Medford mail tribune., April 14, 1963, Image 9

School Plant Facilities Change With New Teaching Techniques
As the educational programs offered in school dis
tricts change, so do the facilities in which they are
housed.
Changes made in school plant facilities are made to
provide the student with a more desirable background
in which to develop his interest in study.
Many new innovations in buildings and classroom
facilities were reviewed by educators from this area on
trips east late last year and to the San Francisco area
earlier this year.
The tour of buildings and observation of educational
programs in eastern and mid-western schools was part
of an in-service observation plan in connection with the
Ford Foundation financed Oregon Program for Improv
ing Education, a program in which Mcdford school dis
trict is cooperating with Southern Oregon college and
the state department of education. The trips were fi
nanced from non-tax monies through the Oregon Pro
gram. Plant Facilities Observed
Plant facilities observed, and studied, ranged from a
completely new design at McPherson. Kans, to reno
vated rooms expanded to provide lecture areas.
Educators toured all types of buildings - from the
campus style school with departments housed in separate
buildings connected by covered hallways or walks, to
the large high school in multi-story buildings.
In most cases, plant facilities were altered to fit the
development of new leaching techniques: in other cases,
where new buildings were necessary anyway, the plant
was designed specifically for new teaching techniques
each as team leaching, cooperative teaching, large and
small group instruction, and increased utilization of the
library as the center of academic development.
Perhaps the most unusual of the schools visited was
McPherson, Kans., where educators toured a building
of hexagonal and circular design. The hexagonal area
is for academic classes, and included a central library
and visual aids centers. The circular building, connected
with the hexagonal cluster by an activities center and
kitchen facilities, houses the gymnasium and industrial
arts area, which is located around the edge of the gym.
Rooms of Conventional Design
Educators found, however, that specifically designed,
unusually shaped buildings are not necessary for classes
in which new teaching techniques are used. Most of the
classrooms were of conventional design - that is, square
or rectangular.
Educators also observed other building aspects, keep
ing in mind any designs which could be incorporated in
new buildings in thus area to help meet the need in
providing a better education for a greater number of
children.
One of the big differences was in the size of class
rooms. Instead of being virtually all one size, three dif
ferent sizes were predominate - the large, small theater
type room; the conventional size for 30 to 35 students;
and the small, seminar type room.
Many of the plants toured had converted conventional
classrooms, either by removing a permanent wall (in
many cases replacing it with a moveable wall), or by
adding a partition to make two small rooms from one
large one, which was done in many cases by a move
able wall.
Used With Considerable Success
Moveable walls, in fact, are used with considerable
success in many of the schools visited where flexibility
in class schedules required that large and small groups
be converted to one or Ihe other in a short time. In some
Features
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Tribune
SECTION B MEDFORD, OREGON, SUNDAY, APRIL 14, 1963 PAGES 1 to 8
Medford
The McPherson, Kans., high school, which was under
construction late last year when area educators toured the
building, is perhaps the most unusual design observed
during an in-service visitation under the Oregon Program
for Improving Education. The hexagonal area at the right
is for academic classes, and the circular area at left houses
the industrial arts area and gymnasium.
Educators from southern Oregon arc specifically for large groups of student!,
looking over the large group instruction and has worked effectively, school officials
room at Estabrook Elementary .-chool in in Lexington said.
Lexington, Mass. The room was designed
case;, cafeterias and gymnasiums were divided with
moveable walls to make use of space.
Lecture areas varied from one seating about 300 stu
dents to rooms capable of scaling 80 to 90 students.
Lecture classes also were held in many auditoriums.
Some centers had an elevated lecturer's stand, com
plete with audio-visual material and equipment, while
others had tiered rows of seats for students "with the
lecturer on the floor in front of an overhead projector
screen.
In one lecture center complex, which included the
lecture room and seminar-type discussion rooms, the
floors were carpeted. Officials at the school said the
carpet was inexpensive, and reduced greatly the amount
of noise in the classroom. Seventy or so students, they
pointed out, make a considerable amount of noise just
moving about. Maintenance costs also were reduced,
since Ihe carpet needed only vacuuming and not ex
pensive cleaning and rewaxing every other year or so.
Provide Defused Light
The windows in this lecture center contained light
colored draperies, providing a quiet, defused light out
of an otherwise glaring window expanse.
The lecture room was quite pleasant. Under such con
ditions, school officials believe, the student can do better
work, getting more from the lecture than In other less
desirable large rooms.
Other classrooms were large enough to house upward
to 70 students, but had moveable walls to make two
classrooms. Some classrooms were what are considered
standard size, that is, in the 30 to 35 student capacity
class.
Small seminar classrooms in which a group of 10 to
15 students discuss material presented during lecture
periods were included in most schools in which team or
cooperative teaching was observed. Usually the students
sat around a large table, and the instructor acted only
as a moderator for the discussion.
Other Building Features
Among some of the other building features observed
were the use of tile in hallways; the use of outside hall
ways, principally among the California schools (this type
of construction is used on new buildings in the Medford
district); and'student locker areas removed from the main
travelled hallways.
Tile was used along hallways in many schools. Of
ficials at the schools noted that although the initial cost
may be somewhat more than walls plastered and painted,
the long-range maintenance costs are reduced.
Student locker areas away from the main used hall
ways keep noise to a minimum, especially if the school
has an eight or more period day when some students
arrive and leave earlier than others. This proved to be
a desirable feature in many secondary schools, and was
accomplished with little, if any, additional cost.
Class Preparation Areas
.Educators also observed class preparation areas for
teachers, and teacher lounges which provided an area
away from the student occupied areas. Student centers
in one school provided a place for student activities, as
well as relaxing, for students who met certain require
ments. Many of the school plants observed, whether new or
renovated, were designed to be pleasant and attractive;
to let the student feel al ease so he would be more reccpt
ablc to a studying atmosphere.
Plant facility changes, combined with changes in
teaching methods, are designed to provide the opportuni
ties for a better education of young people today and
tomorrow.
The lobby of the Bricn McMahon High
school in Norwalk, Conn., serves as a dis
play area for work done by students in the
art department. Such displays, school offic
ials have noted, tend to encourage student
to do more and better work.
This picture shows the Interior of the
library at Newton South High school in
Newton, Mass. Opposite the library in the
same circular building are lecture rooms
and regular size classrooms, which can to
moved in the future to expand library
facilities.
j ,
This scene shows students at Wayland. Mass.. High
ichool changing classes Wayland was a campus type high
achool with departments housed in separate buildings. The
field house, a popular structure where winters are more
-rverc than in this area, ii the dome shaped structure
at the right.
Ja2S' e Bj ,
The library is more and more becoming an important
part of any high school, and in many caaci is now in a
central location. Thia la the library building at the Newton
High school in Newton, Mass. Surrounding the library are
other buildings housing various departments. Pictures went
taken by James L. Payne, Salem, architect, who accom
panied educators on the trip.