The physical environment in schools has in the literature of late been gaining recognition as a potential factor supporting educational change. This article draws a single case out of a research sample of 20 schools in Iceland to relate an inventive design process as the school was being developed and study the current state of established school practice. The main aim is to reveal educational ideas behind a relatively progressive school design and determine how they have turned out in everyday school life. Data include observations, surveys among staff members and interviews with both school leaders and teachers. The school was designed as an open plan building intended to enhance individualised learning and team teaching with strong ties to the wider community. A decade later, the original policy is still relatively firmly in place, in particular at the primary level, while teachers at the lower secondary level have been bending somewhat the initial design plan, leaning towards traditional teaching methods and more confined classroom layouts.
The aim of this study is to identify features of change in the recent design of school buildings in Iceland, and how they might affect teaching practices. Environmental and architectonic features characterising school buildings designed and built at the beginning of the 21st century are examined in light of challenges involving architecture, educational ideology, school policy and digital technology. The sample for the study consists of 20 schools located in four municipalities. Four of the school buildings were developed and built in this century, while the other 16 were designed in the 20th century. The design of all of the buildings wasexplored and reviewed by a multidisciplinary team. Data was collected by observations and photography at each school site, as well as by reviewing technical documents. The relationship between school design and school practices was studied through a questionnaire survey among all teachers, in order to find out whether teachers working in new environmentsdiffer from teachers in more traditional classroom settings. The results indicate a clear shift in the design of educational buildings. Flexibility, flow, openness and teamwork seem to guide recent school design. Clusters of classrooms or open spaces, transparent or movable boundaries, as well as shared spaces allowing for manifold interactions in flexible groupsseem to be replacing traditional classrooms along confining corridors. Teachers working in open classroom environments collaborate more often than their counterparts. Teaching practices are also characterised by more opportunities for pupils to choose between tasks and enjoy more variation regarding group division and workspace arrangements.
This paper presents an initiative at the University of Iceland – School of Education aimed at developing school and university partnerships. The discussion addresses whether and how this reform could support inclusive teacher education. Teacher education in Iceland is currently under reconstruction because of new legislation, requiring a master's degree for teachers at all levels. As a part of this reconstruction, the School of Education is attempting to develop closer ties with Icelandic schools at different levels and with other stakeholders, both in regard to policy and practice. The partnership is underpinned by mutual commitment and responsibility. The main aims are to bridge the gap between theory and practice in student teacher learning and to encourage cooperation that might lead to school development as well as improvements in the teacher education programme. The project principally concerns four themes: teacher student learning; the associated schools; the university faculty and the content of courses; and finally, the partnership itself. The project is still in its initial stages though data are being collected along the way. To date, some preliminary data are available from two pilot studies.
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