Benjamin Parker | Coastal Carolina University (original) (raw)
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Schools tell stories. The physical plants, including conditions, plans, locations, and embellishm... more Schools tell stories. The physical plants, including conditions, plans, locations, and embellishments provide clues to the histories of these neglected raconteurs (Butchart, 1986). Specifically, the architectural characteristics of older schools built during the Progressive Era of American education (1890s-1920s approximately), a time when the proliferation of urban schools was characterized by efficient industrial models meant to develop rationalized opportunities for growth and prosperity (Tyack, 1974), provide contextual clues to the way America once valued education and invested in the nation's future. The materials, designs, and aesthetic flourishes found in and on these schools can be examined and unpacked for their purposes, subtle messages, and audiences. This type of analysis is of great importance as many of these schools are still in use today and have served changing communities for generations. As student populations and educational goals have shifted over the decades since the Progressive Era, it is imperative that researchers deconstruct the intended and unintended messages conveyed by the inanimate artifacts that make up modern schooling environments. My interest in the ideological imposition of educational spaces emerges from the dichotomy of my personal experiences within schools. As a student I experienced safe and welcoming schools that were maintained, revered, and preserved as community icons for generations. As a teacher, I encountered schools that were dangerous, forlorn, and compromised. The inconsistency between the two experiences made me consider the roles the educational spaces themselves played in enculturating students about the purpose and value of school as well as their place inside and outside of it. This Voice From the Field unpacks these themes within the context of an urban school where I spent significant time as both a teacher and a researcher. As is common with practitioner research, the questions I seek to answer developed from my practice in the school and ultimately my findings will be applied to the context where the inquiry emerged (Ravitch, 2014). This piece stands as a commentary on conceptualizing schools as artifacts and the need for greater examination of educational iconography. In addition, it is a call to action for those engaged in similar spaces to confront the physical markers of oppression.
Schools tell stories. The physical plants, including conditions, plans, locations, and embellishm... more Schools tell stories. The physical plants, including conditions, plans, locations, and embellishments provide clues to the histories of these neglected raconteurs (Butchart, 1986). Specifically, the architectural characteristics of older schools built during the Progressive Era of American education (1890s-1920s approximately), a time when the proliferation of urban schools was characterized by efficient industrial models meant to develop rationalized opportunities for growth and prosperity (Tyack, 1974), provide contextual clues to the way America once valued education and invested in the nation's future. The materials, designs, and aesthetic flourishes found in and on these schools can be examined and unpacked for their purposes, subtle messages, and audiences. This type of analysis is of great importance as many of these schools are still in use today and have served changing communities for generations. As student populations and educational goals have shifted over the decades since the Progressive Era, it is imperative that researchers deconstruct the intended and unintended messages conveyed by the inanimate artifacts that make up modern schooling environments. My interest in the ideological imposition of educational spaces emerges from the dichotomy of my personal experiences within schools. As a student I experienced safe and welcoming schools that were maintained, revered, and preserved as community icons for generations. As a teacher, I encountered schools that were dangerous, forlorn, and compromised. The inconsistency between the two experiences made me consider the roles the educational spaces themselves played in enculturating students about the purpose and value of school as well as their place inside and outside of it. This Voice From the Field unpacks these themes within the context of an urban school where I spent significant time as both a teacher and a researcher. As is common with practitioner research, the questions I seek to answer developed from my practice in the school and ultimately my findings will be applied to the context where the inquiry emerged (Ravitch, 2014). This piece stands as a commentary on conceptualizing schools as artifacts and the need for greater examination of educational iconography. In addition, it is a call to action for those engaged in similar spaces to confront the physical markers of oppression.