帽eda Jesus Mendez Edwin Gonzalez Jean Phi Cebollero
Prakash Nair Randall Fielding Jay Litman Michael van Hamel Clare Friedrich Matthew Cropper
Adriana Benitez Erika Medina Charlie Rodriguez Juan Cardona Manuel Martinez Cesar I. Lopez Segundo Sanchez Ram贸n Perez-Gatell Victor M. Villegas
Guillermo Perez Jose Melendez Monique Lugo Alan Heinsen Carlos R. Rivera
2 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Table of Contents: I. Executive Summary.................................................... II. Discovery Report........................................................ III. School Assessments: Key Observations..................... IV. Implementation Plan for Modernization................... • Key Tasks • Recommendations • Schedule • Development of Pilot Projects : Options V. Blueprint for Change Management........................... VI. Geographic Representation (GIS Mapping)...............
4 8 48 60
83 92
3 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
I. | Executive Summary & Next Steps The Big Picture Like many Departments of Education reflecting on what it means to promote modern educational models through good school design, Puerto Rico currently sits at a crossroad. With over 1,500 facilities, many of which have operated for an extended period of time without any modernization upgrades, the Department must confront the following immediate challenges: 1) 2) 3) 4) 5)
Dealing with the reality that many of the facilities are in need of significant maintenance; Seizing the opportunity to utilize stimulus bonds as a means to develop school facilities suitable to deliver a 21st century curriculum; Integrating mobile technology throughout the schools; Involving the whole school community, beginning with positive communication measures to build a more optimistic perception; Preparing all school stakeholders, but primarily the teachers, to adapt to 21st Century facilities.
Puerto Rico’s population of 4,000,000 is spread around the main island. Invariably, middle class and wealthy families send their children to private schools.
• • •
the extent of work needed; how to prioritize spending; how to integrate a Building Improvement Plan so that it is in sync with a School Modernization (Education Improvement) Plan.
In general, educational facilities spending is so focused on quickly and inexpensively built schools that it loses sight of the ultimate objective of a school building which is to improve educational outcomes and benefit the community. In Puerto Rico, the focus of facilities funding is the school modernization program. This must include a host of other upgrades, including technology, furniture and professional development programming.
The Puerto Rico Department of Education, Public Buildings Authority & Public-Private Partnerships Authority invited Fielding Nair International (FNI) to provide initial recommendations and design standards for developing 21st Century educational spaces for all Kindergarten-Grade 12 schools in Puerto Rico. The leadership team met FNI with an unmistakable message that change is welcome when it comes to schools in Puerto Rico.
Budgeting for building upgrades should, ideally, directly affect educational outcomes, which can only be determined by an educational assessment. Unfortunately, there is usually a long list of critical maintenance work to be done and districts seldom have the luxury of ‘extra’ funds to perform ‘educational upgrades’. A Master Plan for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, based on a comprehensive facilities assessment that looks at both building conditions as well as educational effectiveness, will enlighten district leadership as to:
During the three-day session, which included both a Visioning Workshop with the community, as well as a second Visioning Workshop with the leadership, site walks through three schools, and several conversations with the leadership, participants revealed several important values for their community that will guide future planners and design teams, as well as the leaders in the decision-making process to redesign schools across Puerto Rico. In summation these visions, values and strategies are the following:
4 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Puerto Rican schools do not support 21st Century educational values. There is a general consensus across the board that the current educational facilities do not come close to supporting 21st Century educational values. With the facilities lagging behind in innovation and many of the educators, and especially leaders, pushing for modern teaching practices; there is tension that must be addressed. Additionally, there is already wide disparity between the schools, sometimes based on geographic location, and often due to leadership. Some schools have received grant money for technology and materials, while others have been severely neglected. Even in the grant-receiving schools, there is inadequate access to educational technology. Mobile technology is lacking and, if present, only available in 20th Century computer labs or libraries. Non-designated technology teachers do not have access to these resources, and as a result, students also have very limited access. Internet connections are shaky and website blockages common. Basics such as electricity are variable in schools and directors and teachers cannot depend on air conditioning, working outlets, or even lights.
Puerto Rico is lacking an educational assessment tool. Puerto Rico does not have vital information about the educational adequacy of its facilities. This information can only be obtained by conducting an Educational Adequacy Assessment, used in conjunction with GIS mapping. The benefits of using an assessment tool such as FNI’s Educational Facilities Effectiveness Instrument (EFEI) to distinguish greatest needs first would allow for decisions to be made which promise the biggest “educational bang for the buck.”
While millions of dollars may need to be spent on facilities each year, it is difficult to communicate to the community how these dollars are being used to improve educational outcomes. This is primarily because these dollars are being spent on improving the shells that house education, rather than to support education. Used from the very beginning, the EFEI will help to develop a common language and decipher what is truly desired and needed, and to bridge the gap between architects and educators. This tool can be used not only through the design development and schematics stages, while training the community of local architects and educators to use it, but also be The leadership supports risk-taking and pushing the used alongside the professional development phase to innovation scale. start the discussion about the best fit between facilities The government has committed to a push for design and desired learning outcomes. highly innovative educational facilities, with equally innovative educators working in them. This entails long-term professional development training to ensure that staff members’ visions are in alignment with the new physical spaces, and vice versa. There is also hope that the surrounding community will be engaged more extensively and that the school redesign projects would provide spaces for all types of learners to succeed. It is evident that the Commonwealth first needs to close any maintenance gaps. One of the priorities of a Master Plan will be to recommend a suitable level of short and long-term general maintenance funding. Short-term funding will be needed to bring all facilities to a state of good repair and long-term funding will be needed to keep buildings in good repair and seismically sound. The purpose of general maintenance is to ensure that short-term and inexpensive fixes are made promptly so that they do not morph into major capital expenses.
FNI’s Educational Facilities Effectiveness Instrument (EFEI).
5 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
There is an excess of school facilities drawing unnecessary government funding for too few students. A major finding was that of the 1500+ schools across the island, many have extremely low enrollment and subsist only to appease those families who have grown accustomed to the convenience of close proximity. One school has only one student! This is drawing resources away from other facilities that could accommodate the students from low-enrollment schools. Finances will need to be designated for transportation from rural schools or to geographically spread out urban schools.
The shift towards 21st Century learning must be holistic in its approach. When it comes to facilities, Puerto Rico cannot simply tweak an old factory-model educational paradigm in an attempt to make it effective for the needs of learners in 2010. This will actually introduce new elements that are incompatible with that old paradigm, creating more tension. It is also critical that the Commonwealth not build traditional schools and still use 21st century language to define the spaces, risking a belief that Puerto Rico schools are more innovative than they actually are.
There is a poor perception of public schools. Throughout discussions with the leadership, teachers and parents, it became apparent that the perception of public schools is dire. Community involvement and media coverage will be significant in the change management program. Schools must be welcoming environments not only to students and their families, but also community members who are otherwise not involved in the school. Adult programming during evenings and weekends is critical. Improved landscaping and lighting will enhance security and provide communities with a sense of pride in their local public schools. Disseminating resources throughout the communities, such as laptop rentals and book circulation for students, will create more informed, educated citizens. With a pilot program of 87 school modernizations, media coverage will finally convey a renewed, positive outlook for public education in Puerto Rico, encouraging other schools to adopt similar professional development and renovation approaches.
If Puerto Rico creates a new paradigm all together, it suddenly becomes clear that the choice is between the “best of the old” and the “first of the new”. This will entail the redevelopment of facilities running parallel with professional development programs that encourage a richer pedagogy that the renewed educational environments will support.
The school selection process must be depoliticized. The key to this project is depoliticizing the decisionmaking process for which schools are best candidates. It must be based on architectural and engineering integrity alone, which is where the assessment process will play a primary role. In part due to public perception and distrust in the government, a fair distribution on stimulus money is critical for the continuation of the school modernization program. All municipalities must receive a portion of the money.
The Department of Education invited Fielding Nair International (FNI) and UNIPRO to provide initial recommendations for developing a Facilities Master Plan. This Master Plan is intended enlighten district leadership as to the extent of work needed, how to prioritize spending, and how to integrate the Building Improvement Plan so that it is in sync with the Education Improvement Plan. School Assessments: Key Observations In preparation for the architectural (re)design of dozens of schools across Puerto Rico, FNI developed a school assessment which measures two items: 1) Building Condition Index: the overall physical quality of the facilities. 2) Educational Adequacy: the extent to which the facilities support 21st century teaching and learning. A list of key observations, as well as a sample assessment, are included in the Master Plan. Particular areas which will demand greater attention from the leadership and architects working on the modernization and design of new schools include public perception, primary learning areas, technology, community use, social areas, and general maintenance and building condition.
6 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Implementation Plan for Modernization and Change Management Key tasks and a schedule to assist with implementation have been outlined, as well as recommendations for increased educational effectiveness. Phasing options are discussed as well, including various options for developing pilot projects. A “Blueprint for Change Management” ensures that the funding does not simply lead to higher-quality facilities, but to higher-quality education as well. Case studies from leading schools around the world provide examples of educational models with proven success records in a variety of populations, across a range of age levels.
Essentially, FNI and UNIPRO find two logical options for developing new school designs. The first option is to develop best practice-based prototype designs. Under this scenario, a selected number of school sites will become “pilots” for the development of prototype designs which demonstrate the application of research and best practice. The designs can be developed for both modernization projects and new schools as an assemblage of a “kit-of-parts”. These pilot project designs can be replicated at other sites while allowing for site-specific customizations and still preserving the essence of the original prototypes.
The second option is to prepare custom site-specific designs for each of the selected schools as well as each new school. Immediately after the prototype designs are developed, the design-build procurement Geographic Representation process can begin. This scenario envisions a fast, more customized approach to the design of both the In collaboration with the Department of Education, FNI modernization projects as well as the new schools. has developed an online GIS mapping device for the Under this approach, the PPPA would assemble an entirety of public schools in Puerto Rico. This insightful experienced team of designers within Puerto Rico. tool has been programmed to allow viewers to find Several firms would be recruited for this effort and all schools from kindergarten through 12th grade in would operate under the close supervision of the any province. The mapped school locations that were Master Planning Consultants. The design team would surveyed by UNIPRO and FNI consultants offer links to have the responsibility to produce site-specific concept the individual assessment report scores and exhibit designs for each of the 90 sites and 5 new schools, all hundreds of photos of the facilities’ interiors and within an overall prototypical framework. exteriors. Solutions will be found at each site that are most cost Next Steps – Inspire, Inform, Involve effective for that particular site without compromising the educational effectiveness of the school facility. There are several procedural matters to be considered which all have the potential to slow the design-build process. The Implementation Section of this report discusses in greater detail how to go forward with a sensitivity towards these matters. Many tasks must be carried out before schematic design can begin while others need to be executed before construction can begin. Immediately following Master Planning, a large design team must be assembled to develop designs for all the modernization and new school projects whilst simultaneously several of these tasks are accomplished. A strategy for a logical sequencing of the renovation process must be developed as the selected schools must be unoccupied during renovations.
7 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
II. | Discovery Report: Design for Learning in the Creative Age
TABLE OF CONTENTS
23-25 March 2010 Department of Education, PBA & PPPA, Puerto Rico
9
Acknowlegments
10
Part 1: Workshop Schedule
12
Part 2: Visioning Workshops
23
Part 3: School Tours & Visioning Meeting
36 Appendix Full Transcription of Community Hopes & Fears
8 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Fielding Nair International would like to acknowledge the participants of the March 2010 Discovery Workshops as well as everyone who worked closely with our team on our follow up visits over the past two months. The contributions of all the Puerto Rican students, parents, teachers, staff, faculty and other members of the school modernization team have been essential to this ongoing collaborative process.
Leadership
David Alvarez Casta単eda Jesus Mendez Jean Phi Cebollero Edwin Gonzalez
FNI Team
Prakash Nair Randall Fielding Jay Litman Michael van Hamel Clare Friedrich Matthew Cropper
UNIPRO Team Guillermo Perez Jose Melendez
9 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
WORKSHOP SCHEDULE
10 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
PART 1: WORKSHOP SCHEDULE 22 March 2010 GIS Data Collection FNI Senior GIS and Master Planning Consultant Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is a mapping system that enables planners to analyze their data on a map. The use of GIS will be essential as it helps FNI to efficiently analyze complex variables such as facility location/condition, aerial photography, and political boundaries (regions, districts). FNI’s Senior GIS Consultant visited Puerto Rico to collect data for use with this mapping system. The objective of this trip was to meet with government agencies that manage and maintain GIS data for Puerto Rico. The Government Development Bank (GDB) and FNI team met with administrators at the Junta de Planificacion (JP) in Puerto Rico, and were able to obtain a variety of GIS data to assist with the project.
Tables of four discussed and diagrammed their visions for education in Puerto Rico, along with obstacles, cultural barriers and solutions.
24 March 2010
Visioning Workshop with the Leadership FNI Design Team & Leadership Team 23 March 2010 FNI met with key members of the Puerto Rico School Community Visioning Workshops Modernization leadership team to discuss the Master FNI Design Team Plan, as well as 21st Century learning principles The following morning, the public school community and environments which will support this plan. The was invited to participate in a Visioning Workshop. primary goal was to DISCOVER the needs, desires and FNI presented Design for Learning in a Creative Age ethos of the community - and most importantly, the to INSPIRE the community to think beyond their group’s VISION for the future of their schools. current frame by introducing Best Practices and Case Studies in 21st Century school architecture and design 25 March 2010 and how these careful decisions influence and shape School Tours and Summary Meeting the learning communities. Roughly 75 attendees, FNI Design Team & Summary Meeting with Leadership including teachers, parents, school directors and a On FNI’s final workday in Puerto Rico, the team visited number of students had the chance to express hopes three public schools in and around San Juan, along with and concerns for the project. government representatives. The three schools, an elementary, intermediate and secondary facility, were chosen from 87 schools provided by the PPPA. The site visits were useful in helping refine the assessment tool that will be used for a sampling of as many as all 87 schools. Key areas of focus for this first visit included community integration and potential for expansion and renovation. The day concluded with a summary meeting between FNI planners and the policy leaders to discuss the day’s findings, the teams’ next steps, and a desirability report necessary for the Master Plan. Prakash Nair fields questions and concerns from the workshop participants, who came from around the island.
11 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
VISIONING WORKSHOP
12 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
PART 2: VISIONING WORKSHOPS Community Visioning Workshops Creative Age
These concerns were acknowledged by FNI, as well as representatives from UNIPRO and the leaders in attendance. The Master Plan will respond to all of them in greater detail, outlining guidelines for success, particularly with regards to communication.
FNI presented “School Design in the Creative Age” to begin to explore Puerto Rico’s public school community’s “The goal of education is not mastery of shared vision, as well as the methods of attaining this subject matter, but of one’s person. vision and the potential outcomes if done properly. Educational leadership of Puerto Rico was invited It is a myth that we can adequately reto attend along with other important stakeholders store in life that which we have dismanincluding representative school principals, teachers, tled in school.” students, business people and community service representatives. To introduce the creative age concept, - David Orr they listed a timeline of other periods in education, ranging from the agrarian age to the industsrial age to the information age to where we now learn, in the Case Studies creative age. Today, school is no longer simply about learning, but rather a web of understanding, applying, FNI concluded the presentation with four case studies, providing the audience not only with tantalizing ideas creating and contributing. for best-practice designs, but hard proof that such After a series of comparisons between “factory model” ideas have been successfully put into practice. The learning environments and “creative age” learning schools presented were: Cristo Rey Jesuit High School environments, FNI began to explain critical differences in Minneapolis, MN; Sinarmas World Academy in in 21st century best practice teaching and learning, Tangerang, Indonesia; Scotch Oakburn College Middle followed by preliminary observations from his first visit School in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia; and Forest to Puerto Rico’s schools in January. School identity, Elementary in Middletown, RI. These schools were outdoor use, physical conditions, public perception, chosen for their relationship to Puerto Rican school main learning areas, community use, air conditioning needs, including cost effectiveness, Latin American and lighting, security, technology, food services, art, culture, and climate, amongst others. Images from the music and performance spaces were just a handful of case studies presentation are found on the next page. educational inadequacies they observed. Following the Creative Age presentation, FNI opened the workshop up for group questions and answers. Teachers and school directors were particularly vocal, admitting tremendous concerns about the government meeting basic needs (supplies, maintenance), concerns about the lack of support or interest from the government (some schools were never visited). Many parents and teachers also voiced concern about integrating special needs students, while students in the audience were more worried about peer apathy, a sense of unhappiness with the status quo. It is clear that there is a widespread, poor perception of public Prakash Nair presents to a group of roughly 80 government schools and the government’s ability to modernize one and school leaders, teachers, parents and students. school, let alone 87, or eventually 1500. 13 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Data Collection
Students work on a math graphing assignment in the Cristo Rey Jesuit High School commons.
Sinarmas World Academy K-12 school developed a campus plan with separate small learning communities.
As a means of assessing the community ethos and ensure that participants had a chance to submit their ideas about the School Modernization project in Puerto Rico public schools, FNI developed two data activities. Following the Creative Age presentation and case studies, FNI introduced the Hopes & Fears (Deseos & Miedos) assignment first. All attendees were provided with sticky note paper to record their visions and hopes for the future of education, schools, and learning programs for Puerto Rico, as well as fears about the process. These were primarily meant to be “big picture” ideas. Once the group had completed their notes, they placed them on large posters around the room and were given the opportunity to survey their peers’ hopes and fears as well. Many of the ideas that attendees brought to the table were echoed a number of times both in their notes, as well as in the questions and conversations that followed the workshop. Many of these hopes and concerns can be found on page 16, while the entire transcribed list of hopes and fears is available in in the appendix.
20 Learning Modalities
Finally, the consultants presented a range of learning modalities supported by 21st Century educational design. There are 20 primary Learning Modalities as defined by Prakash Nair and Randy Fielding. These various learning modes reach beyond simply multiple intelligences and refer to the types of learning that support the “whole child”. The 21st Century learning environment will support all of these modes in a variety of spaces. Results of this survey are found on page 18. Best-practice models from around the world sparked Scotch Oakburn College middle school students gather in the imagination and immediately raised levels of the outdoor amphitheater to socialize and study. awareness and expectation amongst the participants. With new expectations and understanding of teaching and learning principles, the group was asked to study the 20 learning modalities packet and discuss favored approaches to learning, including those they believed to be most effective personally, those that seem to be most effective in Puerto Rico public and private schools, and those that they preferred as students both today and as youth. Forest Elementary’s K-2 small learning community was born out of a traditional post-and-beam construction.
14 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Parents and students had the opportunity to share their hopes and fears with the group and with FNI presenters.
Workshop participants were seated in small groups to aid discussion and provide people with a chance to share their ideas in a more intimate setting. The activity provided data to analyze as FNI prepares a Master Plan suitable for the visions of Puerto Ricans. The packets were translated into Spanish which created mild confusion at first, as there were two cases in which the translation made two modalities undifferentiated. This was explained while the groups discussed and then voted individually on their top three modalities. Another brief question and answer session followed before dismissing the group around noon.
