To address rising demands for a conceptual interpretation of universal design (UD), a diverse approach centred on efforts to create environments and technology that are usable by everyone (to the greatest extent feasible). The growing integration of UD into architecture instruction and curriculum provides an excellent moment to draw lessons from previous separate but related transformational architecture approaches.
Universal design (UD), also known as inclusive design or design-for-all, is “a process that allows and encourages people of all backgrounds to enhance their overall health, wellness, and social participation.” To satisfy their individual needs, students require specific assistance, books, and materials in suitable mediums (including Braille), as well as distinctive technology and supplies to guarantee equal opportunity for fundamental and concentrated educational programs, as well as the ability to communicate successfully and interact with their peers in school and, eventually, in society as a whole.
There must be enough training initiatives in place to teach staff to deliver unique amenities that satisfy the specific academic and non-academic curricular demands of learners with vision impairments.
Inclusive education is an expression that is currently being interpreted narrowly by certain individuals, mainly instructors who teach learners with major impairments, to advocate for the notion that learners with impairments, irrespective of the kind or seriousness of their disabilities, receive their entire educational institutions within the normal schooling setting.
Teaching Strategies
- There are a variety of comprehensive instructional methods that can help everybody acquire knowledge, but some particular tactics are:
- Useful for educating a group of pupils with visual impairments.
- Take, for example, the tremendous amount of visually appealing data we get each day. Most blind learners lack an entire lifetime of visual stimulation to draw from.
- When developing educational exercises, evaluate the amount of expected visual content in the subject matter.
- Deliver unambiguous, complete details (both verbally and in writing) regarding the training’s framework, applications in practice, evaluation requirements, and timeframes.
- Prepare a reading list or outline versions of all significant or pertinent knowledge ahead of time so that enlargement, wrapping, or brailing may be completed.
- As feasible, store information stored on the hard drive, which may subsequently be conveniently viewed using software for computers.
- Alternate between PowerPoint, video, and audio plays to provide a multi-sensory experience. If feasible, provide model assignments/projects so that learners can lead by example.
- Allow students to record lectures if they desire it, and make copies of lecture notes available whenever possible.
- Use straightforward English to convey information, directions, and inquiries.
- Facilitate social conversation after posing an inquiry before seeking a response. After a lecture/tutorial/practice, recall and reiterate any key ideas.
- Frequent pauses throughout long sessions will help with attention and recall of material.
- Arrange as much knowledge as is feasible in a digital manner; this renders it much simpler to give things in accessibility forms and enables individuals who are disabled to modify the details to a version that works for them.
- Make necessary reading catalogues and instructional content accessible sooner so that they may be reprinted in audio or Braille as needed. Include mandatory literature in your recommended reading list, marking crucial sections if applicable.
- Establishing the sequence of reading inside the content is useful because it might take several weeks to get a book converted into audio or Braille.
- For kids with visual impairments, the instructional technique must be verbal. \verbalise what is written on the chalkboard and above.
- Discuss any computations or methods when they are completed. Read any written material and explain any graphical representations that are utilised.
- Offering a person an introduction to scientific instruments or laptops to alleviate any nervousness that might occur in a new setting.
- Think about including narration in classroom hands-on activities, demonstrations, or fictitious journeys.
Case Study: School for Blind and Visually Impaired Children
Architects: SEAlab
Area: 750 m2
Year: 2021
Lead Architect: Anand Sonecha
The School for the Blind and Visually Impaired Children in Gandhinagar is built to serve kids from Gujarat’s rural villages and towns, and instructors are keen to provide them with enhanced learning and social opportunities. Initially, the school controlled a former building, which had already served as an elementary school.
The first level was used as classrooms for educational purposes, while the bottom floor housed residences. Previously, there was insufficient space for all pupils (12 children shared a dorm room) and no ability to accommodate additional.
Design and Ideologies
The newly constructed educational building, located on the west side of the current one, contains 10 classrooms of five distinct sizes, set around a central courtyard. This place offers a controlled outdoor area for kids to engage in activities, perform, or enjoy celebrations. This easy-to-understand architectural design enables pupils to make a mental representation of the areas.
Each of the corners is distinguished by light or articulated volume strokes, and the passageway that surrounds the centre plaza varies in length and density on every side. This enables the pupils to determine their position within the building. Each classroom encircling the centre plaza is designed for a distinct purpose, such as music rooms, meeting spaces, workshops, and so on.
The “unique” learning environments vary in design, capacity, and lighting quality depending on their role. The remaining rooms resemble verandahs; each leads to a private courtyard with the option of outdoor instruction. Better ventilation and regulated light quality are possible due to the link with outdoor environments.
