Page 75 - Looking_after_school

2. The architecture: from the educational institution
to the learning environment

Table 3. Power diagrams: synopticon, panopticon, 360° feedback

Instrument Relation Technique Result Mechanism

Synopticon law/rule submission jurisdiction, level of juridification
setting an obedience
example (subject)

Panopticon norm discipline inspection, level of normalisation
correction normality
(individual)

360° profile monitor feedback, level of personalisation
feedback incentive recognition
(person)

Conclusion: from the student to the learner

With our thesis on the shift of the architecture of the educational
institution to that of the learning environment, we want to point out a
change in the blueprint that has occurred concerning the concrete ways
in which the organisation of education and learning is devised. This
does not mean that there are only learning environments now, and that
educational institutions have all disappeared; it does mean, however,
that there have been shifts in the ideals and imaginaries circling the
world of education, in the materials which are considered necessary,
in the demanded functions and societal embedding, and also in the
building plans which are used for policy making. As a conclusion, we
would like to emphasise three aspects: what it means to focus on the
student, the possible tensions that may arise within each architecture,
and the tensions which may arise between architectures.
Firstly, it is relevant to point out that like in the architecture of the learn-
ing environment, the student also became the main concern of the
educational institution, even though it is probably not experienced as
such today (see table 4.). The year-systems based on subject matter and
differentiation through norms/age allow differences between students
to be brought to the surface, and to make adaptations as necessary.

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