Small groups reviewed the 20 identified learning modalities and chose their top three individually, before discussing as a group which ones are most effective in Puerto Rico.
Leaders and team members jot down a number of hopes and fears.
“I as a teacher hope that one day our school will be turned into a school of the future where kids will be motivated to study in harmony with fellow companions.� - Participant
The larger audience paired off to converse over their preferred learning methods.
15 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Selected Hopes from the Community
• Achieve the transformation of all public schools in Puerto Rico in relation to their physical structure so that this will help improve the educational process from a safe perspective, which in turn promotes cognitive, social and emotional development of Puerto Ricans for a better quality of life. • A government committed to the welfare and development of their students.
Posters were displayed around the community workshop room where everyone could read the collective hopes and fears.
• That the vision and mission are genuinely aimed at strengthening and integrating their enrollment growth. • School to become a learning community where there is an opportunity to strengthen the talents of our students, sports, fine arts.
• All schools can enjoy an acceptable physical structure before selecting some for ideal schools. • I as a teacher hope that one day our school will be turned into a school of the future where kids will be motivated to study in harmony with fellow companions.
“My best wish is to have academic improvement in my country, for students to begin a new path and have the opportunity and academic development that they deserve for a better future.”
• Energy efficient classrooms. Using alternative energy, solar, wind, etc.
- Workshop Participant
•
All schools can enjoy an acceptable physical structure before selecting some for ideal schools.
•
I envision kids graduating from high school (big desertion rates now).
• I envision beautiful 21st century facilities and an educational system that will be untouched by political changes and changes of administration. • The population of children with special needs is huge here (ADHD, ASD, learning disabilities, etc.) I envision these kids fully integrated and their needs fully satisfied. Parents supported and trained to allow their development and full integration into society. •
Good education not limited to the elite.
• A school where the surrounding community can use it. Including spaces that can be rented to health professionals such as pediatricians, therapists and others.
16 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Fear and concerns for the future of education in Puerto Rico were recorded as well. While all of the opinions expressed were considered with equal weight in compiling this report, there were some that stood out as being consistent amongst the group. These are listed below, while the entire transcribed list of hopes and fears can be found in the appendix.
Selected Fears from the Community: • That the money from the financial stimulus will get lost in the bureaucracy of the system. • That everything is just an agenda to be covered. •
That my school will not be chosen.
Each workshop participant wrote down at least one hope and one fear for the future of education, and the Master Planning process, in Puerto Rico.
• That nothing can be done because we ran out of money. •
The DE wants to meet 21st century goals but has administrative structure of the 80’s.
•
Structure not in line with our climate. “Our students are extremely brilliant, creative and united in P.R. So, this project will work, believe me, but a few things must be structured and organized first – What schools? Who will be responsible? How long? Once these issues are clear, you must just start!” - Workshop Participant
• Opinion and suggestions from teachers and directors not taken into consideration. • Fear that the program will be started and there will be no continuity in the future years. • Teachers and directors will not be trained in this new system.
• My fears are that everything will turn upside down and students will not like it and that some schools will be closed. •
How schools will be picked?
• That our children will never know a better school experience, a better way of doing things and that a better structured and better designed world exists than what they now know. • It is a waste of money for the benefit of some. (75/1517 schools). There are more important problems like infrastructure and learning models that must be resolved first. •
How can we get our population to believe this can be done?
17 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
20 Learning Modalities Survey The 20 Learning Modalities exercise involved having participants select three of the following 20 Learning Modalities as their preferred means of learning. Accompanying photos for each modality were provided to stimulate a visual connection. The participants then shared their responses with their small group with a brief explanation as to why, as well as which modality would have been their preferred method as school children years ago. Many times these responses differed greatly, and it was pointed out that several of these learning modalities were not known to exist or be valuable before the turn of the century. It should be noted that due to the Spanish translation, modalities 6 and 13 had very similar meanings, and both scored quite high relatively speaking. The three most consistently chosen modalities included: Project-based Learning, Technology-based Learning with Mobile Computers and Hands-on Project-based (Interdisciplinary) Learning. These top learning modalities proved to be almost non-existent in the three schools FNI toured, though clearly hold much value in the community.
20 Learning Modalities FNI has identified at least 20 Modalities of Learning which in turn define how educational environments should be designed so that a multitude of these modalities are supported. 1. Independent Study 2. Peer Tutoring 3. Team Collaboration 4. One-on-One Learning with a teacher 5. Lecture Format - Teacher directed 6. Project-based learning 7. Technology with mobile computers 8. Distance Learning 9. Internet-based Research 10. Student Presentation 11. Performance-based Learning 12. Seminar Instruction 13. Hands on Project-based Learning 14. Naturalist Learning 15. Social-Emotional-Spiritual Learning 16. Art-based Learning 17. Storytelling 18. Design-based Learning 19. Team Teaching & Learning 20. Play-based Learning
The three most voted upon learning modalities would all be suitable for small learning communities and outdoor learning environments in Puerto Rico.
18 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
The chart below illustrates how the 20 learning modalities ranked comparatively. While most participants in the survey indicated only their top three preferences for learning, others wrote comments on their surveys suggesting that it was impossible to narrow down their choices to just three.
“As a teacher, I use a combination of all of these modalities and can’t separate my top 3. They are all equally important.”
On the higher end of the chart were the two types of project-based learning (#13 is classified more specifically as hands-on or interdisciplinary learning), as well as technology-based learning which has proven to be a major priority with the school modernization process. Clearly teachers, parents and students value access to wireless internet, mobile computers, Smart boards and other devices that can enhance the way teachers are already teaching. Peer tutoring scored quite high on the 20 modalities list as well. This was witnessed by FNI as already happening at the elementary school and intermediate school levels while classes were in session on the third day of workshops in Puerto Rico (school had just let out at the secondary school FNI visited).
On the lower end of this survey were performancebased learning, which no one selected as their top three. When touring the schools, FNI found only one school that had dedicated a classroom to dance (a type of performance-based learning), while most offered nothing of the sort. This suggests that not only are teachers and directors not advocating for this style of learning, but that parents and students may not even be aware of its use in schools. Design-based learning also scored quite low, further suggesting the lack of value that this type of creative learning carries in Puerto Rican public schools. Only in rare cases where there was an adult education or special needs program in schools did FNI find environments that supported design-based learning such as shop class.
- Anonymous Participant
19 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Visioning Workshops with the Leadership
1) What is your vision for the future of education in PR? What are obstacles to realizing this vision? At this meeting, FNI planners summarized what was 2) What are potential solutions? learned during the Community Visioning Workshop, 3) 4) Based on today’s presentation what are their understanding about the priorities of the project, aspects that relate (or not) to Puerto Rican and their recommendations for implementing the culture? project. The purpose of this meeting was to ensure that the Master Planning work that will be undertaken will be performed according to the expectations of the The groups were each given approximately 20 minutes to discuss and record notes before assigning one PPPA, the PBA and the DE. member of the small group the task of presenting. FNI and UNIPRO consultants for the project were Responses were as follows. introduced. FNI essentially repeated the Creative Age presentation from the Visioning Workshop the previous Responses to Question 1: What is your vision for the morning, catering towards a crowd of leadership with future of education in PR? a heavier emphasis on the philosophies behind FNI’s To develop different techniques work, particularly the work of David Orr, Daniel Pink, • Effective communication and David Thornburg (4 types of learning, including • • Full access to facilities (sports, music, art, etc) Cave, Campfire, Watering Hole and Life). • Trilingual education Increased student achievement Following this presentation, once again FNI led a • • Distance learning (the walls fall down, web presentation on four case study models from around based) the world to inspire leaders to take note of the Using the “natural language” in teaching potential this School Modernization process could • • We need to get our parents to want the best have on Puerto Rico and the morale of public school education for their kids teachers and families. In order to gauge the groups’ • Parent involvement in PR is low visions and concerns in a deeper manner than the The system must change larger community workshop, the consultants asked • That school is seen as a valuable community the group to break into smaller tables of four or five, • resource which then were asked to discuss and answer these • School that encourages e-communication, four questions: support, in its design – common spaces for students and teachers, working spaces for parent volunteers, collaborative teaching/ project-based learning, easy access to outside areas, alternative student services on site, peaceful environment conducive to learning, focused on students, accountable school system, system that provides choice for parents, directors as leaders • Available services for all (quality and sustainable) • Full access to adequate facilities – theater, sports complex • Decrease desertion, keep students in school • Technology empowering education, mobile computing tools available to all, Leaders broke into smaller groups to collectively answer teleconferencing, web-based educational tools, four questions posed by FNI. remote teaching and learning 20 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Question 1 continued... • • • • • • • • •
Teachers aligned and educated to perform, and are held accountable Parent and community involvement Developing responsible and honest individuals Better social and interpersonal skills Better teaching of values Developing more tools for students Developing efficient and entrepreneurial communicators, active members in the community Developing particular skills in each student The mission is that education has to change because it is archaic and students get bored. We must create a more interactive curriculum.
Responses to Question 2: What are obstacles to realizing this vision? • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
There are too many schools – people are used to the convenience of having schools so close Even if they renovate, the future budget for upkeep is a concern Resistance to change Lack of values in students, behavioral issues Budget! Lack of communication, positive info to the press, the community Ignorance of choices Tradition to build with concrete Criminal activity/drugs in schools Basic utilities unavailable now Bureaucracy Social resistance or ignorance about choices Lack of public policy Expansion of facilities more limited in urban areas Architecture and building materials are not suitable for quick makeovers Schools used as hurricane shelters Schools have inadequate internet access, water and power supply The main obstacles are the resources we have. For example, principals and teachers often resist those that come with new ideas for change.
Responses to Question 3: What are potential solutions? • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
Build a pilot school to get buy-in Funnel appropriate money Teaching and values Leadership Giving teachers skills to use the facilities Using buildings beyond school hours Defined policy and strategy, efficient use of money Identify schools with room for growth (land) Efficient use of money Integrate schools in areas with room for growth into one Increase sense of belonging Working on teaching teachers Integrating social culture in our system Integrating the community
Responses to Question 4: Based on today’s presentation what are aspects that relate (or not) to Puerto Rican culture? • • • • • • • • • •
Project based learning will work Open spaces and outdoor facilities considering climate Community building effects Collaboration among teachers may impede best practices at first Materials are a big challenge Open spaces, outdoor facilities Social class integration – transition from private to public school Schools on historical sites can’t be altered Not suitable: safety, measuring success Splitting into small groups works well here
Small group work to help clarify the vision of the leadership.
21 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
FNI asked how optimistic the group is about the future after the submittal of a Master Plan. Is there an opportunity to make the program the pilot rather than individual school pilots? The unanimous answer is that yes, there is a deep hope and expectation that this modernization will far exceed simple improvements in the schools, and will instead affect the entire country as schools take on a ripple effect in a much larger ocean of social change. While optimism resounded, and there is certainly support, there will also be challenges with logistics. Awareness about this change management system needs to improve, and it’s up to the leaders to help make this happen. Publicity is key. Puerto Rico public schools need an effective communications campaign. In fact, the community can influence how the press covers this story – making it positive, and making it public. Currently the modernization project is being framed as a publicprivate infrastructure but it’s much larger than that – it’s about a whole infrastructure. New buildings with real results will make for a solid message to the community, stretching beyond the capabilities of an individual pilot project. The whole process of modernizing 87 schools should be thought of as the pilot.
A summary of what must be done to improve communications over the next several months concluded the Visioning Workshop.
22 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
SCHOOL TOURS & SUMMARY MEETING
23 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
PART 3: SCHOOL TOURS Infrastructure Conditions of the Puerto Rico Public School System The following observations regarding the overall infrastructure conditions of schools in Puerto Rico are based on FNI’s preliminary site visits to a number of urban and rural schools. Wide Disparity between Schools: During our site visits, we saw wide disparities in physical conditions between schools. While some are in relatively good condition, others are in very poor shape. Only a small handful of schools built within the past 10 years have amenities like central air-conditioning, indoor gymnasiums and performance areas not available in older schools. It is clear that the physical conditions observed in a majority of the schools in Puerto Rico will directly and negatively impact academic performance.
use by the community is limited at best. Reasonably Well-Run School Food Program: It is hard to generalize from seeing only a few schools but the programs FNI did look at seemed to be running the breakfast and lunch program well, given the constraints they were working within, such as small lunchrooms and some outdated equipment.
Schools are Still Stuck in 20th Century Mode: For the most part, the factory-model of teaching and learning prevails with row upon row of standardized classrooms with few other amenities. Learning opportunities rarely exist for interdisciplinary learning, peer tutoring, project based learning, naturalist learning, independent research, collaborative learning, distance learning, etc. This problem, more than any other we observed, is the one that the Puerto Rico School Modernization Inadequate Access to Educational Technology: We Program needs to address. By properly leveraging observed that the use of educational technology was school construction spending, Puerto Rico will be able spotty at best. A few desktop computers are available to develop a new generation of 21st century schools but Internet access is limited. Only in rare cases do and measurably improve academic outcomes. students have access to mobile computing via wireless laptop computers. Even in the cases where laptops By and large, it is safe to say that the large majority are in use, for the most part their use is limited to the of public school buildings in Puerto Rico have serious library and the reach of the wireless network rarely physical and design defects to the point where they extends into the classroom areas. pose a major impediment to the delivery of a worldclass education in the commonwealth. Better understanding Poor Use of Outdoor Areas: Even though there is is needed about the profound impact that school considerable research that points to improved mental buildings and grounds can have on the quality of performance and improved health directly associated educational outcomes. That is why it is essential with more outdoor activities, FNI saw very little effort that slated modernization plans be developed with in connecting indoors and outdoors. What outdoor full dialogue between the educators and facility activity spaces were available were, in many cases, professionals. very poorly maintained and utilized. Limited Access to the Community: While some schools do get used after hours for after-school programs and for community service programs, this seems to be the exception rather than the rule. The design of the schools themselves and their use more closely resembles closed and uninviting fortresses rather than warm and inviting community centers. Of course, many schools lack the amenities that would be of use to the community such as auditoriums, gymnasiums, video conferencing facilities and so on but even when the amenities are available, after-hours and weekend 24 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
School Tour #1: Escuela Apolo San Antonio Intermediate School The first school that members of the FNI and UNIPRO design teams visited was Escuela Apolo San Antonio in Vega Alta, Bayamon, about 40 minutes outside of San Juan. FNI spent the most amount of time at this school, as it was the first and they were gauging a rough assessment not only of the potential for expansion and renovation, but also the overall building condition to help develop a Building Condition Index. Unfortunately the director of the school was not on the premises that day, and so, a variety of teachers assisted in conducting a tour of the two main buildings. One building is used for grade seven and is handicapped acccessible. The other building is for grades eight and nine but is not accessible, therefore anyone with physical accommodations must remain in the grade seven building even after completing this year of study.
the case in each of the schools visited in March. With similar construction styles (concrete, 2-story buildings with hotel-style classroom entrances and narrow balconies), it would be relatively easy to knock down a few of the walls on the second floor to create covered outdoor learning spaces or cafes. Unfortunately the balconies would be difficult to expand which is why it is important to open up the second floor wherever possible to connect the indoors and outdoors. The ground floor courtyards are phenomenal spaces and would require very little renovation other than placing more focus on their upkeep and maintenance, and more direct planning and training with professional staff on how to make use of these spaces during lessons.
Parking lot between the two main instruction buildings. Unclear where visitors or students should enter.
Typical 2-story concrete school construction. This building could easily strengthen its indoor-outdoor connections.
Immediately upon entering the campus it was evident that the school sits on an enormous property, so there is room to expand and make better use of strong indoor-outdoor connections. There is a designated parking lot which was about 50% occupied which opens to both buildings, though there is no clear entry. Students seemed content, playing outside during a school recess, mingling under the shady trees and making their requests known... “an escalator up these hills!�
The school also had a covered lot with benches and a small kiosk selling drinks and food. As the cafeteria is too small to accommodate all students at once, and students are not allowed to eat outside of the cafeteria, this space is at the very least a shady spot to socialize while waiting for access to lunch. The space offered great potential for outdoor casual eating if the school can restructure their current practice of not allowing this. The current kitchen facilities are extraordinary and also offer much potential for offering community programs such as cooking and nutrition classes, as well as integrating this into an Applied Life Skills set of courses for middle school students. With the abundant land that this school sits on, the school could plant
Between the buildings, on both first and second floors, a number of courtyards with old growth trees minimal amounts of seating proved to be popular spots to socialize, study or chat with passersby. This is common in most Puerto Rican public schools and certainly was
25 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
kitchen and herb gardens, build a greenhouse, begin composting, etc. Kitchen staff might be held responsible for coordinating some of these activities and learning spaces. One area of concern for the staff is the two hour limit with which they may keep food out. Without a proper amount of warming ovens and refridgeration, this presents a safety risk.
schools but throughout the towns as well. All of the major public spaces were able to be locked down with these unattractive, unwelcoming metal bars. Many of the classroom doors and all of the windows were covered, as were the administrative offices. The design of the building has effects upon behavior which have been heavily researched, including a higher
Covered terrace outside the cafeteria offers a kiosk and several unmovable benches.
Covered terrace outside the cafeteria offers a kiosk and several unmovable benches.
While a majority of the classrooms are still stuck in the 20th Century learning modality of lecture-style, many teachers did rearrange classroom furniture to feature more collaborative spaces or seminar-style seating. Overall there was little if any student display besides bulletin boards with rules, assignments and public service announcements. There was a severe lack of technology in any of the classrooms and when FNI visited the technology lab it became obvious why. The computers in the technology lab were for the most part unusable. A small grant had allowed the school to purchase a handful of laptops, which are not allowed to leave this lab. Heat and humidity prove to be particularly problematic here where air conditioning often does not work either due to lack of maintenance or power outages which are common in all of the schools visited. On this visit, the air conditioning did not work in the lab or the library, where the few computers were also in disrepair. While the Miami windows found throughout the buildings offered nice air circulation and ventilation, a new system is needed if airconditioning becomes more common place. A few spaces in the library offered “soft seating� which was not offered elsewhere.
likelihood to vandalize in spaces where there is limited passive transparency. By opening up the indoor spaces at Apolo San Antonio and connecting them to outdoor spaces more effectively, and using higher quality glass, this would eliminate the need for security bars and offer better natural light and increased transparency. Not coincidentally, it would also make the school more inviting for community members. Educationally, the spaces that were sorely missing altogether included those which support more creative learning... applied life skills, music, dance, performance, art rooms and science laboratories. Art and science are taught lecture style wherever possible, though basic art and science materials are unavailable to the school because of misallocated resources. The outdoor spaces are not used for performance-based learning, though this is an area for consideration with the renovation of the school. Although the large property on which this school sits has a large playfield and basketball courts behind the school, none of these areas have any lighting for playing at night. In fact, exterior lighting was poor in general.
