Building the school together–Reconstruction planning and design of Dali Elementary School Dali Elementary School of Toucheng Township, confronting the crisis of demolition due to the risk of insufficient seismic prevention, is a small school located in a fishing village neighboring the ocean, the coastal mountain range, and a massive Taoist temple. After many rounds of negotiation between the Education Bureau and the temple committee, the authority decided to rebuild the school at a nearby site for the next generation once the defective buildings expire. The old school is a beloved space imbued with local memories and identifications, and challenges of campus planning and design are imminent considering the expectations of bridging the affections and aspirations of students, staff, alumni, and local residents, and enhancing the program of special environmental education. The school hopes to involve more participation from the stakeholders during the processes of demolition and reconstruction, and to merge the architectural design, landscape planning, playground and public art programs with such environmental education. This practicum studio is a direct response to the real issues aforementioned, and initiates an action plan of “building the school together” with Dali Elementary School.
We kicked off the action with the concept of “play” to bring fun to the process of learning and to guide the students to delve into the natural and cultural dimensions of their adjacent environments and transform the local knowledge into experimental education materials. It was also a strategy of village regeneration and placemaking, while reinforcing local identification, to attract more young parents who are willing to move into rural areas for the special education for their children. Through intensive field investigations and local interviews, this practicum studio prepared a series of learning programs connecting natural environments, village culture and settings, and fishing industry to further plan and teach the courses with the partnership of the Dali school staff and students. The play-motivated students gradually internalized the local knowledge for a future imagination of the new school that conceptually encompasses the community at large. The operations of the practicum students reified the core values of participatory planning, and were thereby certified Changemakers award by the Youth Community Participatory Actions of the Ministry of Education.