Primary - General Educational Principles

Public schools belong to the people of New South Wales. NSW DoE has the responsibility to provide the best design solution for schools now and into the future. Therefore it is important that designers have regard for:

• current and future teaching and learning practices and trends
• the original design intent for the school site

The general educational principles listed below translate the NSW DoE vision for learning into a set of design considerations for learning environments. They make a strong and clear statement about valued learning and the school’s place in the community. Drawing on Great Teaching, Inspired Learning, the General Education Principles for Facilities Design ensure that NSW students are ‘inspired to learn by great teachers and great teaching’ in learning environments that support the needs of learners, their communities and a learning-centred approach. When designing learner-centered educational facilities, these broad principles can be enriched by understanding the school's long-term goals and how their local decisions reflect local needs.

These principles serve as a reference point for facilities design, guaranteeing alignment with DoE’s vision and the Australian Curriculum, while providing the flexibility required for users to develop ownership and a unique stamp.

General Educational Principles

The NSW DoE Educational Facilities will:

Education Principle 1:      First and foremost, focus on the needs of learners and learning.

Education Principle 2:      Build community and identity and create a culture of welcome, inclusion and belonging that reflects and respects diversity within the school’s community.

Education Principle 3:      Be aesthetically pleasing.

Education Principle 4:      Provide contemporary, sustainable learning environments that:

• Promote learning for students and teachers through collaboration, social interaction and active investigation
• Encourage learner self-management and self-direction 
• Support a full range of teaching strategies from direct explicit instruction to facilitation of inquiry and authentic project and problem based learning
• Facilitate learning and connection anywhere, anytime by providing seamless access to ICT and integration of learning resources throughout the learning spaces
• Be integrated into, and maximise the use of the natural environment
• Enable aspects of the buildings, building design and outdoor spaces to be learning tools in themselves—for example, learning from the ecologically sustainable features of the design and associated energy management systems
• Are age and stage appropriate                                      

Education Principle 5:      Embed the potential for re-configurability, both in the present for multi-purpose use and over time for changing needs.