We Have Made Spaces Welcoming For Students

Headquartered in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, Civom offers futuristic design solutions to educational institutes, fostering innovation, exploratory mindset and collaborative spirit among students. How do spaces, designs and furniture bring about a change in learning environment and learning outcomes? Yogendra Patidar, Director, Civom, answers in-depth, in an interview to BW People. Excerpts: 

How did you venture into the field of providing space and design solutions for educational institutes?

An Australia-based company, Raeco was building libraries across Australia and other parts of the world and invited us. I did a lot of research in the market and came to understand the gaps that exist in terms of spaces and facilitation. We are still teaching in terms of industrial age wherein we wanted people to be skilled in certain skills and tasks. We are now in information age and education needs to change. The experience and environment also need to change.

The vision that we have is to create products and spaces and designs that can help form learning behaviours. 

How do interior spaces and design help in development of young minds?

The starting question is - what do you want your learners to become. The moment an institute is clear, say it wants its students to be discovery-oriented, the next question is, what experiences can make a child discovery-oriented. There can be exploration areas, material labs and we can create spaces accordingly, like creating libraries within the classroom. Why have only one period for library or laboratory? If you have only one period for these activities, how will you inculcate exploration in them?

This is where we come in – helping realise the vision of the institute in physical format. 

Every individual’s needs are different, from ergonomics and learning point of view. And every institute has different approach to pedagogy. So how are you addressing different needs, at individual and institutional needs?

We look at the changing technology, changing user behaviour and science of learning. At individual level we looked at body dynamics. Does the student constantly move or otherwise? Does the child sit in reclining position or lean forward? Some students are fast learners, while others are not. We also look at the kinds of learners while designing spaces, as also acoustics, air, light in the learning area. Based on these factors, we come up with flexible solutions. 

Coming to schools, there are schools subscribing to various boards that are assessment centric. Others that are skill centric. Different teachers also have different approaches. We get all these details first, before offering solutions. 

Of course, there are challenges in offering flexible solutions, but in the last five years, people have come to appreciate the value of life. Institutes are open to experimenting now. Depending upon the distance that institutes are willing to travel, we hold their hands accordingly. Some are willing to undergo marginal change, some have limitation of physical infrastructure and some have long corridors with classrooms on each side – what I call jail design. 

We explore if the schools are open to alteration in physical infrastructure like breaking the walls. We intervene and offer solutions depending upon these factors. We show them small pilot areas to demonstrate how collaborative teaching can happen through enabling interior spaces, when everyone is facing each other.  

How is technology changing classroom dynamics?

Technology is one of the biggest drivers today. We are in the information age and the teacher’s role has become that of a facilitator. In a flipped classroom, the teacher has to provide the context to students and engage them in questions as to what insights did they derive out of the material. More than the content, the question, the reference and real-life relevance is important today. 

What has been the biggest impact in schools where your design solutions have been implemented?

People comment that we have not just changed the furniture, but how the classroom functions. We have made spaces welcoming enough that students would like to use those. We have also provided spaces that can support multiple pedagogies – a solution that can be modified as per needs, since there are different curricula and teachers with different approaches. We call ourselves right hardware for the software of education. 

In deciding which schools to work with, what criteria do you have?

Intention is the key to us. If you have the intention, we will figure out a solution. There are schools affiliated to CBSE but who have mapped the experience in a different way. 

While there is much thought given to the needs of students, what thought is being given to the needs of educators?

During our brainstorming, one aspect that’s emphasised is teacher’s chair. How does the teacher operate in a learning environment needs to be looked at. We are looking at their individual needs, as well as how they collaborate as a team. Earlier, we used to be afraid of going to staffroom. Now, there is bridging of the gap and better proximity between the teacher and students. A teacher is someone who is available for students. So, we enable that proximity building, as also ergonomics from teacher’s point of view. 

What is the best comment you have received from a student?

It was not a comment, but in one school, I saw a student lying on the floor and studying. That gave the signal, ‘this is my place’. In such a space, a child can be one’s own self. 

How do you see yourself in alignment with NEP and what it postulates?

NEP has validated our work that we were already doing, be it experiential learning or learning by sharing. 

Meha Mathur

BW Reporters The author works as Senior Associate Editor with BW Businessworld