| Schools Project gets international backing |
By: Karli Edmondson
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Posted: Monday, November 8, 2010 11:11 am
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A unique Sheffield-based project, aiming to construct a new school in one of the poorest rural areas near the Pakistan/Afghanistan border, has received new backing from the Vice-Chancellor of a University in Pakistan.
Students from the University of Sheffield, in partnership with a local school teacher, have been offered support from Professor Ihsan Ali, Vice-Chancellor of Mardan University in Pakistan, to develop the new school. Professor Ali has expressed an interest in working alongside the project team and has also offered the group land in the Mardan area to build a prototype of the school.
The Pakhtoon Schools Project is the brainchild of Ramon Mohamed, a 49-year old teacher from Broomhill. Ramon came up with the unique idea after visiting Afghanistan in 2009 to explore his family roots.
After observing several outdoor schools on his visit, Ramon became passionate about building a new school on the border of Afghanistan in the Jalalabad area of the country. The community-based schools in Afghanistan have a teaching day of only three hours. The children who attend work all day in the fields or their homes and many children don't even attend school at all. On a second visit to the region, Ramon visited schools in Northern Pakistan and realised that the conditions there were not much better, particularly in rural areas and for the thousands of refugees and displaced people that currently live there.
After formulating his idea, Ramon approached the University’s School of Architecture to collaborate on the project. The Bureau of Design Research (BDR) within the School has previous experience of working on a range of educational projects, from researching some of the best designed schools around the world to working with school pupils in the UK developing innovative new learning environments.
An exhibition was held last week (28 November 2010) to update members of the public and stakeholders on the designs and prototype for the new school, which have been developed by current architecture students at the University of Sheffield. The exhibition was visited by Professor Ali, who was in Sheffield to give a talk on the Archaeology and History of the Pakhtoon Region in the ICOSS building before viewing the student’s latest prototypes.
The BDR are now aiming to engage with young people and teachers in Afghanistan by sending resources and props to them to help develop a design brief for the project. Schools in the UK have also been involved through a series of workshops comparing the schools in both countries. By exchanging information and ideas with young people and teachers in Pakistan, Afghanistan and the UK over a period of time the goal will be to establish a creative dialogue to lead to the construction of schools that are rooted to their locality and made by local people in collaboration with architecture students.
Current students in the University’s School of Architecture have worked on the initiative as part of their Live Projects module. As part of their Masters course, students at the University of Sheffield are uniquely required to take a Live Projects module which sees them put their creative talents to use in a number of assignments in the Autumn of each academic year. One group of students chose the Pakhtoon Schools Project and have helped design the prototype of the school building.
Ramon said: “It is fantastic seeing the work of the students. Their work is inspiring and innovative and hopefully we can build a school from it in the near future. The work that the students have put in to developing research and ideas for a school has been amazing. I am proud of what the students have developed and really pleased that my relationship with the University of Sheffield has flourished.”
Professor Ali, Vice Chancellor of Mardan University said: “To me the setting up of the Pakhtoon Schools Project will help those individuals who are unable or unwilling to go to school due to economic or family restrictions. The spaces and guidance that this school can offer will bring them up to speed with other countries in the world. This project will lead us in a direction where we are able to train teachers and allow us to develop the existing schools in the region to bring awareness among schools so that they are on a par with the developed countries of the world.”
Leo Care, Associate Director of the BDR at the University, said: “This is the beginning of a unique partnership whose aim is to create innovative and sustainable schools both in terms of the architecture and the teaching that children will experience. The prototype school will be aimed at children who are currently unable to access school and give them the opportunity to learn in ways that we often take for granted.”
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