The structure is intended to be erected in progressive or phased-in stages based on the availability of financing. The educational facilities are tiny cells that connect to the larger spaces—the plaza and hallway. The symmetrical shape of these classroom modules generates a dance of light and shadow while also providing an effective solution to the hot environment.
More than 1000 shrubs, plants, and trees from 37 different varieties have been planted on campus to offer shade and fruit, attract butterflies and birds, and diversify and enrich the natural surroundings. Khambhati Kuva (percolation well), a conventional rainwater collecting device with a diameter of 10 feet and a depth of 30 feet, was constructed to collect rainfall and refresh the land. The well can absorb 45,000 to 60,000 litres of water in one hour.
This school is meant to explore the senses.
Sight – Many kids have limited eyesight, yet they can identify places with contrasts of light and shadow or colours and textures. Various skylights and apertures are intended to produce contrasting zones of light and shadow. For instance, the unique classroom’s approach foyer features a high ceiling with a skylight that creates a light flare. Also, contrasting colours are placed on the entrances, chairs, and switchboards to help pupils distinguish between the pieces while navigating. Because pupils with impaired vision are vulnerable to bright sunshine, the classroom receives indirect, filtered light via private courtyards and skylights.
Hearing – The sound of an individual’s voice or stepping feet varies depending on the echo created in the place. The design assigns varied heights and widths to hallway and classroom sections so that youngsters may identify them based on sound. For example, the entry corridor has a high ceiling height (3.66 m), which progressively falls in height (2.26 m) and breadth, providing each area with its unique sound intensity.
Smell – The landscape plays an important role in the layout. Courtyards, placed adjacent to the classroom and connected to the hallway, have scented plants and trees that aid with structure orientation.
Touch – The smooth and rough surfaces of the walls and floor direct pupils through the areas.
Kota stone is the primary material utilised for the flooring. Each classroom has a rough Kota stone entryway, while the rest of the area has smooth Kota stone. This texture shift serves as a signpost for pupils as they navigate.
The structure features five different wall methods and textures. The two longer sides of the corridor feature horizontal textures, whereas the shorter side has vertical textures. This helps pupils determine which side of the corridor they are on. The centre courtyard has a semi-circular texture, while the outside of the entire structure is sand-faced plaster.
User involvement method
To redesign the school, interaction, and involvement mechanisms have to be reinvented. Everyone had many sessions at various phases of the project to involve pupils and educators in the design process. Initially, we used cardboard models to initiate conversations with students and instructors. They could imagine the architectural shape by touch, but we quickly learned it was difficult to understand the internal rooms and subtleties. To address the issue, we created communication methods utilising a 3D printer.
This enabled the creation of tactile drawings and sturdy prototypes that students could manipulate to imagine locations. We created a texturing code to help learners and educators understand the design. These textures overlapped the blueprint, making it easier to see the designed areas. The internal chambers have a distinct texture from the outside, similar to circulation spaces or classrooms. Furthermore, each space (classroom, hallway, and courtyard) was labelled and written in Braille.
The promotional campaign used 3D-printed precise miniatures. It allowed pupils to touch them without damaging them. They included features such as furniture and people to help visitors comprehend the rooms’ layout and size. Before development, we performed a full-scale line-up on the site. The board members, instructors, and a few pupils walked around the venue and provided input. Finally, throughout development, the builder created prototypes of strategies that may assist students in navigating the structure. For example, several of the learners experimented with different wall plaster textures to determine their usefulness.
References:
Universal Architectural Design (2013) SlideShare. Available at: https://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/universal-architectural-design/20991653
Houck, L. (2023) Universal design, but at what cost? A case study on lifts in Norwegian School Competitions, Studies in health technology and informatics. Available at: https://www.academia.edu/71425092/Universal_Design_but_at_What_Cost_A_Case_Study_on_Lifts_in_Norwegian_School_Competitions
(PDF) situating Universal Design Architecture: Designing with … Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/264290615_Situating_universal_design_architecture_Designing_with_whom
Freese, T. (2024) This school’s unique features let blind students navigate through smell, touch & sound, The Better India. Available at: https://www.thebetterindia.com/340084/gujarat-school-for-the-blind-and-visually-impaired-inclusive-design-architecture-by-anand-sonecha-sealabs/
(PDF) strategies for teaching students with visual impairment. Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/353013224_Strategies_for_Teaching_Students_with_Visual_Impairment
Abdel, H. (2022) School for blind and Visually Impaired Children/sealab, ArchDaily. Available at: https://www.archdaily.com/984721/school-for-blind-and-visually-impaired-children-sealab