A commonality throughout the visits to the schools was a theme of overwhelmingly ubiquitous security bars, a style of which was unnerving, not only in the 26 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
ESCUELA APOLO SAN ANTONIO
27 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
ESCUELA APOLO SAN ANTONIO
28 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
School Tour #2: Juan Morell Campos Elementary School
A kindergarten classroom offered a friendly childscaled environment with small furniture and play areas. The space also had a door to the outside on two The next school that was visited was Escuela Juan Morell walls, one opening into a small grassy yard. However Campos in Bayamon, located in a more economically the door was rarely used and the grassy yard was filled advantaged neighborhood. It is important to note that with playground equipment in poor shape, mostly this likely influenced the improved condition of the dirty and taken apart. school as much as the fact that this is an elementary school and student vandalism is less likely. However, The librarian had put a good deal of effort into there was also a sense of pride at the school, more so creating a space for quiet reading, peer and one-onthan in either of the other two visited. The director one tutoring and they are fortunate to have received met the group out front and personally gave a tour of a grant for nearly 20 laptops. These are not allowed to leave the library, however. A number of students the facilities, along with other staff members. were witnessed playing on stationary computers with The entry to the school was not considerably welcoming, peers over the lunch hour, while a teacher worked as a locked gate had to be opened to let us in. However, with another student to complete an assignment on once inside the campus the buildings and play areas a laptop. The space was brightly light, full of various seemed well maintained and students seemed content. types of furniture and at the moment, air conditioned. Consultants arrived during the lunch hour on the newly conceived “Sandwich Day,� where students happily Overall, this school was in the best condition for a ran outside with their lunches. They were told this is renovation to bring it up to 21st century standards. unusual and that on typical days, students must eat The exterior would need only minimal upgrades, while indoors in a very cramped cafeteria. Only a small group the interior would require more major renovations. can fit inside at once, so the others must wait outside Significant upgrades in technology and basics such as and cycle through the space. Ironically the cafeteria electrical transformers will be necessary, as well as opened into a beautiful courtyard that could easily be infrastructure changes to ensure that students have transformed into an outdoor cafe, a commonality in all enough time to eat, enough daylight and outdoor usage, and safe conditions in which to work and of the schools visited. play. This was a very positive community with much The playyards offered shady spots to rest, open grassy potential for expansion and improvement. fields for sports and exercise, and on the second floor, an expanded balcony had a tar play surface for organized sports. Walking through many of the classrooms, it was evident that there was much inconsistency with the way resources were allocated. Some rooms were quite welcoming with collaborative tables and decorations on the walls, while others were barren, with absolutely nothing on the walls so as to even identify what the subject taught there is. In keeping with the lack of differentiated classroom spaces, there were no art or science labs. However, the school decided to dedicate one uniform classroom into the music room (students Lush courtyards fill with excited school children over the had to meet over the lunch hour to practice) and lunch hour each day, as well as during a morning recess. one room for dance and occasional performance. Consultants were guests to an impromptu concert before moving on, though spent long enough in the room to note the lack of storage, materials or consideration for acoustics. 29 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
JUAN MORELL CAMPOS
30 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
JUAN MORELL CAMPOS
31 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
School Tour #3: Trina Padilla de Sanz Secondary School
The director took the group upstairs via a long handicapped accessible ramp which offered nice perspectives of the courtyards and outbuildings below. The last school visited was Escuela Trina Padilla de Sanz The technology teacher showed the computer lab, in San Juan. The director greeted the group just beyond filled with antiquated PCs which do not have a regular the concrete tunnel through which they entered, and internet connection. There were only two electrical explained that her population of students are quite outlets in the room so the teacher had strung together economically disadvantaged, though the school itself muliple PCs connected to one powerstrip. The fire is located in a middle class neighborhood. Most of the hazards did not end here. On one wall, an open residents of the area attend private schools. Because electrical switch box could be a tremendous liability FNI and UNIPRO arrived just after the school day with its 1960s era design. If a student or teacher ended, the campus was quiet with only a few lingering pressed a button, they would be instantly electrocuted. students and teachers. The community rarely uses the Additionally, the air conditioning unit had been broken for several days so the temperature in the room was building outside of school hours, if even then. slowly rising to a sticky 80 degrees. With summer The school also has a large special needs population approaching, it is unlikely that the computers will even which inhabits a poorly constructed building in the operate by fall. back of the campus, another common thread between the schools seen on this trip. The public school system The director moved on to the library which was designed deals with extraordinary special needs without the quite traditionally with long study tables and walls necessary support to do so properly. These life skills lined with bookshelves that looked untouched. There spaces offered better materials and resources however were four computers which did not work properly, as and seemed to be maintained by caring staff members. well as a single printer for the school (excluding the administrative offices). There were no quiet reading or Almost all of the classrooms visited were airconditioned, soft furnished areas for independent study. though this meant an exchange of natural light. The Miami windows commonly found in schools here had As with all of the schools, the saving grace at Trina Padilla to be locked shut to place acrylic over the windows to de Sanz was the abundant outdoor space. Much of the seal in the cool air. Without sufficient indoor lighting space was underutilized and unmaintained, though a and with no natural lighting, the rooms were dark and central countyard on both sides of the building offered incondusive to attentive lecture-style learning, though old growth trees, several verandas and campfire-style this was in most cases the preferred style of teaching. benches. The few students who remained on campus this late in the day were using these outdoor spaces to Like the life skills building, there were also adult escape the mid-afternoon sun. education rooms in use at this high school which had tremendous resources including a kiln, many art materials such as clay and glazes, and the space was well lit with collaborative work tables and soft seating. The adults seemed comfortable here and so it is strange that the school would not link the positive effects of this space with the types of barren, 20th Century classrooms that high school students use. A sad nod from the director confirmed suspicions that there were no dedicated art, science, music, dance, performance or organized sports areas on the campus. Almost none of these subjects were taught in the One of many outdoor spaces available at Trina Padilla de school, with the exception of science which was taught Sanz, though verandas and gardens are not used for educational purposes. in a traditional classroom. 32 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
TRINA PADILLA DE SANZ
33 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
TRINA PADILLA DE SANZ
34 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
SUMMARY MEETING Summary Meeting with the Leadership Immediately following the three school tours, FNI’s team met with the leadership teams in the government offices. The FNI team presented their findings from the day’s three school tours in an informal manner, listing a number of concerns, as well as areas of potential for major renovation in at least two out of the three visits. Major areas of concern for all public schools include lacking technology integration, poor quality or educationally insufficient furniture, and the need for professional development. It was unknown at this Outdated, poorly equipped computer lab. meeting, however, whether the bonds would cover these three items. FNI stressed their integral importance to the capital project budget and leadership assured the team he would investigate budgetary details. Most importantly, FNI emphasized that the key to this project is depoliticizing the decision-making process for which schools are best candidates. It must simply be based on architectural and engineering integrity. The school leaders and parents themselves were preoccupied with doubts regarding government promises for improvement and want the decision process clearly spelled out. Above all else, positive communication will likely make or break the School Cheap plastic furniture was ubiquitous, with very little Modernization process. comfortable seating found at any of the schools.
The meeting was concluded with a request for a mandatory desirability study which must be included in Master Plan as well, including which schools were selected and what it would cost if the government funded it as opposed to using the P3 model (a designbuild private sector organization). In the end, Puerto Rico needs an estimate for all maintenance needs and costs. They need to see if it is cheaper for the private sector to build than for the government. Due to the complexity of the desirability study components, an outside contractor will complete this portion of the Master Plan. Teachers still work within 20th century learning boundaries and will require much professional development to adapt successfully to 21st century environments.
35 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
APPENDIX
36 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Transcribed Hopes from Community Visioning Workshop, 23 March, 2010: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
This project can help the students mentally and physically, by helping our future and making a school of excellence That buildings can be conserved and maintained in optimum conditions with the commitment of the community and students. It would provide students better space for learning and concentration I want a place where every student could feel passion for education and discover new things to share and innovate the world You must start now, our students need a change, challenge. They are ready! Private education must not be forgotten when considering this kind of project that may or may not enhance PR’s education. It is not only the public education community that is in charge of moving our nation forward. Our schools should be considered too. To have the best and most competitive school To have the ideal school where all my students feel very happy That federal funds from Title I be available for our school That all my teachers remain very competitive, as it is now That teachers will be given the opportunity to construct their lessons without restrictions That school will be modernized A school system that will allow every kid in PR to express its full potential as a whole being (integrating academics, spirituality, emotional intelligence, critical thinking, sports, special developmental needs, a happy fulfilling learning experience) Fully bilingual educational experience (bilingualism is basically possible for kids in private schools) Specifying further on spirituality, please check www.unityschool.com in Delray Beach, FL. They have managed to create a program that integrates awareness, spiritual practice with a Lessons in Living that transcends religion. Kids have an opportunity to acknowledge themselves as spiritual beings and treasure spiritual gifts like unconditional love, peace, compassion, service to others As Puerto Ricans, education has to be sacred and even if we differ in political ideas we all come together to “defend” our kids which in truth is “defending ourselves.” I see good administration practice of local and federal funding I see kids growing into successful adults and not dying young as the result of their involvement in drugs, gangs I see our music evolving into arts, something of higher quality showing our true beauty and identity I see children smiling, laughing, singing, engaged and most of all in peace and harmony with themselves and the world. That all different types of students can work together Ability to co-exist with classmates More activities to stimulate IQ This kind of project and change of education will be very good in the area of Quebradilla Storage - students & teachers carry between 8-12 notebooks in their book bags daily Encourage the use of the arts, by using halls or arena type rooms Better sports facilities in all schools Air conditioning in all classrooms At least 5 computers and equipment in each classroom (fully equipped classrooms) Change the future of our schools to improve them and make them likeable to students That we could work with all members of the community of Bairoa (Eloisa Pascual School) to participate in all aspects, from planning to implementation, to build a new school. Educational and fiscal autonomy. To have a Community (parents) well committed.
37 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Transcribed Hopes Continued: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
A significant increase in academic achievement. To have Improvements in physical facilities in school. That our students have a comprehensive development that prepares them for life. That the project could be carried out on more than one school. That the proposed project be long term Communities are involved. That our school could be chosen (Villa Capri San Juan III School) That Eloisa Pascual my school in Caguas Puerto Rico will be the best school in all of Puerto Rico in physical plant structure and especially in higher education and excellent teacher. That my students feel comfortable working in open spaces for learning To have secure physical plant. That my students could feel welcomed every day at my school site and feel secure and can learn without feeling hot, with good desks, blackboards and air conditioners. That we can achieve an integral and comprehensive development and general welfare of students. Classes are offered in several languages. That our children could like being in school. That we could work to find opportunities for improvement in all schools even if it is the slightest. Teachers could be more creative. Structured Design, technology, new educational approach to increase the education and integral beings that are our children That students could behave better and have good manners and creativity I want the buildings to be spacious, safe, and earthquake-proof. I wish that we could go ahead with set goals even with the setbacks that may occur in the way Integrating technology infrastructure for each teacher, not a single computer room. Ensure that civilian community is integrated within those 75 schools that are to be chosen The concepts presented today show an Ideal school Security. Vanish of existing architectural barriers Availability of technological assistance for whoever needs it Technology for better development of learning. That the dining areas become places where students can socialize, that dining areas could become the best place where they can create including wall murals Dining areas should look more like a fast food restaurants These spaces need to be remodeled every few years because it falls in a vacuum. A better education for our children in a safe, clean environment and that fills their needs Model schools both in its physical plant and in the people who run them. We need a community committed to our future. Yes, I’m in accordance with the refurbishment but that goes in tune with the school community where my children belong to. All children can develop to full capacity and the integration can be achieved. Remove the bureaucratic structure of the Department of Education. Refocus the work and base them on academic success in the 1,523 schools. A school with enough rooms for each program and each teacher. Human Resources to meet the needs of students. Staff with specialty in psychology to meet the emotional needs of some students. Integrate education policy redesign with school redesign. To have good computer labs and chemistry rooms.
38 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Transcribed Hopes Continued: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
That 100% of the existing organizational structure of the Education Department could change to bring Puerto Rico to compete in a fast pace in relation to global community, not to succumb. A modernized school that responds to changes in the new millennium An amphitheater that can be used for all our activities That words become actions Community and agencies get involved. Those schools are functional and that these address the needs of students both physically and academically. I wish for a school where the environment is part of it with gardens and running water. Areas that promote healthy socialization, relaxation and the feeling of freedom. Open spaces, wide aisles where students may change rooms without bumping into each other Places for them to keep their books and articles. In addition to build a secure physical structure, must visualize that we live in the tropics and we spend more time in hot whether, therefore must take into account facilities with air conditioning, lighting (light) and vegetation (trees) around the central courtyard where available To have more gazebos I hope that the project is achieved and that I can participate in it because I’m not so young any longer. That the school community (teacher, principal, and parents) create and demonstrate a real commitment that you can still improve our education system. I hope that this focus group is helpful and that meets the entire work plan. May God continue to guide this process. That this project can begin as soon as possible. To have a better school were students can interact with each other Having a vision where children feel happy in school. My wish is that the community get more involved in school and teachers in the community The proposal is very beautiful but also has to work in the community surrounding the school. That teachers really care about education and not just earn a salary. An integrated learning system where each teacher can establish a set of values in each of their subjects’ It would require an indoctrination of values at elemental levels to counteract the problem and social environment in which students live. To have a nice infrastructure were classrooms and offices are available to all teachers and administrative staff. Better school conditions: Structures, quality of education, security for the entire school community and materials necessary for teaching. “I have a well-located school with excellent areas with capable staff available to make magnificent structural changes. I wish for a school where there are no fights, where there is harmony and peace. That education be a complete one and that this proposed school project works Prepare schools where classrooms have doors 6’-0” wide for use in an emergency Sound system (intercom) for all rooms Activities Room according with level Physical structure without defects in construction
39 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Transcribed Fears from Community Visioning Workshop, 23 March, 2010: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
I’m afraid that I don’t see this project concrete in every school. I think every child and person deserves a high quality education. That the funds will be held back and that the project won’t be completed. That funds don’t arrive to our school That the Department of Education continues ignoring our school; its needs and repairs (leaking ceilings) That the structure of the school crumbles down That this initiative does not materialize Lack of potential, lack of creative work/after school clubs I think personally that the best things happening in our country happen in the metropolitan area and leave other cities like us, Quebradillas, and towns next to us, behind in these kinds of projects. Hopefully this will not happen. Our kids are important! That absolutely nothing happens That this workshop ends here That politics take over The discontinuity of the initiative because of change in administration. Can it survive it? Are the key leaders in the decision-making process willing to take the heat and move forward? Not let a political agenda ruin this That we may fail and that the school situation will continue to worsen. Leaving the effort only for 75 schools out of 1,500 Schools closing without assessments More words and no action The maintenance of the project when it’s done – who would maintain it? The teachers and principals should be trained to help maintain buildings Who is going to choose the 75 schools able to participate in this effort? That students begin to abandon the education system from lack of motivation That the companies which are going to participate in the Alliances were affected by economy and the school can’t get or satisfy their needs None at the moment, but take into consideration that it is not only to do the project but to maintain it. School Cafeteria: Those Union leaders make employees turn against the modernization and employees refuse to work there. That the work will be done for only some schools. That once done, it will not be renewed in a few years and all the effort would be lost. The ones who benefit are not the students because the change in process is much more complicated and who benefits is the company who proposes. The Dept. of Education should invest money where needed I have no fears; schools should be demolished. As a mother of two Special Ed students, is the vision of open spaces. How can a student who is hyperactive and with attention deficit, work in open spaces. That the funds will not reach the schools to meet the needs that we now have. That everything will stay in plans and the money be diverted to other matters. Economical and acceptance or denial of the change. How would these areas be maintained at short and long term? My concern is to improve the sanitation and safety in all PR schools. Specially toilets, water fountains and security for students To have funds for maintenance of the physical plant. Need to educate the community to protect schools from vandalism. Fear that only certain schools will be chosen.
40 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Transcribed Fears Continued: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •
There are some sectors that have been marginalized for a long time and need an urgent change to save the youth. Dreams and wishes of this group are a political battle with the new group in power. Break with the traditional school organization. Extend the school hours. Confront teacher organizations and unions. I have no fears just waiting with courage that the project reaches Papa Juan XXII School. That schools will be closed in the municipality where I live forcing parents to go to another town to take the children to school. That School community not be focused on the same path, resistance to change Finding funds and that they be used for the purpose since there is an “ease for funds to be diverted”. Continuity in the efforts, economic and human. Fear of structural failures in construction from the construction company that wins the bid that, in order to gain more profit, will use cheaper materials. Small classrooms with too many students No areas for first aid stations. My fear would be that after many years the project will still remain and that we lose our culture, traditions and that we will be imposed those of other countries. Think big with minor results. Those schools with good resources are used as models and not the ones that have needs. It will be just words. The Government should be in charge of schools. Should be for all students without discrimination. After constructed no money for its maintenance. That someone else will decide for us and we won’t be consulted. To have a true feeling of ownership That everything will remain in presentations and photos. Government not be willing to help other schools benefitting a small group Those funds will not be handled correctly. Structural change but not of mentality, that will not result from a lack of social education. That so many conditions and family matters affect the academic achievement. Not count with the resources and instructions for a better academic achievement. Excessive bureaucracy. Deterioration of the physical facilities.
41 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
III. | School Assessments: Key Observations Of the schools surveyed by FNI and UNIPRO Consultants during the past several weeks, a number of key observations were gleened. The following illustrations describe them, and a sample assessment has been included at the end of this section.
SCHOOL IDENTITY
Overall FNI noticed only small efforts by schools to establish a strong community presence.
OUTDOOR USE
By and large, there is little evidence that outdoor spaces are consciously designed for learning or as an extension of the indoor learning space.
42 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
In some schools, children play in areas adjacent to the main school building under shaded trees. These kinds of open play areas are good for creative play and social/emotional development.
PHYSICAL CONDITION
Overall conditions are quite poor due to lack of maintenance and very little effort has been made to utilize non-classroom spaces like the one above for student activities.
43 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
PUBLIC PERCEPTION
These are images of Puerto Rico schools from local newspapers. Such images create a negative public perception which is not fully accurate.
This is the most common “prototype” school that was observed with single-loaded corridors flanking a long row of classrooms. The basic reinforced concrete structure remains sound for the most part but this model has many problems. Securing the building is very difficult and there is very little variety in the learning spaces.
44 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
This interior courtyard is a nice feature of the typical Puerto Rico school prototype but classrooms have no visual access to this green space due to the lack of windows overlooking the courtyard and the secure metal doors that shuts off each classroom from the courtyard.
