Adaptive Design for Schools in the post-COVID-19 World

As an architect by profession and as a parent of a school going child myself, the apprehension of sending children back to what was once a safe-haven is undoubtedly a question in mind for me just like for many of us. Any crisis presents the opportunity to help the kids learn, cultivate compassion and increase resilience while building a safer and more caring community. And as parents, we must have the right information on COVID-19, in order to diminish students' fears and anxieties around the virus, as we all gear up to head back to school soon!

Several considerations must be taken into account to maintain safe school operations, and if done correctly, it can promote emotional and physical well-being. Educational institutes will, and must take corrective measures at all levels. A design and protocol overview can help institutions create an environment that helps us to prevent the spread of the virus, while helping us to inch back as close to the true normal.

Schools and parents are currently awaiting a directive from the government. Though imperative, it is certainly going to be an each one to their own- situation.

The onus of finding out the solutions doesn’t lie on the school only. It needs a collaborative approach - one that involves all the stakeholders and the society in general. 

A choice of what measures need to be implemented will eventually be the institution's own call.

The adaptations need to be multilevel. They can broadly be classified as 

Administrative reworking:

Abiding by the new norms of social distancing is a big challenge confronted by schools as they look to open up.

1.      Reopening the school in phases should be of prime importance. Senior classes could start first. This would give the school prep time to smooth out the initial hiccups.

2.      Staggering school timings will be beneficial. This can be enabled by allowing for batches at different hours, thus avoiding a crowd build up at one particular time.

3.      Important exams can be conducted on different dates, thereby reducing the number of working hours and physical interaction amongst students in schools

4.      All team sports activity as well as spectator sports need to be put on hold. This would also imply a reduction in activity class hours, thereby helping reduce working hours for children and teachers.

5.      Providing parents with an option to opt for classroom teaching or online can help regulate the number of students in a classroom. Installing a camera in every classroom will allow students to study from home on a virtual platform as well. That translates into the teacher managing 50% of the students in the classroom and the other 50% on the virtual platform- but at the same time and at the same place. This would considerably reduce the footprint in the school, plus ensure that the teacher has all of his/her regular study tools at hand and ensure no repetition in the online segment.  It will considerably reduce the physical footfall in the school.

6.      Art as an activity can be continued with social distancing in mind as it allows to stimulate the creativity of the children and is imperative for the metal well-being of the children in these tough times

The necessity of teaching and learning with asynchronous platforms (Canvas, Blackboard, D2L) and synchronous (Zoom) platforms also yield in significant benefits, when both methods can be adopted.

Infrastructural adaptation:

1.      One of the primary actions that need to be taken to put everyone’s fears and apprehensions to rest would be that of getting a building health audit done. It involves getting a risk assessment done and ensuring that spaces meet strict occupational safety and health criteria. This would, for instance, involve getting the HVAC tested for the indoor air quality, checking the finishes of surfaces for their hygiene and cleanliness etc.

2.      Considering that WHO prescribes physical distancing of at least 1 meter between students in school, the replacement of twin benches by single ones or crossing out every alternate one in the classrooms would be necessary.

3.      The new classroom design should allow for increased circulation of fresh air indoors, and classes can be held outdoors as and when possible to help students be in a natural and non-contaminated environment.               

4.      Sanitation stations should be installed in every classroom and vinyl floor markings can be used to ensure unidirectional movement in all passages and corridors. Essentially, the class strength needs to be halved in the physical space by either increasing the number of rooms or by going in for a combination of real-time classes and online classes.

Psychological considerations:

The WHO rightly tell us to encourage children to discuss their questions and concerns, work with school health workers/social workers to identify and support students and staff who exhibit signs of distress. It is indeed a testing time for one and all.

It is important to show empathy towards the teachers as well; Working full time, managing multiple roles, grappling with technology and yet smiling and greeting the children to ensure a happy learning environment. As schools reopen under appropriate health and safety protocols, school leaders will confront a new set of challenges, including syllabus timelines and teaching methodologies, remedial academic support, new sanitation guidelines and possibly closing schools again in response to public-health needs.

So why is it important to open the schools again? Why not continue with the same format of online classes till the situation is fully under control? A major part of the sequencing puzzle is the importance of schooling in providing childcare. Workers with children under 15 years old in their household who have no alternate caregiver will likely need childcare before being able to return fully to work. The proportion of workers who cannot return to work without childcare varies significantly across countries—and even within them. Children also need a degree of social interaction; to tell them that they are not alone in this. That everyone is in this together! Given that, parents should still be given an option to choose between sending their children to school or wanting to continue their education from home itself for the time being.

None of this work is easy, but the prize—students learning, parents working, and a society finally getting back on its feet — makes it all worth fighting for.