IN-PERSON MADRID FOCUS ON PEDAGOGY. SECTION A

Abstract

The study examines how formal school design standards, established by different institutional bodies, shaped the spatial, functional and pedagogical aspects of learning environments. The paper focuses on the metropolitan cities of India and describes how the school-building typology and pedagogy evolved, often due to interlacing factors. The inquiry begins with the question of whether schools are the result of layered standards that evolved at different speeds. It further delves into how much of this is adapted from the global north and how it has been informally updated to meet pedagogical needs. The study uses data from key regulatory and advisory frameworks and case references from different time periods, representing all education boards and plot sizes. It provides an overview of the National Building Code, a publication by the Bureau of Indian Standards, and the guidelines of the Central Public Works Department, the Central Board of Secondary Education, and the Gujarat Secondary Education Board. Using content analysis, the study identifies three aspects of discourse: (i) spatial zoning and standard sizes through primary case references; (ii) school infrastructural data through secondary sources; and (iii) the relationship between pedagogy and space across time, from the 1970s to the present. The findings reveal that earlier standards represented an ideal spatial logic based on low-density assumptions, while later frameworks stressed the importance of infrastructure and compliance with regulations. Over time, the schools’ learning environments have undergone informal changes due to urban space constraints, a learner-centred model, and awareness of Indigenous Knowledge Systems (IKS). Emerging frameworks like the National Education Policy (NEP 2020) and the National Curriculum Framework (NCF 2022) have intensified the need for amendments to the advisory guidelines.

Keywords: Learning Environments, School Design Standards, Pedagogy-Space Relationship, NEP