MAIN LEARNING AREAS
Most schools are still organized for the Industrial Age– not suitable for the Creative Age.
45 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
By and large, libraries lack adequate resources, technology use is limited, comfortable furnishings are often absent and little attempt has been made to develop them as true 21st century media centers
COMMUNITY USE
Community use of schools is quite limited. This is largely as a result of schools having few amenities for the community and few suitable places for parents and community residents to meet in.
46 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
SOCIAL AREAS
There are very few well-designed areas for social and emotional learning. This is a critical component of 21st century schools and every effort must be made to create more social areas in school
AIR CONDITIONING & LIGHTING
While most of the schools visited did not have central air conditioning, FNI did notice a few central units. Most of the air-conditioning observed utilized room units. Non air-conditioned rooms had neither fans nor any significant amount of natural ventilation. Most of the lighting observed was fluorescent fixtures.
47 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
SECURITY
Many schools feel prison-like because of the security. Schools need to feel more welcoming and more suitable for tomorrow’s learning needs.
TECHNOLOGY
Very little modern technology was observed except in the newest schools.
48 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
FOOD SERVICES
Good, fresh food is prepared in schools but cafeterias are often too small and outside eating areas are unattractive and poorly designed.
PERFORMANCE, MUSIC AND ART SPACES
School architecture does not adequately celebrate Puerto Rico’s rich cultural heritage in music, dance and art.
49 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
BUILDING CONDITION INDEX (BCI) School Name: GILBERTO CONCEPCION DE GRACIA
School Owner (DE, OMEP or PBA/Code): PBA
Age of Building: 29
Grades Served: 10-12
Student Population:
Region: SAN JUAN
School Distrito (Municipality): CAROLINA II
Date Survey: 20-04-10
Name of Surveyor(s): ARCH. VICTOR M. VILLEGAS
635
BUILDING TYPE
Name of School Director: MILLY COLLAZO School Address: AVE FELIPE SANCHEZ OSORIO
1. SITE
1. SCHOOL LOCATION ATRIBUTES
Special Notes below:
How accessible is the school to its student population? 1. Is the School accessible from local roads? Poor Connections from narrow streets = 1; Fair connections from side streets = 2; Good direct access from main streets = 3 2. Do School buses have a dedicated drop-off lane at the school? No bus drop-off lanes = 0; Bus lanes shared with access drives and parking lot = 1, Dedicated lanes separate from parking and children = 3 3. Is there sufficient parking spaces for faculty and staff separate from outdoor play areas? There is no available parking = 0; There is some parking but it is insufficient = 1; There is parking but it overlaps with the play areas = 2; There is sufficient parking, separate from the play areas = 3 pattern score
2. SITE
2. SCHOOL SITE ATTRIBUTES
Special Notes below:
What are the positive site features? 1. Is there is a dedicated green play area for children? No area = 0, Area set aside but with little or no grass = 1, There are grass playing fields, no trees = 2, Green playing fields with natural shading provided by trees and shrubs = 3 2. Is there is a dedicated hard surface play yard for children? No yard = 0, Designated hard surface area with no striping or fencing = 1, Striped play yard with fencing = 2, Play yard with all previous features and natural shading provided by trees and shrubs or a canopy structure = 3 3.Is there is age appropriate play equipment? No equipment = 0, There is some equipment but it is in old and not well maintained = 1, There is equipment that the kids are using but it is in fair/good condition and located in protected and well monitored areas = 2, There is relatively new equipment in use by the kids that is located in appropriate areas = 3 4. Are there Basketball courts? No courts = 0, Striped courts with baskets, no pavilion = 1, Striped courts with a covered pavilion = 2, Covered basketball courts with bleachers = 3 5. Are there are playing fields for Baseball, and/or Soccer? No playing fields = 0, un-striped grass fields = 1, Striped playing fields = 2, Striped playing fields with bleachers = 3 6. Is there an open air play or gathering area that is protected or shaded by a pavillion? No = 0; Yes = 2 pattern score
3. SITE /BUILDING
3. UTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE
Special Notes below:
Are there adequate utility services servicing this school to support a 21st century education? 1. Does this building has access to the internet? No access to the internet = 0; 256K service/Intermittent = 1; 256K/512K service, with some WiFi = 2; Full broadband service with WiFi coverage = 3 2. Is there is reliable electrical power serving this site? Intermittent service and not enough power = 1; Fairly consistent electrical with occasional failures = 2; Consistent power at appropriate levels = 3 3. What is the condition of the water service to the school? Insufficient water pressure with frequent failures = 1; Sufficient water pressure with occasional failures = 2; Sufficient water pressure with no recent problems = 3 4. Is this school is connected to municipal sewer? No = 0; Yes but with occasional failures = 1; Yes, with no reported problems = 2 pattern score
4. BUILDING
3 3 1 7
1 0
0 2 0 0 3
1 2 1 2 6
4. BUILDING ENVELOP - ROOF
BUILDING CONDITION INDEX SpecialADEQUACY Notes below: PUERTO RICO SCHOOLS MODERNIZATION EDUCATIONAL ASSESMENT What is the roof system, features and condition? 1. What is the configuration of most of theFIELDING roofs at this school? Flat = F; Sloped = S; Gabled = G NAIR INTERNATIONAL/ UNIPRO SURVEY FORM
2. What is the roofing material? Bitumen = Bt, Built-up Roof = BUR; Rubber Membrane = RM; Metal = M 3. What is the condition of the roofs at this school? Very old roofing with many leaks and no repairs = 0; Old roofing with some leaks reported each year, eventually repaired = 1; Serviceable roof with occasional leaks reported and repaired = 2; Relatively recent roof with little or no reported leaks = 3 pattern score
F Page 1 M 0 0
5. BUILDING
5. BUILDING ENVELOP - EXTERIOR WALLS
Special Notes below:
What is the exterior wall system, materials and condition? 1. What is the composition of the exterior walls? Reinforced concrete = RC; Concrete Block = CMU; Metal panel over steel framing = MP; Brick with CMU back-up = Brk; Wood siding over wood framing = Wd; Exterior Insulation Finish System = EFIS
CMU
2. What is the condition of the exterior walls? Poor: Walls are cracked and failing in several places with visible settlement and leaking = 1, Fair: Some settlement or stress cracks and minor damage = 2 , Good: Walls appear stable, no major structural issues = 3
2
pattern score 6. BUILDING
6. BUILDING ENVELOP - WINDOWS
Special Notes below:
What type of windows are installed at this school? 1. What type of windows are in use at this school? "Miami" Louver Windows = MW; Awning/Hopper = AH; Sliding = SL; Double Hung - Db, Fixed = Fx; Casement = Csmt; Kalwall Panel = KP 2. What is the typical condition of the windows? Poor: Most are non-operable or broken, hardware missing, window panes broken, replacement needed = 1; Fair: Many windows no longer work, many repairs needed, much of the operator hardware is non-functional or missing = 2; Good: Most windows are operable, minor repairs needed = 3 pattern score
7. BUILDING
7. BUILDING ENVELOP - EXTERIOR DOORS
Special Notes below:
What type of exterior doors are installed at this school? 1. What is the condition of the doors? Poor: doors are not closing properly, frames are rotted, typical padlock hardware is missing on many doors due to vandalism = 0; Fair: Many doors need some repairs, hardware is operable in 75% of the doors = 1; Good: Doors are in good condition, most are operable with some replacement doors evident, typical padlock hardware in use on most of the doors = 2; Good+: Many doors have institutional hardware=3
2
MW 1 1
0
0 8. STRUCTURAL Special Notes below:
What are the structural elements used at this building? 1. What is the structural system of the roof? Reinforced concrete slab = RC; Concrete Plank = CP; Steel Web Joists = SWJ; Wood Trusses = WT 2. What type of structural support system is used at this school?: Reinforced concrete = RC; Load bearing concrete block = CMU; Steel frame = Stl; Concrete frame = CF 3. What is the condition of the structural elements? Poor: Apparent sagging and structural cracks, walls appear to be moving, no repairs evident = 0; Fair: Some sagging, but appears structurally stable, some water damage is evident = 1; Good: no major cracks visible, appears structurally stable = 2 4. How Adaptable is the structural system? Poor: Most interior walls are load bearing, removal will require additional structural
50 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
SWJ CF 2
doors due to vandalism = 0; Fair: Many doors need some repairs, hardware is operable in 75% of the doors = 1; Good: Doors are in good condition, most are operable with some replacement doors evident, typical padlock hardware in use on most of the doors = 2; Good+: Many doors have institutional hardware=3
0
0 8. STRUCTURAL Special Notes below:
What are the structural elements used at this building? 1. What is the structural system of the roof? Reinforced concrete slab = RC; Concrete Plank = CP; Steel Web Joists = SWJ; Wood Trusses = WT 2. What type of structural support system is used at this school?: Reinforced concrete = RC; Load bearing concrete block = CMU; Steel frame = Stl; Concrete frame = CF 3. What is the condition of the structural elements? Poor: Apparent sagging and structural cracks, walls appear to be moving, no repairs evident = 0; Fair: Some sagging, but appears structurally stable, some water damage is evident = 1; Good: no major cracks visible, appears structurally stable = 2 4. How Adaptable is the structural system? Poor: Most interior walls are load bearing, removal will require additional structural reinforcement = 1; Fair: The structural system allows for limited removal of interior wall partitions = 2; Good: Structural frame (Concrete or Steel) allows for removal of most interior wall partitions and some exterior panels = 3 pattern score
9. INTERIOR
SWJ CF 2
3 5
9. INTERIOR ELEMENTS
BUILDING CONDITION INDEX SpecialADEQUACY Notes below: in support education? RICOofSCHOOLS MODERNIZATION EDUCATIONAL ASSESMENT What elements are present in the classrooms PUERTO FIELDING NAIR INTERNATIONAL/ UNIPROfixtures - BF; Surface mounted fluorescent with wrap around SURVEY FORM 1. What type of lighting is used in the classrooms? Bare Bulb fluorescent
prismatic diffusers = FLW; Surface mounted fluorescent with mirrored cell diffusers - FLD; Cable or pendant mounted fluorescent with direct/indirect lighting - FL/ID 2. What is the quality of the lighting in the classrooms? Poor: classrooms are under lit with high glare fluorescent lighting with little daylight = 1; Fair: there is still insufficient distribution of light fixtures but with some daylight = 2; Good: These is sufficient distribution of fluorescent lighting with some direct/indirect distribution and a good mix of daylight = 3 3. What type of flooring is used in the classrooms? Polished concrete floors = 1; Ceramic floor tile or VCT = 2; A mix of carpet tile, terrazzo, VCT or ceramic floor tile = 3 4. What is the quality of the acoustics in the classrooms? Poor: all surfaces are made from concrete and are highly reflective = 0; Fair: a mix of concrete surfaces and some limited use of absorptive materials such as cork, wood, carpet, etc. = 1; Good: Some acoustical ceilings and absorptive flooring or wall materials = 2 5. What are the instructional elements in the classrooms? No blackboard or display boards = 0; Old blackboards and one display board = 1; Combination of blackboards and white boards, limited display = 2; Whiteboards and several display areas = 3 6. Is there classroom storage? No visible storage in the classrooms = 0; Some storage units provided by the teachers = 1; In addition to Teacher provided units, there are some tall storage cabinets provided by the school for most classrooms = 2; The school provides mobile storage for the classrooms = 3 7. What is the condition of the Classroom furniture? Poor: The is little or no furnishings, mostly taboret chairs all in poor condition = 0; Fair: There are taboret chairs or desks and chairs in fair condition but enough for the class = 1; Good: There are work tables and chairs, some ergonomic furniture in good condition and enough for the class = 2 8. Is there ventilation or air conditioning in the classrooms? There is little or no AC, mechanical ventilation or ceiling fans = 0; The are some wall and floor fans = 1; There are ceiling fans and operable windows providing cross ventilation = 2; There is ceiling and wall fans supplemented with some air conditioning in many of the classrooms = 3 pattern score 10. SCHOOL
10. SCHOOL PROGRAM ELEMENTS
Special Notes below:
Does this school possesses the basic program elements required of most schools? 1. Is there a dedicated Dining area? There is no dining area = 0; There is a dining area but it is too small to accommodate less than 4 sittings, the tables and chairs are in poor to fair condition = 1; The dining area is not large enough to accommodate all students in 4 sittings but the furniture is in fair to good condition = 2; The dining area is large enough to accommodate all students in 4 sittings and the furniture is in good condition. The room is also large enough to be used for limited assembly functions = 3 2. Is the school kitchen well equipped? The kitchen is poorly equipped and does not appear to meet health standards = 0; The kitchen has some commercial equipment and finishes in fair condition. There is no warming equipment = 1; The kitchen has commercial equipment and finishes in good condition but does not have warming equipment = 2; The kitchen has all the required commercial equipment and finishes in good condition including warming equipment as required for multiple meal servings = 3 3. Is there a school gymnasium? There is no gymnasium, indoor or outdoor = 0; There is a sheltered outdoor gymnasium but no bleachers = 1; There is a sheltered outdoor gymnasium with bleachers = 2; There is an indoor gymnasium with bleachers and appropriate gym equipment =3 4. Are there Science Rooms (Elementary Schools) or Labs (Secondary Schools) at this school? There are no science rooms or labs = 0; There are lab rooms for science but no equipment or appropriate furnishings = 1; There are labs with lab furniture but with limited lab equipment = 2; There are labs with the appropriate lab equipment, counters, sinks and lab furniture = 3 5. Is there a dedicated area for music or dance? There is no area = 0; There is an area used for music or dance but it is not dedicated = 1; There is a dedicated area but it is poorly equipped = 2; There is a dedicated area that is appropriately equipped = 3
6. Is there a dedicated area for Art? There is no area = 0; There is an area used for art but it is not dedicated = 1; There is a dedicated area but it is poorly equipped = 2; There is a dedicated area that is appropriately equipped = 3 7. Is there a school library? There is no dedicated library space = 0, There is a dedicated library area but it is too small to service the students BUILDING CONDITION INDEX = 1; There is a dedicated library with a limited book collection, some computer work stations and AV capabilities = 2; There is a school library PUERTO RICO SCHOOLS MODERNIZATION EDUCATIONAL ADEQUACY ASSESMENT with shelving for books and an operational computer and AV center = 3
Page 2
FLW
1 1 0
3
2
1
2 10
1
3
0
2
0
0
2 Page 3
FIELDING NAIR INTERNATIONAL/ UNIPRO
SURVEY FORM
8. Is there a computer lab? There is no Computer lab = 0; There is a Computer Lab but with older computers and inappropriate work stations and with power and internet access issues = 1; There is a Computer lab with computers no more than 3 years old, fair to good workstations, power and some internet access = 2; There is a computer lab with good quality work stations, reliable power, good access to the internet and AC =3 9. Is there a Technology (Shops) and Auto CAD Studio? There is no Technology/CAD Studio = 0; There are traditional shops (wood/metal but with older equipment and work benches, No CAD = 1; There is a Technology/CAD Studio with computers more than 3 years old, fair, older workstations, limited power and some internet access = 2; There is a Technology/CAD Studio with good quality work stations, reliable power, good access to the internet, AC and proper ventilation = 3 pattern score 11. COMMUNITY
11. SHARED COMMUNITY USE
Special Notes below:
Are there elements of the school that can be used by the local community? 1. Adult Education: The school runs adult programs in the evening for the local community. No programs = 0; Evening seminars for parents = 1; There is a night school program = 2 2. Community Meetings: The school does not have available meeting space for groups of over 50 = 0, Some of the larger classrooms or the dining area is used for small meeting groups of over 50 people = 1; There is a dedicated meeting space used for small meeting groups of over 50 people = 2; There is a dedicated meeting room at the school that may be used for performances and large meetings of over 100 people = 3 3. Community sport events: There are no sports fields for community use = 0; There are sports fields for basketball, baseball and soccer but no seating = 1; There are sports fields for community use with bleachers for viewing = 2; There is an active community sports program at this school that regularly uses the sports fields = 3 4. Shared Exterior Spaces: There is no shared space = 0; Some exterior space is provided for community use (e.g. playgrounds, community vegetable gardens) = 2 pattern score
12. Expansion
12. EXPANSION POTENTIAL
Special Notes below:
What is the expansion potential of this school 1. Building Additions: This school has enough room on site to expand existing buildings to accommodate additional program space = 3
51 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010 2. Courtyard Infill: There are interior courtyards and plazas with potential for infill expansion = 3
3. New buildings: The existing site is large enough to construct additional buildings without sacrificing outdoor activity space = 3
0
0
8
0
0
0 0 0
3 3
no seating = 1; There are sports fields for community use with bleachers for viewing = 2; There is an active community sports program at this school that regularly uses the sports fields = 3 4. Shared Exterior Spaces: There is no shared space = 0; Some exterior space is provided for community use (e.g. playgrounds, community vegetable gardens) = 2 pattern score 12. Expansion
12. EXPANSION POTENTIAL
Special Notes below:
What is the expansion potential of this school 1. Building Additions: This school has enough room on site to expand existing buildings to accommodate additional program space = 3 2. Courtyard Infill: There are interior courtyards and plazas with potential for infill expansion = 3
0 0 0
3 3
3. New buildings: The existing site is large enough to construct additional buildings without sacrificing outdoor activity space = 3
3
4. Combining School Campuses: There is another public school campus adjacent or contiguous with this campus, which can be merged or connected with this school to create a larger campus = 3 pattern score
3 12
BCI SCORE TABULATION Raw Score Total Total possible raw score = 122
Total Raw Score
54
Total Building Condition Index as %
44%
The Building Condition Index (BCI) is shared with the understanding that it remains the property of Fielding Nair International (FNI) and its use is limited to projects for which a license is held with FNI. BUILDING CONDITION INDEX EDUCATIONAL ADEQUACY ASSESMENT SURVEY FORM
PUERTO RICO SCHOOLS MODERNIZATION
FIELDING NAIR INTERNATIONAL/ UNIPRO EDUCATIONAL ADEQUACY ASSESMENT (EAA)
Page 4
1. WELCOMING ENTRY
0, 0.5, or 1.0
How welcoming is the entrance to the school?
Special Notes below:
1. 2. 3. 4.
