School students' responses to architecture: a practical studio project

This paper focuses on a built environment project with a mixed ability grou p of learners from year seven attending Deacon's School in Peterborough, En gland. The school caters for students aged between eleven and eighteen, fro m a wide range of ethnic and cultural backgrounds (including a substantial minority from the Indian Sub-continent); it is an active participant within the University of Cambridge Post Graduate Certificate in education partner ship and is a 'beacon school'. In practical studio terms, the project was c oncerned with school students making 'pop-up cards' based on first hand obs ervation of local architecture under guidance of the Head of Art. [1] The f ocus for students' learning was on their critical responses to their built environment, in nd around the city of Peterborough. In particular, students were encouraged to make full use of their sketchbooks and to engage in act ive oral work. The approach taken build upon that advocated by Wolff and Ge ahigan [2] by emphasising the relationship between students' personal engag ement with art and design and their personal response to it through their o wn art; students were encouraged to learn about art and design objects thro ugh the process of reacting, researching responding and reflecting.[3]