'Montessori College Oost' Amsterdam
Herman
Photos: Architectuurstudio Herman Hertzberger, Anne Malliet, Sofie Bullynck
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Status:
Realized
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Education level:
Secondary Education
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Address:
Polderweg 3, 1093 Amsterdam
The school as a social area
The Montessori College Oost is a secondary school with 1,200 to 1,600 pupils with more than 56 different nationalities. Many of them have problems adapting and are not very motivated, amongst other things, because they speak little or no Dutch. For this reason, the architect tried to make the circumstances for teaching as inviting as possible.
The natural environment of the pupils in secondary education is the city, where they are free to hang out with their friends. The space in the school was organised in such a way that it evokes associations with the city, a varied range of places where it is possible to hang out, come together and meet.
The classrooms were concentrated in two long rectangular buildings. These two blocks of classrooms are staggered by half a floor (split level). This strengthens the difference between the floors and results in a better connection between various parts of the school with different possible routes instead of one single central staircase. In addition, it improves the visual relationships between the different floors. Galleries, staircases and platforms connect the two blocks of classrooms. There is a broad gallery on every floor, with a view over the common hall, which gives access to the different classrooms. The balustrade of the galleries incorporates fold-up tables for the individual workplaces of the pupils. The platforms between the different floors have been made very wide so that lessons can be given there outside the classroom in a sort of amphitheatre. It is also possible to arrange to meet friends there during break, just as staircases in the city are always popular places for informal seating.
Next to the classrooms as much room as possible was combined together in an open urban space. In this way the communal area becomes one large space, and is not compartmentalised. The result is a long square lying between the two blocks of classrooms. At the same time, the hall serves for internal circulation and this is where the communal facilities are found, such as toilets, changing rooms, coffee corners, and so on. This social area has a street-like character, but a street which combines the ease of circulation with a number of interesting areas which the pupils pass through and where they can stay between and after lessons. When they change classrooms, the pupils do not wander through the building in a nomadic fashion, but are invited to visit the internal street, their own territory. This collective area is open and has been kept as transparent as possible so that the whole area can be overseen from a few strategic positions. Therefore, as a result of the layout, it is possible to supervise the area with minimal resources.
By creating an open spatial character, social interaction is promoted and stimulated. This results in a paradise for the young people to hang out, where social contact is part of education. The corridors, squares and staircases are not merely traffic routes, but just as much serve as social areas and educational areas for individual or collective use.