Clearly marked entrance Visibility as visitors walk in the door (eg. office receptionist) Distinct signature elements in a highly visible location (eg. School name, sculpture or flag) Area protected from rain and sun for parents to drop off and pick up children
1 0.5 1 0.5 pattern score
2. SPECIALTY LEARNING SPACES (E.G. SCIENCE LABS, ART ROOMS, LIFE SKILLS, PERFORMANCE STUDIOS)
Special Notes below:
How well equipped are science labs? 1. Preparation space and secured storage space adjacent to work area 2. Science areas contain movable tables 3. Access to outdoors for experimentation 4. Proper venting and exhaust fan is provided for fumes from dust, paint and chemicals How well equipped are art labs? 1. Prep and storage areas with counters and sinks available 2. Access to outdoors for messy work 3. Space for a variety of art activities (drawing, sculpture, ceramics, etc) 4. Proper venting and exhaust fan is provided for fumes from dust, paint and chemicals To what extent is an applied life skills curriculum supported? 1. Opportunities to work on hands-on projects in and/or outside classrooms (e.g. woodworking, sewing) 2. Outdoor areas are used for gardening 3. Areas for demonstrations by outside community partners (e.g. multi-purpose space) 4. Areas for small groups to work together To what extent is music and performance supported? 1. An outdoor area suitable for performance (plaza, amphitheatre, etc.) 2. Space suitable for small group music practice 3. Performance space with portable stage and some seating
1 0.5 0 0 0.5 0 0 0 0 0 0.5 0.5 0 0 0
4. Community able to use school facilities for larger performances AND/OR students use community facilities for larger performances pattern score 3. AVAILABILITY OF TECHNOLOGY
Special Notes below:
0 0 0 0 0 pattern score
To what extent does school create a professional environment for teachers? 1. Shared teacher offices/workrooms
0
pattern score 5. SHARED LEARNING RESOURCES
Page 5
pattern score
0.5
0, 0.5, or 1.0
To what extent are health and physical fitness supported? 1. Facilities for organized sports and fitness (basketball, soccer, yoga, etc.) 2. Age appropriate outdoor (0.5) and indoor (0.5) play spaces 3. Running track accessible to school site
0.5 0.5 0 pattern score
7. INDOOR/OUTDOOR CONNECTION
Special Notes below:
0 0.5
0 0 0.5 0 0
A central library/Media Resource Centre serves as space for conducting research and a visible symbol for learning Library/Media Resource Centre includes area for casual reading (0.5), furnished with soft seating (0.5) Informal group tutoring and table groupings available adjacent to resource areas Wired network distributes media electronically to entire campus Wireless network distributes media electronically to entire campus
6. HEALTH & PHYSICAL FITNESS
Special Notes below:
0.5
0, 0.5, or 1.0
BUILDING CONDITION INDEX PUERTO RICO SCHOOLS MODERNIZATION EDUCATIONAL ADEQUACY ASSESMENT To what extent are learning resources distributed versus centralized? FIELDING NAIR INTERNATIONAL/ UNIPRO SURVEY FORM
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
0
0, 0.5, or 1.0
2. Office space provides teachers with conferencing table, phone, computer, lockable personal and professional storage, and other equipment 3. School offers mix of formal (0.5) and informal (0.5) spaces for teachers to meet and plan lessons
Special Notes below:
0 3
0, 0.5, or 1.0
How well is technology integrated with the curriculum? 1. Wireless networking with internet access throughout campus 2. Students can access internet-connected computers during most of the day 3. Computers are used in most classes, not just keyboarding/technology classes 4. Students use portable digital equipment such as laptops, iPods, etc. 5. School utilizes video conferencing to bring in outside experts to teach kids 4. TEACHERS AS PROFESSIONALS
Special Notes below:
3
0, 0.5, or 1.0
What is the quality of the indoor/outdoor connections? 1. Key public spaces in the school have direct connections to the outdoors 2. School site contains one or more of the following: nature walks, kitchen gardens, greenhouses, planted courtyards, designated natural play spaces 3. Outdoor seating and socializing areas
52 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
4. Each ground level classroom has direct access to outdoors (0.5); upper level classrooms have direct access to a terrace or balcony (0.5)
1
0, 0.5, or 1.0 0 0 0.5 0 0.5
Special Notes below:
To what extent are health and physical fitness supported? 1. Facilities for organized sports and fitness (basketball, soccer, yoga, etc.) 2. Age appropriate outdoor (0.5) and indoor (0.5) play spaces 3. Running track accessible to school site
0.5 0.5 0 pattern score
7. INDOOR/OUTDOOR CONNECTION
Special Notes below:
What is the quality of the indoor/outdoor connections? 1. Key public spaces in the school have direct connections to the outdoors 2. School site contains one or more of the following: nature walks, kitchen gardens, greenhouses, planted courtyards, designated natural play spaces 3. Outdoor seating and socializing areas 4. Each ground level classroom has direct access to outdoors (0.5); upper level classrooms have direct access to a terrace or balcony (0.5) pattern score 8. EDUCATIONALLY APPROPRIATE FURNITURE
Special Notes below:
What is the availability of soft seating throughout school? 1. Student seating chosen with ergonomic needs of students in mind (e.g. adjustable) 2. Soft, upholstered seating is available in appropriate areas (entrance, reading areas) 3. Changes in surfaces delineate seating areas (carpeting, tile, ceiling height) 4. Reading lights available in soft seating areas 5. Varied furniture types such as low floor types, desk height, standing height
pattern score
0
0
0, 0.5, or 1.0
To what extent is the school connected to its surrounding community? 1. School shares its facilities with outside community groups 2. School facility is used after school hours 3. Exterior spaces are provided for community use (eg. playgrounds, community gardens) 4. School takes advantage of local community resources (eg. public library, community center, universities)
0 0 0 0 pattern score
PUERTO RICO SCHOOLS MODERNIZATION FIELDING NAIR INTERNATIONAL/ UNIPRO
Total possible raw score = 53
0.5
0 0 0 0
10. CONNECTED TO COMMUNITY
Raw Score Tabulation
0
0, 0.5, or 1.0
To what extent is casual eating supported? 1. Central kitchen/canteen or alternative fresh food provider 2. Casual eating areas available to staff and students 3. Eating areas have round table seating for small groups 4. There are outdoor seating areas directly adjacent to indoor eating areas
BUILDING CONDITION INDEX EAA SCORE TABULATION EDUCATIONAL ADEQUACY ASSESMENT SURVEY FORM
0 0.5
0 0 0 0 0 pattern score
Special Notes below:
0
0, 0.5, or 1.0
9. CASUAL EATING AREAS
Special Notes below:
1
0, 0.5, or 1.0
0 Page 6
Assessment Score Totals
8.5
Total Score as %
16%
The Educational Adequacy Assessment is shared with the understanding that it remains the property of Fielding Nair International (FNI) and its use is limited to projects for which a license is held with FNI.
BUILDING CONDITION INDEX EDUCATIONAL ADEQUACY ASSESMENT SURVEY FORM
PUERTO RICO SCHOOLS MODERNIZATION FIELDING NAIR INTERNATIONAL/ UNIPRO
53 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Page 7
IV. | Implementation: KEY TASKS There are several, potentially complex tasks and logistical challenges that must be overcome in order for the School Modernization Program to be successfully accomplished. Many of these tasks must be carried out before schematic design can begin while others need to be executed before construction can begin. OVERVIEW 1. In the phase following Master Planning, several site investigation tasks must proceed while a large design team is assembled to develop designs for all the modernization and new school projects. Given the vast number of projects that must be designed and put into construction within a very short timeframe, these key tasks must be given the highest priority. • P3A must engage a firm or firms to produce measured drawings of each existing school targeted for renovations. • Data should be available in Auto CAD 2009, 2008 0r 2007 versions • Measurements should be in Imperial measure • The team selected to do the schematic design should furnish project CAD layering standards to the designated design-build teams • Each selected school should have a Class One Site Survey prepared and available on AutoCAD. • Class One requirements include property line, topography, zoning requirements. • This survey should include a utility survey for electrical power, sewer, water and data. It is important to identify what is available in the immediate neighborhood. • Each school must undergo a Phase One ESA and a standard Hazmat survey for lead and asbestos • If required, a phase two ESA may be required for individual schools
• Most likely, an abatement plan will need to be prepared for each school and reviewed/approved by the Department of Health.
• A careful review of the permitting process must be done to identify timelines and submittal requirements. This is not just for the Commonwealth and any local jurisdictions but federal requirements. 2. A strategy for a logical sequencing of the renovation process must be developed because the selected Schools must be unoccupied during renovations. A plan to relocate students to other facilities during the construction period is necessary. There are several elements to be considered in developing a logical sequencing of renovations. • The schematic design firm must prepare a list by region of those schools with the highest Building Condition Index (BCI) and Educational Adequacy Assessment (EAA) scores. The schools with the higher scores should be easier to renovate and perhaps PPPA should prioritize these to be included in the earlier bundles so that the more difficult projects will have more time to be worked on • A review of the demographic data, in conjunction with the GIS mapped data will need to be done to identify the local population density and income statistics reflecting immediate need for better schools. • Adjacency of other schools nearby should be considered where students can be relocated to during the renovations. • A cost benefits analysis is needed as to the feasibility of utilizing portables to create temporary schools, either as stand-alone or in conjunction with a nearby school to accommodate those students who need to be relocated during renovation of their school.
54 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
• An evaluation will need to be conducted of each selected school of the required pre-construction approvals and tasks. • Environmental Clean-up (ESA) • Lead and Asbestos Abatement • Permits and Approvals required for each school and associated timelines. • Necessary Utility Upgrades • Unusual site work requirements • Site access challenges Additional Action Items that are needed: 1. Construction phasing recommendations must set forth the order of procedures for the proposed rehabilitations. 2. Critical path items must be identified in the implementation of the modernization program so that they are not allowed to delay the program as a whole. 3. A structure to manage the School Modernization Program must be established as quickly as possible. 4. Key milestones and critical deadlines will be identified.
55 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
RECOMMENDATIONS
Even though Gardner developed MI as a theory of the mind and not as an educational intervention strategy, it has naturally entered the realm of education and How to leverage the School Modernization Program the classroom. Critics of MI believe that using it in the to improve academic performance and community classroom will prevent ability-based grouping that is participation: associated with higher achievement (for those in the higher ability group). Such criticisms fail to recognize Design for Multiple Intelligences that understanding and applying MI theory in the Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences (MI) theory classroom means to recognize the broad base of talent says that all human beings possess eight “intelligenc- that is present. es,” though not everyone is necessarily strong in all of them. It does not imply any specific grouping nor does it im
The eight intelligences are: 1. Linguistic—Word Smart 2. Logical/Mathematical—Numbers Smart 3. Musical—Music Smart 4. Bodily/Kinesthetic—Sports/Fitness Smart 5. Spatial—Picture/3D Smart 6. Naturalist—Nature Smart 7. Interpersonal—Social Smart 8. Intrapersonal—Self Smart
It is important to clarify the issue about the exact number of Multiple Intelligences identified by Howard Gardner, particularly because the chart (next page) titled Multiple Intelligences and School Spaces includes a ninth intelligence called Existential Intelligence or World Smart. Some have said that Howard Gardner had identified this ninth intelligence and there are many references to the Existential Intelligence in writings about MI Theory.
ply a lack of rigor or a watered-down curriculum. If anything, it fosters a deeper understanding of what is being learned and encourages a more rigorous and holistic examination of the subject. MI theory, when properly applied in school, provides students with the opportunity to become engaged in subjects that may not otherwise have held their interest. It can help students learn and strengthen an area of intelligence in which they are weak by supplementing their experience with another intelligence area in which they are strong. For example, a student that may have a hard time learning a subject in a traditional classroom setting (using his or her cognitive intelligence) may be able to learn the same thing more effectively through performance (bodily–kinesthetic/interpersonal/musical intelligences).
When FNI first included the Existential Intelligence in their chart, it was done so with the belief that this important area of human development could be fostered by the proper design of school spaces. However, they now understand that Howard Gardner himself has not yet endorsed this ninth intelligence. Here’s what Tom Hoerr, Head of School, New City School in St. Louis has to say on the subject: “Gardner initially identified seven intelligences and then subsequently named an eighth, the naturalist. I sometimes hear that he has now identified a ninth, the existential intelligence, but that is not the case. A few years ago at New City School, he said that he had not identified the existen- Above: Performance space for Musical and Kinesthetic tial intelligence, but that he was still trying to make the Intelligences at Hip-Hop High. determination. In fact, he called it ‘the eighth and onehalf intelligence.’” 56 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Advisory Grouping
X
X
X
Cave Space
X
X
Campfire Space
X
X
Watering Hole Space
X
X
Performance Space
X
X
X
X
X
X
Library
X
X
X
Outdoor Learning Terrace
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Fitness Center
X
Playfields Blackbox Theater X
X
X
X
Entrance Piazza
X
X
Cafe
Graphic Arts/CADD Lab
X
X
X
X
X
X
X X
Distance Learning Center
X
X
X
Greenhouse
X
X
Amphitheater
Project Studio
X
Existential
X
Intrapersonal
X
Interpersonal
X
Naturalist
Learning Studio
Spatial
X
Bodily-Kinesthetic
Logical-Mathematical
X
Musical
Linguistic
Traditional Classroom
X
X
X
X X
Multiple Intelligences and School Spaces. Š Fielding Nair International. 57 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
X
But one should also remember that as humans, people tend to naturally favor their strongest intelligences— often at the expense of developing other intelligences. This imbalance can hurt people in life where most of the intelligences have value. A balanced educational program will allow students to fully sharpen the “favored” intelligences, as well as encourage exploration of the world utilizing their other intelligences. When it comes to the design of spaces, people are more likely to create interesting and exciting learning environments when they try to accommodate as many of the intelligences as possible. The New City School in St. Louis, Missouri, one of the MI pioneers in the U.S., where a library addition was recently built, is a model of how MI can be respected, even when it comes to elements that have traditionally been very one-dimensional. The New City library is special because it recognizes the core mission of the space—designed to encourage reading and research—but has found ways to go beyond the linguistic and logical/mathematical intelligences of traditional libraries. As discussed earlier, different school spaces that nurture MI are configured in the chart “Multiple Intelligences and School Spaces.” This chart demonstrates how some learning environments, like the Learning Studio, are superior from an MI standpoint to a traditional classroom. It is interesting to note that the Advisory Grouping and the Amphitheater are two physical settings in which all nine intelligences can be nurtured. The library (if properly designed) and an outdoor learning terrace and piazza are also good from an MI standpoint because they can accommodate up to eight intelligences. The Learning Studio comes next with seven intelligences and the other, more specialized areas, predictably, are less flexible and therefore, cater specifically to particular intelligences. Tailored to match the specific program of spaces in any given school, the chart can be a valuable tool to measure the design’s effectiveness from an MI perspective. It will allow changes early in the design process to increase the learning value of each space by making it serve as many of the intelligences as possible.
Above: Spaces to nurture Interpersonal Intelligence, Yeshiva Elementary School in Milwaukee, WI. Design Architect: Randall Fielding, Fielding Nair International; Project Architect: Haag Muller. (Photo Courtesy of Mark Koerner.)
Above: New City Library: Multiple Intelligences theory in action. Architect: HKW Architects.
Welcoming Entry The main entry is a very important element of school design. First and foremost, the entry should be welcoming. It should be inviting and friendly and not institutional-looking or forbidding. It is known that community involvement in schools is a key factor in their success and so the community needs to feel that the school belongs to them. This welcoming aspect has to be balanced by the need to secure the entry and separate its publicly accessible spaces from the student areas.
58 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Signature Element A welcoming and inviting school entry will contain some “signature” element that speaks to what makes the school special. Covered Entry Whether it has a fabric canopy or a more elaborate cantilevered roof, a covered entry is also valuable. Parents often come into school with younger siblings in strollers or have packages under their arms and appreciate a sheltered transition space between the school entry and the street. It is also a place where they might be dropped off or picked up from a car or bus and wait out a heavy rainstorm. Architecturally, a covered entry provides more opportunities for creating a ceremonial quality to the school as a whole.
Alternatively, the community room can serve as a workroom for parents and community, and there can be a separate place for informal meetings that connects the school to the outside world. In the case of Cristo Rey Jesuit High School in Minneapolis, the bright glassedin entrance is a place for the community to meet and share ideas each morning. The Office The school office contains a majority of the administrative functions of the school and is also the main contact between the school and community. For this reason, the school office needs to be close to the main entry so that people who enter the building are naturally led to the place where they can get the help they need. The office space is also associated with centralized student activities such as the guidance suite. This is a space that needs access from the public area for parent conferences as well as from the more secluded student areas. Because of its strategic placement between the public and student areas of the building, the office is ideally equipped to serve as “eyes on the street.” On the public side, this serves a security function and on the student side, it serves a supervision function where office staff can monitor students engaged in collaborative work or social activities and play. This kind of design enhances safety and security without putting undue or disproportionate emphasis on these aspects of a school’s design.
Above: A human-scaled Welcoming Entry at Metsolan AlaAsteen Koulu (Metsola Elementary School), Finland.
Today, it is common wisdom that all schools need places where the community (and this includes parents) can meet. A space for the community should, preferably, be incorporated as a key entrance element. This serves two purposes. First, it adds to the welcome feeling of the school entry, and second, it enhances the security of the school. Communities can be welcomed into school in a variety of spaces. Located by the entrance, a so-called “parent/ community room” can be a multi-purpose space that allows parents and community members to hang up their coats, have meetings and make telephone calls, make copies, send faxes and Above: Students greet each other in the Agora (Cristo Rey access the Internet. Ideally such rooms should also Jesuit High School, MN). Design Architect: Fielding Nair Inhave a mini-kitchenette where parents and community ternational. members can make coffee, obtain a soft drink or warm up lunch. 59 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Student Display friendly entry sequences are all possible ways to reWhen people enter a school, they need to immedi- duce anxiety about school and reassure both child and ately see that it is a place about students and learn- parent. ing. An entry is, therefore, an excellent place to create and showcase displays of student work. By periodically changing these displays, the entry can always remain a dynamic, vibrant place. Another way in which the entrance to a school can be energized is to have some key student activity area that is visible from the entrance. This area could be a student greenhouse or a project room that shares a soundproof glass partition with the entry. Nothing communicates the purpose of a school better than actual students at work.
Above: Metsolan Ala-Asteen Koulu, a Finnish elementary school, has a multifunctional, residential-scaled entry space. Here, no more than 20 students share a meal in a warm, café-like part of the meandering hall.
Above: Display of student artwork at welcoming entry, Reece High School, Tasmania.
Local Signature In thematically focused schools, the signature element is more easily defined because it can be associated with the school’s theme—environmental science, music, art, technology, etc. All schools have something about them that is special and unique, however, and the architecture should preferably showcase this.
Home as a Template for School An educational direction that has emerged in the United States over the past two decades is to make schools look and feel more like homes. This pattern is in essence an amplification of Welcoming Entry, and was originally a means of translating research on reducing the stress of new environments in young children. But it also has ramifications for all ages, as traditionally institutional environments are stressful for many people. The use of terminology such as house plans and neighborhood plans by architects reinforces this trend. Although there is little in the way of empirical research to support the idea of creating home-like school settings, there has been work by environmental psychologists and phenomenologists that suggest the importance of minimizing abrupt transitions between home and institutionalized settings, especially for very young children (Moore & Lackney, 1994). Many architectural elements such as home-like front yards, front porches and
Above: Signature architecture at Canning Vale Community College in Perth, Western Australia.
