DESIGN PROPOSAL

Design Proposal

Introduction

The school Library courtyard is currently an underutilized and neglected learning space in the school community due to a lack of seating and visual appeal. The aim of this design proposal is to redevelop the existing Library courtyard into an inclusive outdoor space that supports student collaboration, social connectedness and personal well-being. This proposal will outline the participatory charrette designing process, courtyard design response, design justification and future recommendations. It is addressed to the school leadership team including - the Principal, Deputy Principals and Curriculum leaders for their consideration and approval.

Charette process and outcomes

A charrette is a participatory and collaborative planning process that incorporates the opinions and viewpoints of key stakeholders and end-users of a learning space (Nenonen et al., 2015). I facilitated a series of charrette workshops with volunteers from key stakeholder groups of the Library courtyard space including students, teachers, teacher-aides and curriculum leaders. These workshops were held separately with individual groups, to ensure each group’s distinct voice and needs were heard – particularly the students. Conducted over two sessions at the beginning of Term 4, the charrettes firstly evaluated the current learning space design and then secondly involved developing a design solution.

The first charrette session involved groups completing a modified version of the VAST heuristic (Elliott Burns, 2016) and identifying the positive and negative aspects of the space. Responses were collated to identify common themes and design problems, with consensus reached on what features were most important for meeting future user needs. The second session involved charette participants brainstorming design ideas and developing a design proposal in response to the design problems identified in the previous workshop.

The main design outcomes identified were the need for the Library courtyard to include:

Comfortable seating options and furniture
An Improved connection to nature with more plants and colour
A variety of different seating options and zones to allow for different uses
A quiet, calm space for students to relax, read and socialise during lunchtime.
An inclusive space for all, including indigenous and special needs students.

Image 1: Completed VAST heuristic from charrette workshop

Image 2: Students identified positives and negatives of the space

Design response

The design response aims to reinvigorate the currently neglected library courtyard into an inclusive learning zone that fosters the well-being of students and provides a calm and engaging space for them to collaborate and socialise with their peers. It reflects the values and needs of users as identified during the charrette process. The key design points of the design response include the following:

1. Comfortable seating options and furniture

A variety of furniture options including beanbags, floor cushions, stools, high table, bench seating and floor mats have been incorporated into the design response to allow for student preference and choice. All options allow for flexibility and are easily movable.

2. Improved connection to nature

The inclusion of a vertical garden, vegetable patch and potted plants improves the aesthetic appeal of the space as well supporting the well-being of students through fostering a connection with nature. The fence and concrete wall will be painted to lighten the space and make it feel more inviting. Decorative panels featuring indigenous designs have been added as a feature on the fence and appeal to the eye as you enter the courtyard. The use of timber in the furniture, as well as natural colours, textures and fibres in the soft furnishings further support the connection to nature.

3. Flexible Zones

The use of zoning in the design, has provided space for whole class teaching (campfire), informal collaboration (waterhole) and individual reflection (cave) (Thornburg, 2014). The furniture is also easily movable, so teachers and students can adjust the space to their immediate needs. The use of zones also manages the noise level in the space, with a quiet beanbag zone located near the Curriculum leader office. More collaborative spaces such as the yarning circle and high table with stools are located at the opposite end of the courtyard.

4. Inclusive space

The integration of a yarning circle and indigenous artwork on decorative screens provides a space for all students to feel welcome. Calm, natural colours were chosen to support the sensory needs of autistic students and to contribute to a sense of peace and well-being.

Redesign Timeline

Justification

The goals of the Melbourne Declaration policy document and the educational influence of student well-being have strongly informed the Library courtyard redesign proposal. A whole-child approach to well-being is an important aspect of the Melbourne Declaration with schools playing an essential role in promoting the “intellectual, physical, social, emotional, moral, spiritual and aesthetic development and wellbeing” of students to ensure social cohesion and economic prosperity (MCEETYA, 2008). Promoting equity and excellence in education for all students, particularly addressing the needs of Indigenous students, to make sure all learners become creative and confident individuals is a key goal of the Melbourne Declaration (MCEETYA, 2008). School libraries can play a powerful role in determining the shape of the learning culture in schools and are spaces that can positively influence the well-being and educational outcomes of students (Bland, Hughes and Willis, 2013).

