RESEARCH SUMMARIE SEVEN

Title

Children as conscious recipients of space. The role of architecture education in the process of teaching

PUBLICATION TYPE

Peer Reviewed Journal Article

Design Issue

The primary purpose of this article is to bring awareness to the public on why there is a need for architectural education for all children. Architecture is something that affects both the physical and psychological state of a human being. It is a component that effects all humans during every part of the day; therefore, it holds great power. Currently the world is experiencing more chaos, the lack of proper aesthetics, and the absence of the awareness of space. The key to resolving these issues lies in the hands of the future generations. Additionally, because this great responsibility is in the hands of the future generations, we need to begin to integrate architectural and design education into all levels of a child’s education.

METHODS

This literature review gathered data from wide variety of methods. The author predominately utilized a variety of peer-review articles to further confirm their thoughts and ideas about design education for children. The author also incorporated their findings from various schools in Europe that are utilizing architecture and design education within their curriculum today. In addition to analyzing schools in Europe, Sulima also specifically looked into schools in Poland. After completing the analyzation of the schools, the author then determined the positive and negative areas within how school systems taught architecture.

Findings

In this article, the author determined that children of all ages are active participates within spaces they inhabit. Their overall understanding of the world around them is vastly different from the way adults experience it; therefore, they have valuable information when it comes to design. Elements such as movement, visual perception, touch, and sound help define a space for a child without them even knowing it. Additionally, children are natural explores and researchers. They have the ability to create mental maps of the spaces they interact with. In today’s world we have very limited knowledge of how children view architecture and design; therefore, we are not only not fully equip to design spaces for them, but have also failed to provide a proper education to allow them to express their thoughts regarding the topic. If schools begin to implement architectural and design education into their curriculum, we can begin to develop a child’s natural curiosity, problem solving skills, and awareness of space.