60 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
In some cases, the architecture of the school can itself become its signature element. The sculptural quality of the architecture sets the Canning Vale Community College in Western Australia apart from all the other buildings in the community and gives the school a unique identity or “signature.”
Sometimes the school’s signature can be a compelling icon that defines a whole community. At the Goa International School in India, situated along the ocean, the team created an “observatory” tower that will be visible from across the bay. The lighthouse is, in fact, a multilevel learning place for oceanography and astronomy. The observatory will not only be architecturally significant—giving the school its signature image—it will also contain Learning Studios to teach oceanography and astronomy. The upper level will house a powerful telescope to study the stars.
Above: Signature architecture at Canning Vale Community College.
A school’s signature element could also be a freestanding sculpture or a piece of artwork that is incorporated into the building architecture: a fountain, a garden, a special place for student-built projects, or some piece of history representative of the site on where the school is located. While many signature elements are permanent, that is not always the case. At a small school in Bridgehampton, young children built a “tepee” in their nature garden using local materials. Students, staff and parents felt proud of this temporary structure that immediately became an identifying, signature element.
Above: Sketch of the Goa International School observatory whose theme is “From the Sea to the Sky.” Includes observatory, science libraries, Student Display areas.
Above: Student-built tepee at the Morriss Center School, Bridgehampton, NY. High School Master Planners and Architect: Helpern Architects with Fielding Nair International.
61 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Connected to the Community There are three separate aspects that make a school a community school. The first is its location in a place that is close to the heart of its community. The second are the ties the school makes to community businesses, organizations, industries and recreational amenities as a way to extend the school’s learning potential beyond its own four walls. The third is the way the school itself is designed to be a welcoming place for the community—extending the so-called school day so that the facilities are open very early in the morning and late into the evening.
This charter school has partnerships with the local YMCA, the public library, City Theater and the Fresh Water Aquarium. When schools are built with a host of specialized amenities because there aren’t enough of them in the neighborhood for the students, then it is vital that as many of these amenities as possible become shared community resources. In Des Moines, Iowa the idea of schools becoming true community centers is supported by keeping the buildings open late into the evening and on weekends so that community residents can utilize them—for everything from adult education programs to recreational activities such as music, dance and community theater. In such cases, it is important to separate the community-use facilities from parts of the school that belong exclusively to the students, not only to keep the student areas secure, but also to improve the efficiency of building management and energy consumption.
Above: Connected to the Community. West Metro Education Program (WMEP) Interdistrict Downtown School, Minneapolis, MN. Architect: Cuningham Group Architecture, P.A.
One school that is very successful at utilizing a variety of community resources in its vicinity is the Interdistrict Downtown School in Minneapolis, MN. The advantage of this system is that the school itself can be built without many of the amenities that would be needed if all the services had to be provided under one roof. According to a New Schools Better Neighborhoods study, the $14.2 million, state-funded Interdistrict Downtown School (IDDS), built atop a city-owned, underground parking ramp, with neighbors that include an historic theater, a university, a church and a photo production house, has formed partnerships with the University of St. Thomas, MacPhail Center for the Arts, Orchestra Hall, Minneapolis Downtown Library, Hennepin County Government Center, Downtown YMCA, Loring Park, the historic Orpheum Theatre and numerous downtown Minneapolis businesses. Another good example of a school that takes full advantage of its downtown location is the Harbor City International School in Duluth, MN.
Above: Connected to the Community. Harbor City International School, Duluth, MN. (Photo Courtesy of Peter Kerze.)
Site Design for Community David Engwicht refers to most urban design as being fundamentalist. By this, he means that people view each part of the urban landscape as being useful for one particular function. With that mindset one might say that homes are for living, workplaces are for working, schools are for learning, shops are for buying and roads are for transport. The definitions of these things—learning, living, buying, working, transport— are often interpreted narrowly as well, with the attitudes that streets are for cars and schools are for classes.
62 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
A good rule of thumb for creating community-friendly spaces is to use human beings, not cars or classes, as the primary unit of design. These human beings may use cars, or take part in classes, but to design so rigidly that space can only be used by people when they’re in cars, or part of a class, significantly narrows the scope available for safety and appeal of other ways of being. A road designed only with cars in mind becomes unsafe for cyclists or pedestrians, because the traffic travels too fast, and all of its parts are car-sized—humans are squashed out. A school designed as a series of classrooms reduces opportunity for student-directed learning because it is difficult to passively supervise. All of the patterns contained in this book combine together to help to create community, most significantly because they are ergonomic: supportive of human beings and all their modes of learning. Making whole school sites to create community introduces a few more issues that will be addressed here. Firstly, creating authentic learning opportunities necessarily involves leading the school outside, and the wider community inside. This means taking advantage of local public facilities, businesses, organizations and other schools. Cristo Rey Jesuit High School (MN) and The Met School (RI) both embrace this concept through use of community-based internships that form 20-40% of each student’s learning program. Caroline Springs (Melbourne, Australia) is home to four co-located schools, public and private, that share key resources. Western Heights College (Geelong, Australia) is co-located with a community center, a skate park and sporting clubs, all of which are able to be accessed by the school community and vice-versa. This permeation of opportunities can be supported through site design that embraces the same kinds of principles as those behind the Community Center Model Small Learning Community. 1. Small Learning Communities 2. Human-scaled site entrance 3. Entrance that blends with most major parts of surrounding community (e.g. shops) 4. Parking away from sight-lines 5. Driveways minimal, paved and narrow to engender a sense of the unexpected (thus making drivers more alert and cautious) 63 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
How to incorporate sustainable design elements into the modernization program: Sustainable Elements and Building as a 3D Textbook Today, the term “High Performance” is a buzzword in school design—and rightly so. High performance refers both to the performance of the building itself, as well as to those who live and work in buildings.
Above: The water habitat demonstrates the harvesting and use of rainwater at the school site. Roy Lee Walker Elementary School, McKinney, Texas. Architect: SHW Group, Inc.; Sustainable Design Consultant: Innovative Design. (Photo Courtesy of Jim Wilson.)
Sustainable architecture is one of the key underpinnings of high performance design in several ways:
1. It involves a thoughtful approach that tries to minimize the disruption of a site’s natural features.
2. It taps nature’s energy sources from the earth, wind and sun to minimize the consumption of fossil fuels.
3. It utilizes indigenous materials—materials with high recyclable content and materials that do not cause health problems from the emission of toxic vapors.
4. Sustainable design is also about minimizing the consumption of water within the building, capturing and utilizing rainwater, and minimizing erosion and water runoff from the site.
But high performance design can also be seen on a larger scale—it is about seeing the school itself as part of a larger social “eco-system” and connecting it more closely to its community—as a way to complement the community’s resources and also reduce the amount of infrastructure that may have to be developed on a given site by sharing existing community facilities. In a school setting, sustainable design becomes an excellent teaching tool. Even though sustainable design is as important as one might imagine, it does not always capture the imaginations of school communities. Design Patterns can be useful here because they can make this subject more intuitively understandable, and school stakeholders can become more personally connected to the goals of high performance design. Parking is another important consideration in school planning everywhere. A parking lot that needs to be on site can be developed so that the cars are out of sight from within the building. With berms, garden walls, steps, plantings or a combination of these elements, the building occupants can still relate to nature instead of parked cars. The value of sustainable architecture as a teaching tool should not be underestimated. Sustainable architecture is often one where building systems can be readily apparent as in the gymnasium of Colegio Altamira High School in Penalolen, Chile. Transparent architecture and engineering systems are ideal in a learning setting because they can engage students’ imaginations and spur learning about buildings as 3-dimensional textbooks.
Above: With the structure fully articulated, this gymnasium is an excellent illustration of the term, “Building as a 3-D Textbook”. Colegio Altamira High School, Penalolen, Chile. Architect: Mathias Klotz.
64 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
While most schools designed today make at least some token gesture toward sustainability, there are few buildings designed from the ground up as sustainable “green” schools. The Roy Lee Walker Elementary School in McKinney, Texas is a notable exception. It was recognized by the American Institute of Architects as one of the top ten “Most Environmentally Responsible Design Projects” in the nation. Roberta Furger, writing for the September/October 2004 issue of Edutopia magazine had this to say about the school: Instead of the concrete-and-glass sameness that passes for modern educational design, six large stone cisterns squat near the building, each brimming with nearly 10,000 gallons of rainwater that have rolled from the school’s roof during the region’s window-rattling thunderstorms. Nearby, a 30-foot windmill twirls languidly in the breeze, powering a filtering system that removes sediment from the collected water, which is used to irrigate the buffalo grass and other native vegetation that fill the grounds. Slanted solar panels poke up from the roof of the single-story building, and inside, classrooms are lit not with the cold gray glare of fluorescent lights but with the warmth of natural sunlight.
Above: Front exterior view of Roy Lee Walker Elementary School, McKinney, Texas. Architect: SHW Group, Inc.; Sustainable Design Consultant: Innovative Design. (Photo Courtesy of Jim Wilson.)
How to retain a level of adaptability and flexibility at each location so that the capital improvements don’t become obsolete as curriculums, pedagogies, and educational technologies change:
Flexibility, Adaptability & Variety This report previously identified 20 different kinds of learning modalities that school buildings need to support. With flexible spaces to accommodate as many of these modalities of learning into any given space as possible, schools can move away from a model of single-purpose spaces to multifunctional areas. “Flexible spaces” used to be understood as simply moveable walls between classrooms. The moveable walls provided little or no flexibility in a day-to-day sense: they would generally be either open or closed for a whole year or more. Flexibility is more sophisticated than this. It helps to think about modification of spaces using the ideas of Adaptability, Flexibility and Variety. Adaptability is as much about what can’t be changed as what can be changed. By designing to accommodate human need, rather than current practice, schools honor the humanity of students. What stays constant is the building ergonomics: natural ventilation, natural light, acoustics and indoor-outdoor connections. Other aspects of the building, such as the size of the rooms, should be able to be changed if necessary, over the years. Creating multifunctional spaces is easier said than done. For example, one of the most common multifunctional spaces in school is the “cafetorium,” which is a cafeteria with a stage at one end. While this kind of space may work sometimes, user communities are often unhappy with this particular combination of uses.
65 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
With the number of hours that are scheduled for food service, the utility of the space as a place for performances, music and drama is severely compromised. On top of that, it is hard to reconcile the different ambiances that cafeterias and performance spaces need. Flexibility needs to start with the primary learning areas or classrooms where so much of a student’s time is spent.
Re-configuration appears to be an onerous task but is actually used as a learning opportunity: a small group of students act as hall custodians and are trained (by older group members) in the technical operation of the building. The award-winning Shitara Middle School in Japan also paid a lot of attention to the idea of flexibility. People may not associate a lobby or commons space with an ideal space for artistic ventures, but at Sinarmas World Academy, students happily brush up on their skills in a flexible commons space. By creating an ambiance that varies greatly from a typical school cafeteria, Sinarmas World School in Indonesia has created a flexible café space that can be used for a variety of activities. Adaptability
Above: This café at the Sinarmas World School in Indonesia is a very flexible space. It can serve as a cave space, as a watering hole space, for small and large group meetings, for informal presentations, for independent study and learning with technology.
One of the learning modalities that is most difficult to accommodate in a traditional school is team-teaching, and the open classrooms movement of the ‘70s attempted to rectify this situation through use of moveable walls. The problem with this kind of flexibility was that it tended only to be used from year to year according to teacher preference, rather than daily according to learning needs.
Flexibility
Variety
Core structures de- Allows building ussigned according ers to change the to ergonomic prin- space themselves ciples rather than current practices (e.g. Small Learning Communities, use of daylight, natural ventilation)
Allows users to change the quality of their space simply by moving—for instance, from a Campfire space to a Cave space to a Watering Hole space to an active learning space to an outdoor amphitheater
Non load-bearing interior walls that can easily be removed
Moveable walls and acoustic partitions, swing walls, overhead garage doors, furniture on castors all enable this
Central to the idea of the Community Center Model (Small Learning Community)
Allows for change over a period of years or decades
Allows for change over the course of each day or for many weeks depending on the kinds of learning activities under way
Allows for instant change and for learning activities to be perfectly matched to environments that best suit them
The lesson from this is to ensure that space is readily available for working with a number of different sized groups of students and teachers in different modalities, with a common feature of passive supervision, rather than teacher control. Highly flexible Learning Studios Above: Distinctions between adaptability, flexibility, and vacan accommodate a variety of learning modalities. The riety in terms of space, structure and change. plan on the Reece High School campus of Building 7 can be reconfigured in many different ways. This building can house 500 guests and a distance-learning program, but can also be used for dance and music and catering and sewing and various other programs on a daily basis. The building also has strong outdoor connections. 66 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Above: Flexible all-purpose Building #7 at Reece Community High School in Tasmania, Australia.
Above: Sinarmas World School students practice traditional Sumi-e painting in the Grade 1-3 Commons.
Dispersed Technology In a 2008 survey by the UK group, Campaign for Learning, it was revealed that 52% of the average student’s time is spent copying notes from a book or whiteboard. The same survey revealed that what children want more of is to learn in groups, to learn in a handson manner, and to learn with computers. Professor Stephen Heppell, a well known futurist and school planner, estimates that barely one out of every five schools has a 21st century approach to ICT, which involves creating policies that emphasize the possibilities and opportunities for learning that new technologies provide. In these settings, teachers are encouraged to use technology wherever possible for enhancing their classes. The other four out of five are ‘locking down’, creating policies that treat ICT as a static, rather than a dynamic part of the learning equation. In this chapter, recommendations will be made for ICT in schools based on current technology. However, any set of extremely strict standards for technology in schools should be evaluated carefully, as most standards become quickly outdated due to the rate of change and growth in this field. The continual challenge is to make sure that ICT helps, rather than hinders, teachers’ ability to perform their roles most effectively, and acts as an empowering agent for student learning.
Above: Flexible groupings for grade unit. Shitara Middle School, Shitara Town, Japan. Architect: Akihiko Watanabe/ ITO Architects & Engineers Inc.
The place for ICT in the curriculum is still under debate in many school communities, where Communications and Technology remain an isolated discipline.
67 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
There is still often one room designated as a Computer Lab where students go to use or learn these technologies. This model emerged around 20 years ago, and the design was not based on creating effective learning environments, but rather as a result of technical limitations. In today’s school and the schools of the future, these limitations no longer exist—ICT can assist in independent learning, anytime, anywhere, and students and teachers should no longer be shackled to the Computer Lab model.
Above: Anytime, anywhere learning with laptops and wireless networking: Pathways World School, India. Planning and Design Consultant: Prakash Nair.
2. Technology infrastructure has to provide trusted storage for the future, beyond a student’s time in that class or school. Students tend to trust the storage at public and widely used networks like Google and Flickr—and Above: Anytime, anywhere learning. Laptop use in an Ein- if they don’t have faith in school storage, they won’t stein Studio including powered docking stations: Middle use it. School, Scotch Oakburn College, Australia.
3. Educators should utilize technology to help extend communication with students outside of the classroom. There is a range of free software that students already use and that teachers can also use to help communicate with students in instant and direct ways. For instance, MSN or AIM Instant Messenger is used by many students to chat with each other in the evenings. Teachers have successfully used this software in many schools, logging in briefly between 8pm and 10pm to pick up questions from students, or providing “office hours” that are more convenient for everyone involved because students and teachers can “meet” without wasting time in travel. Teachers’ online school identiStudents also need to be involved in the creation of ties continue the kinds of relationships they have with acceptable use policies. Schools that try to pre-guess students in person, online. students and their motivations generally fail at creating effective acceptable use policies because students 4. A school’s facilities must be built to expect and emdisagree with them in the first place and therefore do brace innovation, rather than simply allow it. Technolnot respect them. Most effective practice is when poliogy is constantly changing and facilities must be built cy is determined with a partnership of students so that with intentional, directed flexibility and these expectaeveryone is clear about when and why these tools are tions in mind without wasting time in travel. Teachers’ being used. The best way of encouraging responsible online school identities continue the kinds of relationuse of ICT tools in school has been to use them as tools ships they have with students in person, online. for learning (i.e. texting about school related issues). Some broad principles to keep in mind for a 21st century approach to ICT: 1. Students become significant contributors to the continuing evolution of the way technology is used, not only because it helps them to engage in the learning process but also because their out-of-the-box thinking encourages growth and helps keep ICT usage current. It is not hard to find examples of kids’ creative uses of ICT—for starters on sites such as Flickr and YouTube, but also in their use of social networking sites, where users drive the content and page format.
68 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
A standard-sized group of students can be one Personalized Learning Community of approximately 125, or the equivalent number of classes (five classes of approximately 25 students). For example:
Above: Standing-height, powered-up desktop computers allow students quick and easy access to the Internet and Intranet for small tasks. Note the way support structures are used for this purpose, saving what would otherwise be dead space and a visual hazard. Robert Dean Centre, Scotch Oakburn College, Australia.
5. ICT is an excellent avenue through which to engage parents. Either by watching their children engaged in learning via live video, or by engaging in learning themselves through the power of the school’s ICT infrastructure, there are limitless ways that parents can be connected to their child’s school, teacher, curriculum and community with the help of technology.
• If estimated that students are likely to on average, spend 20% of their time at school participating in interactive whiteboard-assisted classes, it should be made sure that at least 20% of the space allocated to each group of 125 has an interactive whiteboard set up. • If anticipated that those 125 students will spend (on average) 5% of their time working with high-end graphics and audio programs, it must be made sure that there are around six high-end personal computers for these tasks. Of course, this recommendation also requires that teams of teachers work together to share facilities, with the alternative of either equipment sitting idle most of the time, or far worse, some students missing out on access. Some key principles for the distribution of ICT hardware in schools are: 1. Hardware should be distributed across the school. Each unit of 125 students, even in schools where there are no Personalized Learning Communities, needs to have a range of different ICT hardware and software readily and locally available: laptop and desktop computers, peripherals such as printers and interactive whiteboards, and a range of handheld devices. 2. High-capacity wireless and wired networks should enable a globally connected campus. Internet access is vital in any learning environment, no matter what the predominant subject matter or learning modality is.
Above: This isn’t new technology, but it has been configured to allow users to collaborate with one another. Gaudet Middle School, RI. Architect: Fielding Nair International, Senior Designer: Jay Litman.
Hardware and Logistical Recommendations A good general rule for allocating ICT resources to schools is to consider the proportion of each student’s week that they will spend in various ICT-assisted learning modalities, and to allocate resources to a standardsized group of students based on that proportion.
3. A central office for ICT administration, servers and support should be located on each school campus. Fulltime technicians should provide support from these bases; larger schools should have full-time support. Smaller schools should share one technician between two campuses. Whenever possible, involve students in providing technology support. 4. ICT administrative staff should be provided with daylight-filled workspaces, located conveniently near the central server room. 5. Server rooms should be optimally cooled and ventilated to protect the equipment.
