Edlach elementary school Dornbirn, © Kurt Hoerbst

User perspective on learning environments

In our user series, we visit some of our projects and meet our users in an open dialogue, with perspectives from the other side. For us, it was an opportunity to gain insights from their daily life and get to the bottom of questions: What has stood the test of time and what would we do differently today? What emotions does a space trigger? How comfortable do the users feel? What do they like, what would they change? We went on site and let our users have a say in this format.

This series also takes us to a place we all know: school. Far more than a place of learning, it is a place for social interaction and value education and in some ways reflects our society. Hardly any other place combines community and the built environment as concisely as a school. In our interview with the Edlach primary school in Dornbirn, teaching staff and pupils talk about their school life and give us an insight into how they perceive their built environment.

This is how the pupils of 3C perceive their school:

In our classroom

you can look out onto the meadow.
There is a lot of glass and it is open, you can look out on both sides.
You can look out onto the terrace, I can even see my grandcousins' house.

What do you like about the school?

The playground, it's like an outdoor gym.
I like the terrace the most, you can just go outside when it gets hot and study there.
I like the assembly hall best because everyone always comes together there.
It's good that there are two courtyards. The bigger one if you want to run around and the smaller one if you want some peace and quiet.

What could be better?

Outside on the hill, when it rains, it's so muddy that we're never allowed to go there.
I'd rather have a climbing frame.
There's only one large and two small swings, but lots of people want to swing during the break and then you have to wait to get on them.
You could remove the hill to have space for more swings.
The hammocks are always in the shade, it would be great if they were in the sun.
I'd like to play football in the assembly hall ... but I'm not allowed to.

And that's what the teachers think:

Headmistress Heide Flatschacher and Mathias Heinzle, class teacher of 3c, are very satisfied with the implementation of the cluster concept. The networking between the clusters is optimally supported by the maximum transparency and the pupils can work independently without feeling constantly observed. "The way it is now, with all the wood, it's very cosy. The children feel comfortable. Our cluster is like our home at school. We do the weekly plans together, the children mix completely, it's like a conglomerate," so Mathias Heinzle.

But there are also points of criticism: "One of the challenges is the acoustics, due to the flat surfaces and all the glass, it echoes in the rooms," says Mathias Heinzle. "It would be better if the toilets were upstairs and the lift was more centrally located," adds Headmistress Heide Flatschacher. However, she emphasises: "We generally feel very comfortable here. It is a beautiful, high-quality school. The parquet floors and classrooms are great, almost like a living room. We also have a far-reaching view of nature."

Text: Anu-Ujin Walser, June 2024