Most schools are designed for 30 years of use, said Jaap Westbroek. During that time, there inevitably will be a new learning concept. The trick, he noted, is to create a building that can be adapted, which means learning to think of the future in a non-linear way.

We are currently in the midst of a paradigm shift; not a revolution, simply a growth of the old language to include new concepts. The new paradigm is a bigger circle with the same center. The shift has to do with the struggle on the edge of the smaller circle, the finding of new words and new grammar.

Just at the moment of shift from one paradigm to another, both are true and everything appears as a paradox. In a knowledge society, paradigms shift continuously, which is why creativity will be so important.

In the past, school architecture has been internally focused, shaped by societal organization. Today the shift is toward informal learning. Therefore, architects can help both teachers and students to be more creative by giving them well-designed space.

What is the old paradigm of school architecture? The process of normalization is hierarchical organization, i.e., what is normal is shown at the top. Architecture is similar. The process of normalization is anti-hierarchical organization.

For people to be normal in a knowledge society we need:

·         A new relation between the inside and the outside

·         A new relation between doing and thinking

·         Much room for creativity and the unexpected

·         Safety and rest.

The paradigm shift, concluded Westbroek, is that we are moving from mass education to on-demand education; from periods of learning to lifelong learning; and from the edge to the center of the economy.

Sara Malone