69 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Notes on Computer Groupings and Labs Computer labs are rarely an acceptable arrangement for personal computer distribution. In most cases, if a class of students should all need to use computers for a task, access to a set of class laptops allows for greater flexibility and avoids room changes across campus. If there is no alternative to having a lab, it should be configured with collaborative tables to decrease isolation when using these tools. Where desktop computers are provided, either in labs or in small groups in non-labs, care must be taken to ensure that they are arranged in a manner conducive to learning. Any space occupied by people for extended periods of time must have windows with a view and significant daylight as this is essential for health and productivity. While it may be tempting to design labs Above: Laptop storage trolleys enable easy access anywithout windows for fear of glare, it is far healthier to where, anytime, to a pool of shared computers. Reece High incorporate windows and use translucent shading deSchool, Australia. vices to cut glare when required. In addition, no comExamples of the types of hardware that can be used puter user should be seated facing a wall. While convein schools: nient from a technical standpoint, this does nothing to Standing-height desktop computer stations give stu- encourage collaboration and is reminiscent of the days dents and teachers immediate access to a powered-up of children facing the wall as punishment. computer for quick tasks such as checking a query on Wikipedia, checking email or uploading a photo to a class blog. Seated-height desktop computers provide a similar function to the standing-height computers, with the option of longer sessions and are particularly important for high-bandwidth projects such as video editing. While traditionally located in labs, this is not necessary in an integrated technology model. Laptop computers owned by students or stored in mobile storage/charging units allow students in a group to use computers for personal learning and projects with added mobility. With laptops, any number of students can use computers at the same time, depending on the Above: Laptop use in a Community Center Model Personalkind of project they are engaged in. A one-laptop-per- ized Learning Community, Duke School, NC. student scenario is optimal, since it means that students can take responsibility for and have faith in the Handheld Devices availability and reliability of their own machine. Cameras, mobile phones, GPS units and MP3 players, and the devices that offer several of these functions, It’s hard to overestimate how powerful laptops are as offer a huge number of possibilities for use in educalearning devices for students today. Unlike office work- tion. Handheld devices enable participants to create ers, who typically have their own desks with dedicated multisensory content for community or global collabocomputers and phones, students are very mobile and rations via the Internet. Students also gain opportunitheir learning activities call for mobility and dynamism. ties for higher-order thinking when they go behind the Laptops provide students with tools for creation and scenes of digital media and learn to express ideas by collaboration wherever they are: in a classroom, at producing their own digital pictures and video. home, a cafÊ, or the local library. 70 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Handheld devices can also be used for flexible content delivery. This might mean teacher or lecturer-created audio or other free academic podcasts. With greater bandwidth, a quality store of validated digital educational resources can provide teachers and students with significant additional learning resources, which is helpful for teachers interested in providing students with more customized learning options. Some schools are also using short digital video clips to document student progress and show the goals that students have met. High Capacity Video Cameras allow students to record video and create their own movies. Videos can be used as a supplement to projects, reports or presentations, or students can use cameras to help in art classes or to create their own films. Videos can be shared online for distance collaboration or as a way to engage families and communities. Taking advantage of the huge storage capacity of the iPod means that students are able to carry all the learning content they need around in their pockets, instead of trying to carry around many heavy textbooks, causing strain and back problems for many students. Podcasts or videos by their own teachers, other students, and outside experts allow students to learn anytime, anywhere, at their own pace. Students can choose the texts that are of specific interest to them and are able to carry them around easily and access them at their convenience. Podcasts and video also allow students to play and view their own and others’ projects anytime, anywhere. MP3 players also provide a range of different learning opportunities for beginning/emerging readers and speakers of different languages.
Positive outcomes from the 2006 iPod trial at Heathmont College in Australia show: • improved student engagement, attention span and behavior • 20%-30% increase in grades • increased access to higher-order thinking • less reliance on textbooks • pupils better able to work at their own pace and take more control over their learning Some examples of schools that have successfully incorporated iPods as a learning tool include Western Academy in Beijing; Empire High School in Arizona; Heathmont College in Melbourne, Australia; and Gracemount High School in Edinburgh, UK.
Above: Learning with high-capacity video cameras at Robert Dean Centre, Scotch Oakburn College, Australia.
Distance Learning Facilities Distance learning facilities are rooms set up specifically for the purpose of remote two-way communication. This technology can be used to include remote guest lecturers and speakers to help teach classes, as well as to help link groups of students to each other for collaborative learning when not in the same physical space. Students who could benefit most from the facility are those in more remote and often smaller schools, where the range of local experts is significantly smaller than in larger schools and campuses. The design of a studio intended to properly support two-way live interactive instruction through videoconferencing can be quite complex. The layout and design issues will vary widely depending on room size and dimensions, as well as its intended use or uses. It is important that components can be easily upgraded. Some components will be suitable for many years, such as high-quality speakers and Above: Learning with high-capacity video cameras at Reece microphones. High School, Australia. 71 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
At the low end of the cost scale, a simple room equipped with a large monitor with a central shared camera and microphone meets basic needs. At the higher end, and particularly if a facility is to be rented out after school hours or used for adult education, it should be designed so that every student has access to a microphone. In such facilities, wall-mounted cameras would track and focus on individual speakers or students as well as the room at large making the distance learning experience as close to face-to-face, on-site learning as possible.
Above: Students using an interactive whiteboard: Middle School, Scotch Oakburn College, Australia.
Interactive Whiteboards (IWBs) and Data Projectors Interactive whiteboards can be a great addition to a learning space wherever there is a plan and willingness for them to be used to their full advantage by a teacher or group of teachers. In any setting interactive whiteboards are deployed, comprehensive professional development in their use is necessary, including talks by accomplished IWB users and action research teams within the school. The investment will be worth nothing if teachers are not given the support and encouragement they need to explore options for using the boards, and regular data projectors may as well be installed instead. Permanent audio facilities need to accompany any IWB, data projector or large monitor.
Intranets/ Media Storage, Retrieval and Distribution In most school settings, particularly where students do not have their own computers, it is very important that a school Intranet allows secure, easy access for each student to his/ her own personal portfolio of current and completed work, and any centrally located electronic media. Administrative school matters can also be communicated to parents and students online via email or other external connections. Personal electronic portfolios of work, stored on the school’s intranet can be shared with parents, teachers and where appropriate, peers, and can be enabled to allow feedback which can help students to improve the quality of their work, and help advisors/teachers track students’ progress. Students’ electronic portfolios may also be shared with prospective employers or colleges at each student’s discretion. As is the case with any aspect of school design, the ultimate goal in providing ICT facilities is to provide as many opportunities as possible for learning in as many different modes as possible. Schools that provide students with the right tools—tools that meet the students in their worlds— and create a culture of collaboration and creativity are continually delighted by the new methods students devise for their own learning.
Printers, Scanners & Copiers The location of printers, scanners or copiers, especially when these are shared resources, needs to be easily accessible so that students will not interrupt any direct instruction. In a PLC this is likely to be a café or commons area. In a cluster of five classrooms/learning studios this could be a modified corridor or a commons area.
72 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
SCHEDULE
73 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
DEVELOPMENT OF PILOT PROJECTS: OPTIONS Introduction
Advantages
Upon the delivery of the Master Plan, much will have been learned about the condition of the schools selected for modernization. Along with the recommended design guidelines, a picture will emerge as to the extent of work needed at the various selected school facilities to first put them into a state of good repair and then to modernize them to serve the needs of students, teachers and the community today and to meet the emerging educational challenges of the 21st century.
1. A key advantage of this option is that the PPPA can procure the highest quality designs for the prototype projects with a focus on cost effectiveness. Since only a few projects will be designed from the ground up as prototypes and since each design will be replicated many times, it will be possible to devote more time and resources to ensure that the prototype designs are truly world class.
However, the precise scope of the work required to be done at any particular school will not be available within the Master Plan. This information is, of course, critical for the purpose of awarding Design-Build contracts. Both the “design” and “build” portions of the awarded contracts will require a level of detail that can only come from the development of a site-specific Design Concept and/or Schematic Design documents. A Concept Design is essential for a Design/Build team to formulate a scope of design and construction work and to develop a projected cost for the modernization scope for each school project. This information will also enable the PPPA to develop its own cost estimates to validate the bids received.
2. Today, in Puerto Rico, there do not exist any best practice case studies that the PPPA can utilize for the purpose of providing design-build firms with the information they need to develop the new projects under the School Modernization Program. Having lived with relatively poor quality schools for so long, what is also absent is a culture of excellence when it comes to school design. The pilot prototypes will set a new standard of excellence and raise the bar with regard to the government’s expectation from the design and construction community. At the same time, it will provide the design-build firms the information they need to replicate both the design and construction standards across the Commonwealth.
3. Design-build teams will have the freedom to utilize their own in-house architects to custom fit the Option One -- Develop Best Practice-Based Prototype prototype designs to each site in a way that is most Designs cost effective. Under this scenario, a selected number of school sites will become the “pilots” for the development of prototype designs which demonstrate the application of research and best practice -- tailored to the Puerto Rican context and reflective of the ethos of the Commonwealth. The designs can be developed, for both the modernization projects and for new schools, as an assemblage of a well-defined “kit-of-parts”. These pilot project designs can be replicated at other sites while allowing for site-specific modifications and still preserving the essence of the original prototype designs.
4. Prototype designs can be created within 4 to 8 weeks after which procurement for the design-build teams can start (4 weeks for modernizations and 8 weeks for new schools). Disadvantages 1. While speed is a key advantage to using the prototype approach, projects could easily take much longer than anticipated in situations where site conditions do not exactly match the prototype designs. More time will be used up as contractors seek to clarify how to handle these situations and these non-conforming situations could also end up costing significantly more than originally budgeted.
74 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
2. Prototype designs will be generic and there will be some site-specific aspects that will simply not be accommodated. For example, opportunities for two nearby schools to share facilities and thereby reduce the cost of the two projects will not be realized because each site will be treated as a standalone project under this option. 3. As the prototype designs are site-adapted, it is possible that some of the original quality may be lost as contractors substitute materials or otherwise change the design so that it does not work as well on certain sites as it did for the pilot sites. 4. Prototype designs will be hard to customize to match each specific community’s character, needs and ethos. 5. For the new schools where a substantial investment is being made, prototype schools limit community involvement and the opportunities for community-related design approaches. For example, certain features may be more important in one community and less important in others but prototypes will be hard pressed to respond to these differences. 6. By their very definition, prototypes are institutional in character and will be perceived as typical “government” buildings making it more difficult for them to be accepted as unique gifts to the community where there is buy-in and ownership of this important asset from the various stakeholders for whom the school is intended. 7. Prototype designs that have a “cookie cutter” feel to them tend to be impersonal and there is a greater potential for them to be vandalized than buildings that communities take full ownership for. 8. Even though prototypes will provide a substantial amount of information to design-build teams as to what the PPPA expects from them, there is still a significant amount of guesswork about the amount of needed fixes at any particular site. This uncertainty will translate into higher bid prices as bidders try to protect themselves against unknown site-specific conditions.
Option Two -- Prepare Custom Site-Specific Designs for Each of the Selected Schools as Well as each New School One key advantage to the prototype process described above is speed. Immediately after the prototype designs are developed (4 weeks for modernizations and 8 weeks for new schools), the design-build procurement process can begin. On the face of it, it would appear that if speed is of the essence, then there are really not any other options because 80 or 90 customized designs should, obviously, be a much more time-consuming process. However, this scenario envisions a customized approach to the design of both the modernization projects as well as the new schools without any significant loss of time. Under this approach, the PPPA would assemble a top-notch Design Team drawn from the local architectural community in Puerto Rico. Several architectural/engineering firms would be recruited for this effort and their representatives would operate under the close supervision of the Master Planning Consultants who would be intimately familiar with the conditions of the various schools and the design standards needed to fix them. The Design Team would have the responsibility to produce site-specific concept designs for each of the 80 or 90 sites wherein customized solutions would be encouraged -- within an overall prototypical framework. The site-specific customizations will have cost effectiveness and operational functionality as their core missions. In other words, solutions will be found at each site that is most cost effective for that particular site without compromising the educational effectiveness of the school facility. The site-specific designs would provide the information needed to create suitable bid packages of multiple schools that can then be awarded to design-build firms on a competitive basis.
75 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Advantages
perspective of spending hundreds of millions of public dollars whose impact on the school system will last for 1. With site-specific designs, there will be a great- 30 years or more. From this perspective it would aper assurance on the part of both the design-build firms pear that a few extra weeks of up-front work to obtain and the PPPA as to the expectations at each site. With a better end-result is more than worth it. this clarity in hand, bidders will be able to provide more competitive prices for the work to be done. From the perspective of giving communities what they need, option two is more suitable since it can be re2. The PPPA can develop in-house estimates of sponsive to site-specific needs in a way that the protothe work needed at each site with greater accuracy type process cannot. than with the prototype process described earlier and thus monitor the bids received from contractors to en- From a cost-effectiveness standpoint, option two is sure that they are not too far out of line from what more suitable since it will reduce uncertainties and enthey should actually cost. able design-build firms to provide more competitive prices. 3. The process described above will enable Puerto Rico to create a cadre of school design experts which the Commonwealth now lacks. Future schools can be done utilizing Puerto Rican firms and reduce the dependence on experts from the United States and elsewhere. 4. The higher up-front design fees will be more than offset by cost reductions realized by reducing sitespecific uncertainty. 5. Each site will benefit from prototypical solutions while still allowing it to be customized on an as-needed basis. By moving away from a pure “cookie-cutter� model, the Modernization Program will be perceived as being more community-friendly and result in greater buy-in from school stakeholders. Disadvantages 1. This process is more complicated administratively. 2. It may take an additional 4-6 weeks (when compared to the prototype approach) before design-build firms can be brought on board. Recommendations Based upon what was learned about the schools in Puerto Rico, the second option is strongly recommended. Admittedly, this option is more complicated to implement and make take a few extra weeks up-front to put in place. However, it must be looked at from the 76 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
V. | Blueprint for Change Management In order for facilities to function at their best, they must be part of the larger “blueprint”, which is called soft planning. Related areas such as curriculum planning, professional development, community engagement, real-world connections and overall capacity building need to be given the same importance as facilities. ‘Soft Planning’: A Blueprint of Best Practice for Management of Staff, Students, Curriculum and Scheduling The following collection of teaching, learning and administrative practices complement each other to comprise a blueprint for world’s best practice in teaching and learning. The Puerto Rican new and renovated schools might consider adopting some of these educational models to facilitate these practices. 1. Personalization: Every aspect of the Puerto Rican school culture may be driven by the idea that all students can succeed but only if there is a realization that each student is different and, therefore, needs a personalized program of learning. The idea of personalization itself (if not its implementation) is simple: To customize the delivery of education to each student in a way that recognizes that particular student’s abilities, aptitude and interests. Personalization is not about skirting standards but about making standards-based education meaningful for each student.
Case Study: Personalization: Wooranna Park Primary School, Victoria, Australia At Wooranna Park Primary School (pictured below), students engage in a project-based curriculum with varying levels of teacher-input. The structure of the school is flexible enough to allow for driven students to develop essential skills through personal passions. Individual student achievement and progression is monitored, recorded and celebrated using portfoliobased assessment. Further information at www. woorannaparkps.vic.edu.au
Above: A teacher focuses on work with two students at Wooranna Park Primary School. The environment enables teachers to provide such support without also needing to supervise an additional 25 students.
Case Study: Personalization: The Met School, Providence, Rhode Island Relevance, Rigor and Relationship are the three foundation stones of the Met School. Here, students develop relationships over several years with one adult (called an Advisor) in a group with 15 other students (their Advisory). A central focus is helping students to discover and develop their interests. Further information at www.themetschool.org
2. Healthy Start: This is just another way of saying that a good school will level the playing field so that all children have equal opportunities to succeed. Healthy Start refers to a student’s readiness to learn. Puerto Rico schools may consider having programs and procedures in place to ensure students are ready to learn academically, physically, emotionally and socially.
77 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Case Study: Healthy Start: The Walking School Bus The Walking School Bus allows primary school students to walk to school safely, promoting incidental exercise and active, sustainable transport. Parents who live locally to the school take turns in walking a designated route each morning and collect students from their homes as they approach the school. More information can be found at www.travelsmart.gov.au/schools/ schools2.html and www.walkingschoolbus.org.
3. Intellectual Rigor: This learning principle refers to the need for meaningful education to be intellectually rigorous. That means, all the material being taught and all the work that students perform must meet certain standards of excellence that are drawn from within each field of knowledge. For example, intellectually rigorous writing could take its cue from standards for writing expected of professional writers and journalists. Dale Spender, quoted in Education Review (17 October 2007) says that in the world today, it is far more important, not that students know the right answer to a given question, but that they know the right question to ask. Intellectually rigorous education pays particular attention to higher-order thinking components. Case Study: Intellectual Rigor: Eeva Reeder, Mountlake Terrace High School, Washington
Above: Walking School Bus: First Day, Rutherglen, Australia
Eeva Reeder regularly assigns her students tasks that are to be assessed by local experts. In the Edutopia case study at www.edutopia.org/geometry-realworldstudents-architects, Eeva’s Geometry class design and construct models of buildings that are assessed by practicing architects. Video link: www.edutopia.org/mountlake-terrace-high-school
Case Study: Healthy Start: The Stephanie Alexander Kitchen Garden Program This program, pioneered at Collingwood College in Melbourne, Australia, is a holistic, interdisciplinary approach to health education. Students in the program participate in every aspect of food production and consumption in the school’s own garden and kitchen, from preparing the soil with organic compost, to harvesting the produce, to cooking healthy meals. More information can be found at: www. kitchengardenfoundation.org.au
Above: Eeva Reeder at work with students in her Geometry class
Left: Kitchen Garden at Collingwood College, Australia
78 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
4. Real World Immersion: Closely related to intellectual rigor, real world immersion is an important learning principle in Puerto Rico schools because it signifies the belief that students will best learn those things whose value they can appreciate in their own lives. Real world immersion is the answer to the typical 16 year-olds question, “why do we have to learn this?”
5. Community Engagement: The Department of Education in Puerto Rico has elected not to design schools as fortresses isolated from their communities, but rather, a seamless extension of those communities. This can only be achieved by having students become engaged in community work even as the schools themselves provide many opportunities for parent and community engagement and participation within the campuses.
Case Study: Real World Immersion and Community Engagement: The Met School, Providence, Rhode Case Study: Community Engagement: Mawson Lakes Island School, Adelaide, Australia At The Met School, students spend two days each week engaged in authentic projects on site at local workplaces. They participate in the daily life of the business or organization, learning key personal and work skills, as well as developing interests that may or may not lead to future careers. Students link the work they do in this program (entitled ‘Learning Through Internships’) to documented learning outcomes that are presented to the school community.
