engleski

Transdisciplinary approach to healthy school environment and furniture design

Design of school environment and school furniture represents a transdisciplinary insufficiently researched problem. Responsible design observes children and adolescents as a specific and sensitive user group, mostly because during the school period children pass through intense psychophysical, cognitive, social and emotional growth and development. Research by the Design Council has confirmed that little is known about how school environment and furniture design affect the attitudes, behavior and well-being of children, enhance their willingness to learn, increase creativity and desire to preserve the school environment. Numerous studies around the world confirm the mismatch between furniture and children in schools, child dissatisfaction and complaints about musculoskeletal disorders, back pain (MSD/BP) and headaches. Today's school environment design is mostly discouraging and outdated, dysfunctional, does not follow secular trends in physical growth or encourage a sense of well-being at school. The current design of school environment and furniture needs to be redesigned urgently. In this process has to be involved inter- and transdisciplinary oriented experts in the fields of health, school medicine and occupational therapy, ergonomics, anthropometry, pedagogy, design and architecture, public procurement and production, and above all - children-oriented design, design thinking, innovative approach and practice in school environment design the most important requirements. The main goal is to achieve children's health and well-being in schools.

school environment, furniture design, children, health, well-being

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