In 2005, the Cayman Islands government
made a pledge to transform the country's
education system. Leveraging the
advantages of a small population and
a thriving economy, the Cayman Islands
Ministry of Education has embraced
the ambition of providing a framework
of opportunities for all learners on the
Islands, and promoting 21st-century
teaching and learning that will equip
students to compete on the
international stage.
With that ambition in mind, OWP/P has been developing a prototype plan for Cayman Islands high schools that is being constructed at three schools. The plan embraces the concept of project-based learning, a learning approach where students develop interdisciplinary skills for living in a knowledge-based, highly technological society.
Central to the plan for Cayman Islands high schools is the creation of smaller learning communities, called “academies.” Each academy is limited to 250 students to allow for a more intimate relationship between learners and teachers and reduce the issues that come with larger schools, such as overcrowding, security, and long commutes.
Every student will have access to readily available technology and inspiring surroundings that exude a strong sense of Caymanian culture, reinforcing the learners’ sense of identity and knowledge of local history. Every academy will have specific spaces celebrating the different modes of learning and the different intelligences, including collaborative spaces for group work, quiet spaces for reflective learning, and “discovery rooms” for multi-disciplinary projects. Trung Le, design principal at OWP/P, describes the inspiration for these agile spaces:
"For the reflective spaces, we were inspired by the story of Albert Einstein. In 1905, the year he published his theory of relativity, Einstein was working at the Swiss Patent Office. He wanted to work there because the job was easy and, more importantly, the office was quiet, which gave him an opportunity to think through his ideas. Even for those of us who aren’t Einsteins, the reflective mode can be very productive, and many students work well independently. So we’ve designed a quiet space with personalized furniture, technology, and lighting. It’s acoustically private but visually connected to the collaborative space, so there’s always a chance for students to see what their peers are doing.
“The Discovery Studio is a space inspired by the idea that creative people, such as Leonardo Da Vinci, use art and science at the same time to make discoveries. So this is where art and science are taking place in the same area. It’s a large space; one side is all science lab casework, with water and gas. On the other side, it’s all art casework, with storage for art supplies and projects. The space allows students to flow back and forth between rational, logical thinking and something more intuitive and inspired. It’s in that integration of science thinking and art thinking that creativity starts to happen. Architectural studios work the same way: There are no divisions between where we draw and where we do spreadsheets; where we make messes and have group discussions. We’re taking practices that we know work in real life and bringing them to the kids, which promotes ‘design thinking’ at an early stage.
“The Design and Technology building is a media-rich, agile, experimental building that includes space for making things, reinforcing the idea that we all learn by doing, an important concept to remember as we shift from the information age to the conceptual age. By the same token, we’re treating teachers as professionals, and designing workspaces and meeting space for them where they, too, can share best practices, and embark on project-based learning and teaching.”
Adapted from: Angela Martins interview with Trung Le, OWP/P
