Design for IB and IGCSE Curriculum School

ASM Green Designs Pvt Ltd being the exclusive school architecture firm in India have hands on experience in designing one of the best International Curriculum schools in India. In designing an international curriculum school (IB/IGCSE), the design approach and consideration are a lot different while designing an Indian curriculum school.

With our exquisite experience of understanding schools, it needs to be noted that the curriculum framework of Indian schools is oriented around an evaluation-based education system as opposed to international curriculum framework which facilitates learning through life skills and practical application learning methods. Accordingly, the school designs, site plan, facility plan, floor plan and the building elevations are conceived as per curriculum. The international curriculum framework requires design elements across campus that create segregated learning zones, facility plan comprising lab zones for various subject learnings as well as segregated co-curricular zones. The international education framework lays stress on personality development and creating multiple exposure platforms for its wards while focusing on skill development where they want their students to explore, develop and work on their fields of interests. The international curriculum school in addition to indoor provision focuses strongly on outdoor fields, outdoor sports activities, outdoor learning areas and community awareness aspects including creating sensitivity amongst students for environment and social causes.

It also needs to be understood and accepted that as mentioned in our previous written blogs, every segment of parents has different aspirations and hence expectations from a school. A parent subscribing to Indian curriculum school will have a completely different set of requirements and expectations from the school with respect to facility plan, building infrastructure, pedagogy, learning techniques and the end outcome. Primarily International curriculum schools in order for anyone to undertake the affiliations is a very costly affair which leads to them having necessarily high fee structure for such schools. Of course, the fee structure has a varied range depending on the offering and the immediate catchment for which the schools are planned. International curriculum school subscribers are generally planned for upper mid segment and premium segment parents who are willing to pay a premium fee on account of holistic development of their wards on account of new pedagogical means and exposure platforms. Hence the design of international curriculum school is predominantly focused on adding grandeur and glamour to school entrance, building façade, building elevations, campus features, arrival zone along with reception area, admin zone and even for classrooms having low density per class. Lab facilities and co-curricular zones being planned with addition to the pre primary classes should reflect the exclusivity with reference to what the prospective subscribing parents may expect. Even the common areas, corridor areas, corridor walls depict a relevant theme while having a transitioning effect from junior to senior areas. Additional facilities for presentation and training workshops with exclusive Library and IT resource center along with various collaborative spaces eventually form the basis of focus while designing an international curriculum school. Every design element and aspect should support and facilitate effective school operations. The subscribing parents in the initial days of the school get attracted and affiliate to international curriculum school on the basis of infrastructure where they are made to feel a sense of getting associated with something exclusive, premium and a new concept which eventually becomes the conversion point for any new school thereby differentiating itself from the others. The projection and positioning of the school shall be such that even while the admission counsellors are sharing details about the school, an imagination for how effective the offering is going to be is shared to parents. The same aspects and impact creation further can happen effectively if the spaces are designed to substantiate their claims and facilitate the discussions effectively. Hence the design approach for international school projects are very focused and are oriented around what every space is going to reflect while the school is introduced in the location for the first time.