I believe that involving the community in the analysis, design and construction of the new school will allow them to spread and share their knowledge, to have a common understanding, a mutual pride and a sense of ownership which are key factors to the success and durability of the project.
Monday 2nd to Sunday 8th of July :
Designing and modelling : The kitchen and dining hall
Last week I drew and modelled a proposition for the two kindergarten classes. This week I worked on the design of the kitchen and dining hall.
Just as on the kindergarten building, the most functional spaces (kitchen, storage and bathrooms) have straight walls and 90 degrees angles in order to be more practical and accommodate standard equipment, while the living spaces (classrooms and dining area) present wider angles thus composing more "creative" spaces in accordance with the Waldorf principles. The walls are not curved but kept straight for simplicity of construction, which offers better chances for accuracy and reduced costs. The same principles can be observed in different buildings at the reference project of the Rudolf Steiner School Mbagathi in Nairobi.
Integrated systems of rain water collection doesn't seem common at all, although the advantages of it is well known among the population who sometimes put buckets under the roof´s ridge during heavy rains. With the hope of promoting the use of gravity-fed water systems, I chose not to hide the rain water tanks and display their functioning.
Gravity-fed water systems: characteristics and benefits:
-The water tank is placed just below the roof water collection point, and above the water intake points.
-No need for electricity and pump!
-Only the vertical height determines the water pressure at the tap:
-If the bottom of the water tank is more than 3 m above the water intake, the pressure is good (according to UK standards)
-If the bottom of the water tank is 2,5 m above the water intake, the pressure is acceptable and also saves water by allowing only a reduced flow.
Ways to save water:
1- Do not waste water:
-Lower flow at the tap.
-Do not flush after each little pee. (DO flush systematically after the poop!)
2- Reuse the not-so-dirty water:
-From the "first-flush" chamber. The first flush chamber, that diverts the first water rinsing the roof before it reaches the water tank, must be emptied after each rain. This water can be emptied in a bucket and used for watering the garden.
-From the sink. The water and soap from the sink feeds the toilet´s water tank. Washing your hands after using the toilets will both refill the toilet's water tank and promote hygienic habits.
Parents´s Workshop: Evaluation and comparison of possible building materials.
Proceedings:
1- Finding a translator.
2- Introduction of the context, my role and their contribution. Presentation of the workshop's activities and goals. Presentation of "The Box" for any ideas, comments and questions.
In order to introduce the new school project and place my intervention in a longer process, I explained and drew the 6 phases of the project : 1- Having a dream, 2-Finding money and funding, 3-Drawing the dream on paper (my job!), 4-Finding a building team, 5-Construction, 6-Moving-in and maintenance. As we discussed previously with the Board members, it is important to not raise the parent´s expectations inappropriately. I therefore explained that the Board and Förening Sofia, through Anja who they know, are working hard to access funding from big organisations and that the drawings will serve as a proposal to help this fundraising process.
3- Activity 1: Write down ALL building materials and techniques that you know on little papers. Think about all the parts of the building: Foundations, walls, windows and doors, roof. We then gather the papers and group the doubles.
With the intention to better communicate and give a support for thoughts, I asked one participant to draw a house on the blackboard. His drawing turned out to be quite different from what I would have drawn and I believe that the participants could relate much better to his representation than to mine.
4- Activity 2: Evaluate each material according to the following criteria by placing them on a scale represented by a big rose on the ground.
*Price (free <--> very expensive)
*Maintenance (never to be repaired <--> to be repaired after each rain season)
*Durability (lasts forever <--> unusable after 10 years)
*Availability (plenty <--> very rare)
*Distance (can be found in Maili Saba <--> Nairobi)*Other aspects (aesthetics, health, insulation etc)
The materials that find themselves close the the centre in every category are considered very good, while the materials that find themselves at the periphery in most categories are considered bad.
5- Summarising. The rose is a representation of the knowledge of the participants regarding possible building materials.We could now come to a common consensus on the most favourable material for each building part. A hand-rising survey. Also provides an understanding of the technical knowledge of construction within the group and within the community.
From around 10 parents at the beginning of the workshop, the group grew to 30 participants. It was therefore important to repeat the introduction of the context at the end.
Outcomes: see picture of the blackboard:
Children's drawing workshop
Proceedings:
1- The 80 children from grade 1 (7 years old) to grade 8 (15 years old) are divided in 8 groups (A, B, C and D), age blended, and led to the 8 classrooms.
2- Each group is given instructions to draw: Group A: a school compound
Group B: the lunchtime or a kitchen
Group C: a playground
Group D: a classroom The page shall be divided in two, one side where to draw a GOOD school compound/ lunchtime, etc and the other side where to draw a BAD school compound etc. On the back of the page, write you group, name and age.
The teachers were supposed to give the instructions without influencing the children on their drawings, which sometimes showed to be very challenging and required me to pass to each class and repeat to the teachers the importance of letting them draw whatever they wanted and that it didn't matter if they didn't come up with any relevant drawing.
3- The children present and explain what they have drawn on the Good side and on the Bad side, talking in Swahili with one of the teachers translating.
Hearing each of the 80 children would have been highly time consuming, specially that most of them are so shy (or impressed? Or afraid of saying something wrong?) that it takes several patient minutes to get a simple information from them. I also noticed without surprises that each group had drawn very similar things. I therefore sorted out similar drawings in piles and determined with the help of a teacher which child of each pile would be the less shy to describe me their drawing.
Outcomes: Recurrent drawn elements:
The school compounds drawings talked of a fence and a gate, of a flag and of beautiful flowers and trees.
The lunchtime and kitchen drawings talked of smoke, size and ventilation chimney, cleanliness, ugali and protection from the sun.
The playground drawings talked of a big and well kept football pitch with green grass.
The classroom drawings talked of bricks rather than mud and sticks and of many windows.
Next week will be my last days at The Humane School. It will be time to present and discuss my propositions and encourage the staff to evaluate and comment on the layouts, deconstruct and reconstruct my models.