PRESENTATION OF THE GUIDE FOR THE CONSTRUCTION AND TRANSFORMATION PROJECTS OF PUBLIC EDUCATIONAL CENTRES: “NEW WAYS OF LEARNING, NEW SPACES”

In 2019, the General Directorate of Public Centres and the General Directorate of Innovation, Research and Digital Culture of the Department of Education began a collaboration with the COAC and the Bofill Foundation with the aim of changing and adapting the document “Criteria for the construction of new buildings for public teaching centres” to the pedagogical reality.

As part of this collaboration, in March 2019, architects and teachers interested in improving school spaces were invited to the “New Spaces, New Ways of Learning” conference at the UB Auditorium, with the assistance of 600 professionals.

From this day, a process of participation with professionals from different fields and disciplines began, in which more than 80 architects took part (both in the participatory sessions coordinated by El Globus Vermell, and in the contest of ideas for the transformation of educational spaces, with 38 proposals submitted). All this information has been summarised in the new document by the architects Mariona Genís and David Lladó and the pedagogue Jordi Vivancos.

During 2020, this first document was applied and tested in the participatory processes that were carried out prior to the competitions for new teaching centres or major extensions. Based on this rehearsal process, the final document, “New ways of learning, new spaces” has been prepared.

This trial period has coincided with the pandemic, which has shown that the proposals and the strategic and procedural nature of the new document are absolutely necessary.

The document highlights, in a prominent way, a link to the Learn section of the Open Centre for Architecture, in which both architects and learning communities will be able to find support material for the participatory processes of construction and transformation of teaching centres.