In 2008 we did our first of many study tours to Scandinavia including visits to a number of Kunskapsskolan schools. At the time people wondered why we were so interested in this chain of schools and what impact it might have on the UK. Fast forward a couple of years and you cannot read one of Michael Gove MP’s speeches or articles without reference to ‘free schools’ – including the Kunskapsskolan model.
Photo credit - Kenneth Gardestad
What struck me from our visits and speaking to architects including the wonderful Kenneth Gardestad – chief architect for the chain – is that it is an audacious imaginative vision of refurbishment and reuse of buildings.
So, an old submarine factory or lightbulb factory or redundant space is completely gutted and re-imagined as a variety of learning spaces, rather than just classrooms. They are ‘classroom-plus schools’.
Talking to teachers and students it is clear that a highly relevant and personalised curriculum allows much more independent learning and out of school study.
I got a sense of a workforce that felt ownership and motivation from the school environment. Successful schools align the space with teaching and learning – in other words, space supports and motivates new dynamics in the way that teachers and pupil work together.
At our BCSE World Learning Environments Conference, Kenneth Gardestad talked about his journey through designing all of the 30 Kunskapsskolan schools and his work on the 3 new academies in England (here’s his presentation [large pdf]). There is going to be a new departure for the chain, in that the UK Academies will be one of their first experiences of new build and also building a personalised curriculum within the OfSTED accountability framework – so we will be very interested to check in with the new principals of the academies when they are up and running.
In the last few weeks I have been approached to give advice to a number of companies about my views on Kunskapsskolan.
So, spare a thought for the number of contractors and their supply chains – most of whom are BCSE members – who have thrown their hat into the ring last week for delivering these academies in South West London. There is a real sense of anticipation with what they will eventually deliver – and we are sure they will be on Team Gove’s radar.
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