The Library courtyard design proposal addresses the goals of the Melbourne Declaration and student well-being through designing a space that is spacious, flexible, allows student choice and collaboration, connects with nature and integrates access to technology (Willis, Hughes and Bland, 2019). Student comfort was a key factor identified during the charrette process that would significantly contribute to improved student well-being (Bland, Hughes and Willis, 2013). Spaciousness is another element linked to emotional well-being, so the courtyard design was kept deliberately simple, uncluttered and furnished with a variety of soft seating options including beanbags, stools, cushions and floor mats (Willis, Hughes and Bland, 2019). This allowed the creation of a mobile and flexible space that is simple for students and teachers to use in keeping with Principle 2 (Flexibility in Use) and Principle 3 (Simple and Intuitive Use) of the 7 Principles of Universal Design (National Disability Authority, 2015).

Students also have choice and control of over where they sit and how they arrange the space. As a result, the active learning space is future-focused allowing for a variety of activities including small collaborative and whole group lessons, performances, individual reading, hanging out with friends and school celebrations such as book week (New Media Consort NMC and Consortium for School Networking CoSN, 2017). The use of zones in the design proposal including campfire (whole group instruction/learn from expert), waterhole (informal/collaborative learning) and cave (idependent/reflective practice) provides guidance for students and teachers on how to effectively use the learning space (Thornburg, 2014).

The seamless integration of technology into the design proposal, another feature of a future-focused learning space, also enhances the well-being of students as it allows them to use digital technology to relax, be creative, socially connect and collaborate with others in a comfortable environment (NMC and CoSN, 2017; Willis, Hughes and Bland, 2019). The library courtyard design features Wi-Fi internet access and includes the addition of outdoor power sockets for students to use and charge electrical devices such as ipads. Built technology, such as the addition of two skylights in the patio roof maixmises the natural light in the courtyard reducing the need for artificial lighting as well as creating a connection with nature. The covered courtyard also captures the bay breezes, naturally cooling the learning space thus reducing the need for air-conditioning and energy use. Energy efficiency and sustainability is an important aspect of future-focused learning spaces (NMC and CoSN, 2017).

Improving the connection with nature and bringing the outdoors into the courtyard space was a key request from users involved in the charrette workshops. The design proposal addresses these user needs through the addition of vertical garden, potted mature plants and addition of a vegetable garden. Connectedness with nature is linked to improved emotional and physical well-being in students and helps to contribute to a sense of peace in the learning space (Willis, Hughes and Bland, 2019). The courtyard helps foster student well-being, through providing a peaceful retreat from the hectic nature of modern school life (Childs, 2018).

The Library courtyard is an inclusive space for all students to enjoy, in line with the Melbourne Declaration’s goal of ensuring all young Australians become confident and creative individuals and the Universal Design Principle of Equitable Use (National Disability Authority, 2015). Access to a space that young people can control, hang out and learn in are particularly important design principles for Indigenous students (Kral and Schwab, 2012). Currently there is no space in the school for indigenous students to call their own and the addition of a yarning circle (a space to talk and share stories) and artwork in the courtyard helps to address the needs of indigenous students and embed indigenous culture and perspectives in the school community (MCEETYA, 2008). This is particularly important given that 6% of the school population identifies as indigenous.

In keeping with Universal Design Principles, the courtyard caters to the diverse needs and abilities of users. The spacious and uncluttered design of the space allows access to students in wheelchairs, with use of zones making the use of space easily perceptible to students (Universal Design Principle 2, 4 and 7). A variety of bench and table heights have been used to accommodate standing and seated users, with furniture designed for the size and needs of students to reduce physical effort and error of use (Universal Principle 5, 6 and 7). The use of calming and natural colours in the courtyard also support the sensory needs of students, particularly those with Autism.

Conclusion

This design proposal addresses the need to revitialise the existing Library courtyard into a flexible, future-focused and inclusive learning zone that fosters the well-being of students and encourages collaboration and social connectedness. It is recommended that the School leadership team:

Approve and endorse the design proposal

Allocate a budget to fund the redesign project
Submit the design proposal to the School Council for approval
Implement the project timeline for implementation
Carry out post occupancy evaluation to assess the performance and use of the redesigned Library courtyard

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