Abstract
This project reimagines what schools in Singapore can be like through the redesign of a secondary school in Singapore. There are three main aspects to this redesign: Firstly, an alternative classroom typology is explored through redefining enclosure, organisation and pedagogy. This exploration juggles the realistic needs of actual students in the context of Singapore’s education curriculum, tropical climate and what we truly desire to achieve from education. The redesign is not limited to just the architecture, but also proposes a different pedagogy and customised furniture design. Secondly, the school pushes for the dissolution of the typically-strict boundaries between the school and community. This is achieved by reorganising the layout and accessibility of facilities, path networks and façade transparency. Thirdly, this project tackles the possibilities of schools being more than just a school; to design them to be useful architecture for a larger group of people and not just students. In the context of this site, Damai Secondary school is envisioned to also act as a bridge that connects the two parks flanking it on both ends. Through this project, the typically-rigid definition of a secondary school is stretched along many axes to see what they can potentially be and how that can respond to the current where blacking out sites specifically for schools are now becoming an inefficient modus operandi with the declining intakes.