Mawson Lakes School is not contained within the usual wire fences. The school library is also the community library (the Mawson Centre), and the principal’s office is part of the adjacent university. Students are continually engaging in community-based activities in the area’s social, environmental and economic spheres, embracing the learning opportunities provided by the local university, businesses, parks and waterways.
Above: The Met student Chris Emery with Brown University workplace mentor, SOURCE: Business Week
Above: Community workspace within a school Below: Students at Cristo Rey work in professional internships throughout the schol year
Case Study: Real World Immersion and Community Engagement: Cristo Rey Jesuit High School, Minnesota The Cristo Rey model provides a top-notch education that is largely funded by income that the students earn in real white-collar corporate jobs in the city. Not only does this model provide a level of hands-on learning that is unprecedented in most school systems, but it also provides a solid source of financing that the school can then use to subsidize the students’ education. See photo at right. Video: Cristo Rey on “60 Minutes”: www.cristorey.net/assets/cristo%20rey% 79 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
6. Mentoring: It is a well-known fact that teaching is one of the most effective ways to learn. Mentoring programs at Puerto Rico schools will not only create better learners, but also teach important social and communication skills to students.
Above: Mentoring in action at Quinns Beach Primary School, Western Australia
7. Organization/Management: Organizational Support for Recommendations: Many of the recommendations contained in this report will need management and organizational support for successful implementation. For example, it is important to develop meaningful community service programs for students in order to ensure that the community service recommendation made under “standards” below are properly implemented. 8. Standards: 1. Requirements for Tertiary Education: Holistic tertiary entrance requirements for selective institutions can be used as a framework for developing school achievement standards. 2. Foreign Language: Establish foreign language requirements and national standards for proficiency. 3. Benchmarking: In order to ensure that work done at Puerto Rico schools goes beyond the minimum requirements, the Department may opt to benchmark these requirements using international exemplars. This will provide a good measure of how students are doing relative to students throughout the world. 4. Community Service Activity: Puerto Rico may decide upon a requirement that students perform a set number of hours of community service in order to graduate.
9. Assessments: 1. Mandated Assessments: Mandated assessments should support, not intrude on, the personalization of teaching and learning. The International Baccalaureate curriculum is one good model for personalized mandated assessment. 2. Pre-Assessment on an Annual Basis: Continue preassessment conversations that teachers have with each student at intake to align teaching with data. 3. Individual Learning Plan: Individual Learning Plans (ILPs), crafted with student/parent participation, and reviewed on a daily and/or weekly basis, and can be integral to the organization of teaching and learning. This means using the ILP of each student to set goals and evaluate progression. The interests of each student are leveraged in crafting the ILP, but not at the expense of rigor. 4. Portfolio-based Assessment: Portfolio-based assessment of student work is recommended. The portfolio should not be an annual submission requirement, but should reflect the level of instruction – and remain as a continuous creation model. The idea is that students who graduate from the Puerto Rico schools will have an impressive and refined portfolio of work that is not only a reflection of their achievements at school, but also serves as a vital resource for admission to tertiary education and employment. 5. External Review of Student Work. Puerto Rico schools may choose to develop partnerships with business/industry representatives who will help set quality standards for student work and also participate in assessing student work. See the case study of Eeva Reeder’s work at Mountlake High School.
Above: Junior primary (grades R-3) students’ portfolios at Wooranna Park Primary School help a team of teachers to keep up-to-date with each student’s progress across all learning areas, and as a learning tool encourage student reflection and goalsetting.
80 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
10. Staffing: 1. Leadership: Any person in a position of leadership should have a strong commitment to the education values of the community and the ability to enact and maintain significant changes that support these values. 2. Global Recruitment: As an attractive destination, Puerto Rico can potentially attract some of the world’s greatest teachers, and specifically, teachers with a great desire to work in the 21st Century learning environments currently under construction. 3. Remuneration: Since the most powerful indicator of school success is teacher quality, it is vital that talented Puerto Ricans and expatriates from around the world are affirmed in their attraction to the teaching profession through salaries commensurate with those of other professionals in Puerto Rico. 4. Qualifications: All staff should be people who have demonstrated competencies in content mastery, pedagogy and student engagement. 5. Teaming: Much thought should be put toward the selection of teachers working together in small learning communities, with the aim of creating harmonious, productive groups. 6. Specialist Resources: It is recommended that the Puerto Rico schools identify specialist resources in the areas of music, art, physical education, dance, video, technology, horticulture, photography, etc. who are available to work with students as needed. These specialists could either be school personnel or industry specialists. 7. Technology Integration: The common mistake made by many schools is to spend millions of dollars on technology and then get very little educational value from their investment. Puerto Rican schools may elect to have on staff a technology coordinator whose job will be to work closely with the school’s teachers to seamlessly integrate technology into the educational program at all levels. Resources can also be made available to assist teachers to add value to students’ learning programs through technology. 8. Off-site Learning Coordinator: This is the professional who can be in charge of ensuring that student work outside school is closely tied to their ILP and that the assignments themselves are meaningful and provide valuable learning experiences. 9. College Counselor: College counselors represent a key variable in many students’ opportunities for getting into a good college. Serving as guide and mentor to individual students and building solid contacts with
college recruitment offices, a good college counselor can effectively align students with colleges where they may have a good fit. This is not to imply that college counselors will make decisions on behalf of students, but simply that they will assist students in making wise choices in their (the students’) own best interest. 10. Health Professional: Puerto Rican schools might hire at least one health professional each, or for smaller schools, shared across sites, to attend to sick students and advise and participate in preventative health initiatives. Case Study: Technology Integration: Reece High School, Tasmania, Australia At Reece High School, technology is so seamlessly integrated into the life of the school it is almost invisible. Students always have access to computers (laptops and desktops), their portfolios are stored online, and all assessment and student monitoring is completed online. More information can be found at: www.reece.tased.edu.au
Above: Reece high schoolers use laptops as an integral part of their academic and social day
11. Scheduling: 1. Flexible Block Scheduling: With longer blocks of time, interdisciplinary teams should have the prerogative to adjust the time inside the block as necessary. These time slots will be managed by interdisciplinary teams. The interdisciplinary team will be made up of teachers from each of the major disciplines – language arts, social studies, math and science who will be jointly responsible for the success of their students.
81 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
2. Advisory: Like many successful schools around the world, Puerto Rico schools might be organized around advisories. One adult “advisor” would be responsible for between 10-15 students. Advisories meet often – at least once a day as a group. It is recommended that each advisory stay together for as long as possible – preferably 3-4 years. 3. Summer: Consciously use the summer months to reinforce learning through workplace/community experience and an academic academy. 4. Staff Development: Time for staff development should be built into the school work week. 5. Common Planning Time: Interdisciplinary teams would set time aside daily for collaborative planning. 6. Looping: There is research evidence that looping (keeping students with the same teachers year after year) provides stability, reduces anxiety, increases confidence and reduces discipline problems. It is recommended that looping be adopted by Puerto Rico schools. 7. Non-traditional School Day: Schools have students for several hours each day. This is more than adequate time to prepare them well for tertiary education and life. One way to enhance the long school experience for students and teachers alike while improving academic and social performance is to introduce a ‘non-traditional school day’. This is a practice that allows all teachers to utilize one day each week to teach students things the teachers are skilled at and passionate about. 8. Not “four years and out”: Students who are not ready to graduate should be allowed to stay at Puerto Rico schools for more than thirteen years if necessary – school should be not only about equality of opportunity, but also about equality of outcomes – at least when it comes to the important measures of student preparedness for college and life.
12. Professional Development/Capacity Building: 1. ‘Principal’s Class’ Approach: The approach for professional development that is recommended for Puerto Rican schools will resemble what may be termed a ‘principal’s class.’ The idea is that teachers at Puerto Rican schools should experience learning or build their capacity in the same way that students at the schools do. The principal of the school is their professional leader or “teacher” and the principal will obtain additional outside resources as needed to supplement the training provided and build teachers’ professional capacity. 2. Building a Culture of Peer Collaboration: Initiatives in teaching, by teachers, should be encouraged and supported by the school community. The staff could operate in Professional Action Research (PAR) teams, trialing, critically evaluating, and refining new teaching methods. 3. Teacher ‘Portfolio Assessment’: As with the students, teachers will maintain portfolios representing their continuous improvement and professional development. 4. Capacity Building Areas: Project-based learning, interdisciplinary development, portfolio-based assessment, differentiated instruction, teaching in the block, etc. are some examples of areas in which capacity should be built. 5. Student Evaluations: It is important to incorporate feedback from student evaluations of teachers into the process that is used to build teacher capacity. (All of the above areas are expounded on in a variety of places. One good place to start is the work of Linda DarlingHammond at the Small School Center at Stanford.)
At Sherman Oaks, teachers are provided with 90 minutes of paid collaborative professional development and planning time every day. This initiative has been instrumental in enabling teachers to work effectively together in this 21st Century learning environment. Video: www.edutopia.org/treating-teachers-professionals
Adult Support/Caring Adults Structure and High Expectations Creative Forms of Learning Holistic Approach Youth as Resources Quality Implementation Follow-up Services
13. Youth Development: The following USA National Youth Development Principles are appropriate to include here as overarching frameworks for the design of Puerto Rican Case Study: Staff Development/Common Planning schools. They are consistent with the basic philosophy Time: Sherman Oaks Community Charter School, of the school and the goals that the remaining California recommendations seek to reinforce:
82 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
14. Curriculum: 1. Interdisciplinary: This recommendation to provide an interdisciplinary curriculum is made in tandem with the recommendation to offer instruction in flexible block schedules utilizing interdisciplinary teaching teams. 2. Project Based: Interdisciplinary curricula can be most effectively accessed utilizing the project-based learning methodology. Project-based learning is also an effective way to engage students and provide a rigorous hands-on learning experience. 3. Entrepreneurial: Puerto Rican schools could provide opportunities for students to learn important life skills while mastering many of the required state learning standards through the creation of their own business. Students may be guided to create their own business or businesses in ways that mirror such experiences in the real world. 4. Off-site Experiential Learning: All students would have some off-site learning experiences as a requirement for graduation. Such off-site experiential learning experiences would be aligned to postsecondary learning expectations so that students leave school better prepared for college and life. However, off-site learning needs to be incorporated at all levels of schooling from the very youngest students to those preparing to enter college. 5. Community Service Learning: Like off-site learning above, community service learning might be a requirement for all students. Unlike the experiential learning requirement, however, the primary purpose of community service learning is not to build essential skills in any given area of expertise, but rather to instill community consciousness and a sense of responsibility to give something back to the community. However, if properly managed, it is possible to develop community service experiences so that they provide the essential learning components offered by the off-site learning experience. 6. Thematic Learning: By building interdisciplinary programs around a common theme, students can develop a focused, holistic approach to learning. Some examples of learning themes that may be in place for a semester or even for a whole year include career pathways, motion, connections, space, international cultures, endangered species and global warming.
7. University Partnerships: University partnerships are important so that students not only think about tertiary pathways early, but have the chance to experience early as well. Qualified students at the senior secondary level could be taking classes at colleges or universities for credit before they graduate. That makes their applications very impressive. Students need to experience university syllabi and work with professors to better prepare them for tertiary study. The concept of university partnerships could be extended to include dual credit possibilities. In this scheme, courses will be taught by university-approved school faculty, or guest college or university faculty. Both high school and tertiary credit will be given for the same course. This model is in place in Utah and students can complete as much as a full year of college coursework or more prior to high school graduation. They enter college with a legitimate college transcript showing the postsecondary education credits and grades. Many colleges will accept the credits as transfer work. Imagine the boost a child would have if 25% of a college degree were done prior to high school graduation. Case Study: Thematic Learning: The University of Melbourne, Australia The University of Melbourne, one of Australia’s top three universities, has restructured its program of undergraduate courses, so that instead of being discipline-based, they are now theme-based. This enables students to study common global themes from different perspectives, using the tools and methods of different disciplines. More information here: www. futurestudents.unimelb.edu.au/courses/melbmodel
Left: The University of Melbourne, Australia
83 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Best Practice in School Building Design: Challenging the Norm in Puerto Rico and Responding to Global Change Throughout the world’s developed nations a common issue has emerged in recent years, as school buildings built hurriedly to cater for a burgeoning post-war school age population reach the end of their functional lives. These buildings are no longer efficient to maintain, and must be replaced. But what to replace them with? Forward thinking governments, departments and schools the world over are critically assessing the assumed fundamental structure of their existing schools. They recognize that immense change in the world economy, global communications, and organization of knowledge calls for a critical analysis of the hidden curriculum of their existing schools, which includes classrooms, outdoor environments, bells, classes, lessons, grade levels, teaching and management structures, as well as formal curriculum.
Puerto Rican schools have been built under these assumptions for many years. While many classrooms are modified to make for a more learner-centered environment, others clearly reinforce the assumptions. Many classrooms have few redeeming features. There is no opportunity for collaboration, the blinds are closed so students can’t see out the window or appreciate the sunlight, there is very little student work on the walls and no evidence that students exercise multiple intelligences here… They are designed with only two purposes in mind: listening to the teacher and working alone with a pencil and paper. Best practice is much more broad than this rigidity will allow.
This critical analysis reveals a system designed with these assumptions about learning (from Senge, 2000): • Children are deficient and schools fix them: School is like a ‘holding pen’ for children — it does not allow participation in the ‘adult’ world until age 18. • Learning takes place in the head, not in the body as a whole: There is no connection to outdoor space for structured learning (outside is only for playing); while all students can do reading or writing at the same time, there is no facility in most classrooms for messy work. • Everyone learns, or should learn, in the same way: Every student has an identical set of resources to use, sits at identical chairs and desks, and all do the same thing at the same time, when they’re the same age. • Learning takes place in the classroom, not in the world: It is very difficult for high school teachers to organize excursions because of timetabling; outdoor areas are for unstructured play at break times, not for work; the ‘real world’ is underutilized as a learning resource.
Our schools have continued to be built based on these assumptions about learning, despite the past 50+ years of educational research indicating that they are profoundly inaccurate. If one assumes that students are empty vessels, ready to accept the knowledge that comes at them from teachers and textbooks, this model is satisfactory. But students are not empty vessels, and neither are they identical. They have different interests, different learning styles, different strengths, they are each motivated by different things, and their existing knowledge is varied and comes not only from school, but from their families and local and global communities.
84 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
Diagram 1: Hierarchical Model of Schooling
Principal
Teacher
Teacher
Textbook
Teacher
Textbook
30 Students
Textbook
30 Students
30 Students
In addition, enormous changes in the production and dissemination of knowledge have rendered much of the knowledge once thought to be essential, obsolete. This is not a ‘dumbing down’. In fact, since there is little benefit in automatic recall of many of the ‘facts’ once seen as important to teach, what becomes more and more important are the higher-level thinking skills (illustrated aptly in Blooms Taxonomy, where the lowest level of thinking is simply Knowledge and in ascending order of difficulty Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis and Evaluation). A skilled and healthy population and workforce will also be diverse. Since people work together on common problems, a range of life experiences, talents and knowledge covers far more bases in the quest to solve problems with creative solutions than a group with homogenous life experience and knowledge. It is far more important that they can use those thinking skills identified by Bloom.
Diagram 2 attempts to model a series of relationships that would more realistically comprise a learning network, and that form the basis of a 21st Century Therefore, schools should be built to reflect this diverse learning environment. range of interests, life experiences, needs, talents and knowledge. Access to resources can occur on a ‘justDiagram 2: A Rich Learning Network in-time’ basis in the real world, and schools should be built on this assumption, not attempt (often in vain) to fill students’ heads with ‘just-in-case’ material. Student
Student Parent Internet & Other Resources
Parent
Parent
Student
Advisor
Advisor
Community Mentor
Community Mentor
Student
Student
Parent
Advisor
Parent
Student
Schools should instead be places where students can engage fully in their learning, using resources that may not be available at home or elsewhere in the community, like dedicated teaching staff, highend technology, specialized construction equipment, space for performance with peers, musical ensembles, sporting facilities and a wide range of print and electronic resources. These are the assumptions that underpin the design of the new Puerto Rico schools. The new schools will be custom-built in order to fully support 21st Century education. Specifically this means they are able to facilitate: • • • • • • • • •
Personalized learning Authentic learning and assessment Community connections Global connections Learning for each of the multiple intelligences Team teaching Outdoor learning Project-based Learning Inquiry-based Learning
85 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
VI. | Geographic Representation THE PROCESS
THE DATA
Geographic Information Systems (GIS) allows planners to analyze their data on a map. On March 22-25, Fielding Nair consultants visited Puerto Rico to collect data for use with GIS. FNI’s GIS Consultant Matthew Cropper met with government agencies that manage and maintain GIS data for Puerto Rico. The Government Development Bank (GDB) and FNI team also met with administrators at the Junta de Planificación (JP) in Puerto Rico, and were able to obtain a variety of GIS data to assist with the project. The JP manages a variety of data that was collected by the FNI staff.
• Street centerlines including major highways and neighborhood roads • Location of school Facilities (to be cross-referenced with Department of Education data) • Census 1990 and 2000 demographic data • Public parks •Administrative boundaries such as barrios, municipios, and Department of Education regions • High-resolution aerial photography • Train stations and routes • Hospitals and emergency centers • Topography In addition to collecting GIS data from local sources, • Protected coastal and forest lands the FNI team met with GDB and Department of • Flood data Education officials to collect detailed information • Planned urban expansion areas and communities about the school facilities. Information such as school • Airports and maritime routes enrollment, square footage, and facility condition • Electric transmission lines and substations attributes, as well as photos, are integrated with the • Aqueducts, Treatment Plants, Sanitary Sewers GIS school file provided by the Junta de Planificación.
Above: This screenshot outlines each of the Department of Education’s regions in Puerto Rico.
86 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010
MULTIPLE LAYERS A key feature of the GIS maps is that various layers can be turned on and off for increased clarity of information. THE TOOL’S VALUE The GIS tool is valuable in selecting schools that will be modernized. The use of GIS will be essential as it helps to efficiently analyze complex variables such as facility location/condition, aerial photography, and political boundaries (regions, districts). Viewers can access three different views of the map. These are “standard”, “shaded relief” (shows elevation data), and “imagery” which will turn on the ArcGIS online imagery similar to Google Earth. This can help as a tool for the team to see what is on the ground, where the schools are located, and other data links. In addition to displaying basic attributes for each school (facility condition, age, square footage, links to PDFs, etc.) users can zoom into a selected school from a drop-down list.
This rich, highly textured and intuitive database is based online which makes it accessible from any computer, anywhere in the world. The links for each school will open the schools’ individualized folder with photos and architects’ surveys which display two distinct percentage scores, the first of which is a Building Condition Index (BCI) score and the second of which is an educational adequacy score.
Above: This screenshot focuses on all secondary schools, designated by orange triangles, across the island(s) of Puerto Rico.
87 | PUERTO RICO SCHOOL MODERNIZATION | MASTER PLAN | JULY 2010