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American Educational Research Association Symposiums

2007 Symposium Description and Presenters

Participant Names and Affiliations:

Tak Cheung Chan, Kennesaw State University

Glen I. Earthman, Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University

Linda K. Lemasters, George Washington University

Lorraine Maxwell, Cornell University

C. Kenneth Tanner, University of Georgia

Megan Tschannen-Moran, College of William and Mary

Cynthia Uline, San Diego State University

Thomas DeVere Wolsey, San Diego State University

Sheila Bosch, Georgia Institute of Technology

Building Quality Schools for Learners and Communities

Few would question the effect of quality built environments on the success of a given task. Yet, 21 percent of schools in the United States are more than 50 years old and an additional 50 percent are at least 30 years old (Office of Education Research and Improvement, 2000). As the American public continues to demand accountability and excellence in curriculum, instruction, and assessment, the importance of quality school facilities for all students is increasingly important, as well. Older schools may not accommodate innovations in curriculum development, instructional strategies and content development (Chan, 1996), pointing to the need for new construction and renovation (Chan, 1979; Earthman & Lemasters, 1996; Phillips, 1997). Not surprisingly, the overall impression of a school effects the way students learn (Tanner, 2000). In a Washington, D. C. study, the physical state of the schools were found to be a predictor of student achievement; as the schools were improved, achievement scores rose (Berner, 1993). Additional studies also bear out this finding (Buckley, Schneider, & Shang, 2004; Cash, 1993; Earthman, 2004; Hines, 1996; Lanham, 1999; Lewis, 2000; Maxwell, 1999; O’Neill & Oates, 2001; Uline & Tschannen-Moran, 2006). Teachers perceive that orderly, clean buildings and the general character of the facility also influence student behavior (Lackney, 1996). Students are not the only ones affected by poor quality buildings. The nature and quality of the built learning environment affects teacher attitudes, behaviors, and performance (Lowe, 1990; Dawson & Parker, 1998; Schneider, 2003; Buckley, Schneider, & Shang, 2004). Significantly, the role of facilities in education is under-examined by the profession as a whole (Bosch, 2006). As both public and policy communities demand proof of the importance of the physical environment to student outcomes, researchers seek to bolster the case for decent schools with quantifiable correlations between bricks and mortar and student learning. Oversimplifications of the relationship may only heighten skepticism. A combination of research approaches may best inform. This symposium examines what we know about the influence of places where students learn upon their learning, as well as the role the public plays in shaping those learning spaces and joining the community of learners (Uline, 2000). It includes researchers who have been active in the study of school facilities over the past 20 years, as well as younger researchers who are bringing new questions, methodologies, and conceptualizations to this endeavor. In concert with the conference theme, researchers span the fields of education, architecture, and environmental psychology, presenting research and practice that is international in scope.