Extended Shade Connection

What are the basic features of a school?

This design considers the contrast between the CLASSROOM (an indoor room where instruction takes place) and the COURTYARD (an outdoor space for students to gather) as comprising the smallest possible unit for a school, and proposes using this contrast as the prototype for building an entire school. School-based communications – between teachers and students as well as among students themselves are borne from within this contrasting space, and hence spread outward. The function of the classroom is further defined by the existence of a courtyard, while the courtyard, by existing alongside the classroom, gains meaning as a secondary site of learning. The two spaces reverberate against, while complementing each other.

Furthermore, a core feature of this design is a shaded area connecting the classroom with the courtyard. Known as “hisashi” in Japanese, the shaded (thus protected), yet open nature of the space allows for a comfortable site of communication and exchange. The view from the benches includes not only the courtyard itself, but expands out into the greater surrounding landscape. In addition to linking the indoors with the outdoors, this space later becomes a critical component in connecting the rooms as the school expands, creating a hallway that runs throughout the school.

Minimum Requirements for a School Include:

1. A Foundation
A foundation is built on a plot of flat land in Uganda. A slight level change situates the classroom space in a new context. This is the stage upon which children’s activities unfold.

2. Two Walls That Surround the Foundation
Two large brick walls partition off the landscape, which create the backdrop for the children’s space.

3. Multiple Functions
Within the walls are three spaces: classroom, shaded area, and courtyard. Instruction takes place in the classroom. The courtyard can be used as a place for gathering, recreation, and eating lunch. On a sunny day, the courtyard can also be used as a second classroom. The shaded area is a valuable space that gently connects the classroom with the courtyard.

4. Expandability
After building one classroom, the next two can be built with the addition of only one wall on each side. This keeps the budget low in the course of building additional rooms. The new rooms have the flexibility of multiple uses: library, assembly room, teachers’ office, etc. With the addition of one classroom at a time, it will ultimately grow into an entire school.

5. Community Development
As the number of classrooms increase, the school grows larger, involving more of the local residents, until the school becomes a community center in itself.

MATERIALS USED IN THE CONSTRUCTION:

Matelials used in the proposed architecture can be acquired from local areas of Uganda and local wokers can do the construction.
All materials used in this proposal are easily acquired from local Ugandan regions, and calls for construction work from local laborers. The walls are made of brick, and the posts, beams, and fittings are made of wood. The roof is made of corrugated tin atop a wooden frame. The opening may be fitted with blinds, as needed in order to control and adjust the lighting, ventilation, and noise. The building makes use of materials that are familiar to and compatible with the local environment, and is suitable for ongoing local maintenance. The fact that the building and its parts can be easily repaired by locals helps create the building’s capacity to dynamically evolve with the times.
RC beams are built into the parts of the walls connecting to the shaded area. When building additional rooms, the bricks under the beam are removed, opening a passageway that connects the shaded areas and thus the two classroom units.
The RC beams embedded in the walls opens the possibility for lateral expansion. The brick wall beneath the RC beam is intentionally built with the possibility of easy removal later on, so that it might in the future serve as an opening between buildings. The RC beam that is visible in the side of the wall is not decorative, but instead serves an important structural function, signaling the potential for the building’s expansion.

DETAILS

CLASSROOM
The classroom holds up to 40 students and one teacher. The students face the blackboard, with the brick walls as backdrop. This is where they will study. On their right side is the courtyard and tree, and beyond that, the Ugandan landscape. After class, students may choose to linger in the classroom, or be lured outdoors, or perhaps they will traverse both spaces. The flexibility in the structure leads to an unrestrained and open engagement with the space as well as the community.

COURTYARD TREE
The tree that is planted in the courtyard will come to gain a special significance for students. The students themselves grow alongside the tree, and go on to graduate from school. The small tree spreads its branches, grows leaves, and comes to cover over the courtyard space. Gently protecting and looking upon the students, the tree will come to symbolize the history and changes of the school.

SHADED AREA
The shaded area serves two primary functions, as a connective space.
1. It is the space that connects the roofed classroom with the open-air courtyard.
2. When additional classrooms are built in the future, it becomes the hallway that connects the classroom spaces to each other.
In this way, this shaded area helps construct a space that is connected on both the vertical and horizontal axes.

EXPANDABILTY
The RC beams embedded in the walls opens the possibility for lateral expansion. The brick wall beneath the RC beam is intentionally built with the possibility of easy removal later on, so that it might in the future serve as an opening between buildings. The RC beam that is visible in the side of the wall is not decorative, but instead serves an important structural function, signaling the potential for the building’s expansion.

RC BEAMS
RC beams are built into the parts of the walls connecting to the shaded area. When building additional rooms, the bricks under the beam are removed, opening a passageway that connects the shaded areas and thus the two classroom units.

LOCAL MATERIALS and LABOR
This building plan calls for the use of only local materials. The method of construction is simple, and is easily constructed by local people without specialized knowledge or training. Most of the building is made with low-cost bricks, with very minimal use of expensive concrete. The simple, corrugated roof with rafters is angled in a single direction.

HIGH WINDOW/HIGH-SIDE LIGHT
The high window on the north side opens up wide to allow maximum sunlight to fill the room throughout the day. The classroom is enveloped in natural light, creating a bright, healthy, optimistic space for schoolwork.

STORAGE and BENCH
On the classroom-side entrance, there is a roofed area under which is a large storage area, bookshelves, and a bench on the exterior side. The storage area locks with a padlock from the inside, and all valuable materials are placed here at the end of every day. The bench on the exterior is open for anyone from the community to sit, rest, and chat, and also serves to deter crime.

BOOKSHELVES, DESKS, CHAIRS, BLACKBOARD
The appropriate number of desks and chairs are installed/placed in the classroom, and a blackboard is attached to the brick wall. On either side of the classroom are storage spaces, bookshelves, and lockers, helping to complete the learning environment for the students and enriching the educational experience for all. The storage space comes with a lock, and all valuables are stored here. The lockers double as seating in the shaded area, and relates the separate spaces to each other.

Location