Schoolground Design: Special Places for Children
Sylvia Samborski
Abstract:
This pilot study is based on interviews with ten children, some of whom are
participants in schoolground restoration projects in the Okanagan Valley and on
Vancouver Island. The purpose of this study is to explore the ecological
significance and educational value of such projects as well as to investigate
the effects of such participation on the children's attitudes, social behaviour
and future actions. In the course of this study I have found that children
experience a sense of ownership and feel valued for their talents when they are
allowed to take part in a native plant restoration project by designing,
mapping and maintaining their school landscape.
Outdoor places evoke strong "feeling responses". Children who have been
allowed and encouraged to play in natural settings develop a strong sense of
their place in the world. Some children have access outside school to quality
outdoor environments which satisfy many of their needs for creative outdoor
play. However, for an increasing proportion of our youth, these opportunities
are severely restricted, and the only safe outdoor space is their schoolground.
For these children, the schoolgrounds represent a place where all their outdoor
needs must be met. And it is widely recognized that most schoolgrounds, though
they have the potential to be rich outdoor laboratories and play settings, are
for the most part wasted resources--undifferentiated deserts of grass and
asphalt.
Most children understand that the schoolground is a place that is set aside for
their needs. If the schoolgrounds fail to meet their needs, the children may
become confused and resentful. A "boring" physical layout, where their
activities are restricted, may lead the children to roughhousing or other
social behaviour which easily gets out of control and is banned by the teachers
and supervisors. On the other hand, in many schools which are involved in
developing their grounds, the process itself appears to cause noticeable
changes in behaviour, attitudes, and relationships.
In my own observations, the children who experienced the restrictions of
barren, uninteresting grounds expressed frustration, indignation and anger
during their interviews regarding the lack of desirable elements such as
private spaces, variety of choices, or shade trees that they wished had been
provided for their needs. Conversely, the children who were involved in a
creative greening project expressed few or no negative emotions toward elements
of the schoolgrounds, even when some of these elements were missing. These
young people showed great enthusiasm for their project, articulating what could
be done to improve any concerns and asserting that they could be part of the
process of creating their own place.
For these children who are allowed to participate, there are additional
benefits. Working alongside landscape architects, gardeners and maintenance
staff, the children find that their studies take on a "real world"
significance. The schoolground naturalization project can become part of a
culture of purposeful involvement and commitment towards working together and
creating something that will make a difference. When the young people at the
same time have the opportunity to explore broader ecological, historical and
ethnobotanical relationships with the trees and shrubs that they plant and the
animals that are attracted to this native flora their work can take on a much
deeper purpose.