Hands-on with Learn-Move-Play-Ground! An alternative (social?) way of teaching
by baladilab – Vittoria Capresi, Barbara Pampe
The talk will present five Learn-Move-Play-Grounds realized in Cairo between 2012 and 2014, discussing the importance of such projects for the Egyptian and German participating students, and questioning the social value of such interventions.
“Learn-Move-Play-Ground. Improving courtyards of public primary schools in Cairo” is a series of projects, which took place in Cairo, initiated and organised by Prof. Barbara Pampe and Prof. Dr. Vittoria Capresi in cooperation with several local and German partners.
The projects were framed in the teaching activities at the Faculty of Architecture of the German University in Cairo - GUC, and addressed architecture students and students of educational science from several Universities in Cairo and Germany. LMPG aimed at improving courtyards of public primary schools in Cairo, through a participatory process, which directly involved the children, teachers, parents and other persons working at the schools.
During an intensive hands-on workshop, students from Germany and Egypt worked together with the children, teachers of the schools and the team, to find out the hidden potential of the schoolyards. The aim was to create a flexible playing landscape, translating the dreams of the children into playing elements. Using local bricks, concrete, wood and colors different spaces to play, move and
learn were created. The realized objects and landscapes were simple, low-cost, and built with uncomplicated and local techniques. Nevertheless, they have the power to be flexible and adaptable because their functions and meanings are open to different uses and can be readapted in line with the imagination and ideas of the children.
Until 2015, five playing landscapes were implemented in five different public primary schools in Cairo.
Three projects were financed by the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs through the DAAD – the German Academic Exchange Service, and two were sponsored by UNHCR Cairo.
More info under: www.baladilab.com
