School Design Impacts Teacher Happiness and Effectiveness, New Research Finds

While school design is geared towards students’ success, it’s important to note a teacher’s workplace can take a toll on their well-being, job satisfaction and performance. A new survey by Corgan, a global architecture and design firm, takes a look at how school design impacts teacher happiness and effectiveness in the workplace.

A new survey by Corgan, a global architecture and design firm, takes a look at how school design impacts teacher happiness and effectiveness in the workplace.

Corgan’s online survey collected responses from 1,000 K-12 teachers from across the United States about their satisfaction with current school design, their specific design needs, how design affects their well-being and effectiveness, and how design impacts future job decisions.

The findings reveal that poor design and unmet needs reduce teacher efficacy in the classroom. Nearly all teachers surveyed (98%) say that a well-designed classroom makes teaching more enjoyable.

Here are the top takeaways from the survey:

  • A well-designed learning environment is important to teacher happiness, recruitment and effectiveness. Nearly all teachers (97%) say the design of the learning environment is important to helping students learn. Four in five teachers (80%) say the design of the learning environment is important to their ability to be a good teacher. And 68% say the design of the school and classrooms play a factor in their decision for accepting a job.
  • Teachers are least likely to be satisfied with the design of teacher-only spaces. Only 57% are satisfied with the design of the teacher break room and the same percentage are satisfied with the design of teacher work areas. To compare, teachers are most likely to be satisfied with the design of the library/media center at 84%.
  • Eighty-five percent of teachers want more flexibility for their teaching environment. And 62% agree the design of their classroom and teaching spaces limits their teaching style.  
  • Technology-ready classrooms and easy-to-move furniture are very important to teachers, with storage space, natural light and convenient electrical outlets trailing right behind them.
  • Open collaboration space within the classroom is more important than having additional rooms. 54% say it’s very important to have an open collaboration space, while few teachers want additional walls or physical barriers within their teaching space.

About the Author

Yvonne Marquez is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. She can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • Case Study Highlights Texas District’s Campus Security Upgrades

    The Taft Independent School District near Corpus Christi, Texas, recently partnered with Intech Southwest Services to revamp its campus security technology system, according to a news release. Intech has released a case study on its website detailing the process that advanced the district’s technology by more than 20 years in less than three weeks.

  • Longwood University Selects Builder for $73M Performing Arts Center

    Longwood University in Farmville, Va., recently announced that it has selected Swedish construction company Skanska as the builder of its new performing arts center, according to online news. The project involves the demolition of the current building and constructing a new, 64,500-square-foot facility.

  • Tennessee State University Gains Approval for New Engineering Facility

    Tennessee State University in Nashville, Tenn., recently announced that it has received approval from the Tennessee State Building Commission to build a new engineering building on campus, according to a university news release. The 70,000-square-foot, $50-million facility will play home to the university’s engineering programs and the Applied & Industrial Technology program.

  • i-PRO, NovoTrax Partner for New School Emergency Response Solution

    i-PRO Americas, Inc., which manufactures edge computing cameras, recently announced a partnership with NovoTrax, provider of end-to-end life safety and mass notification solutions, to address gaps in emergency response workflows at K–12 schools, according to a news release.

Digital Edition