The next time you walk along your high street, look up.
Aerial view of Blackett Street, Newcastle © Stephen McLaren
Look above the shop-fronts to the upper stories and the roofline, and you’ll realise the row of buildings that looks so uniform at ground-level isn’t so uniform after all. You’ll see not only variety, but history, a range of styles and of past and current building usages that are part of the landscape you thought you knew.
Crossing that visual boundary doesn’t take much physical effort, but for some young people, boundaries of this kind bring with them psychological effort, too.
Research shows that low achievers can find it difficult to understand the wider world and to see themselves as part of it. They see themselves only in the context of what is immediate and familiar, and as a consequence their aspirations are constrained. Literally and figuratively, their horizons are limited.
One of the aims in developing the Engaging Places project has been to broaden the horizons of such students. ‘Social bonders’, as they are called, tend to live within close-knit communities, and lack the ability to bring perspective to their relationships with people and places – in short, to see themselves from the outside.
By contrast, high achievers tend to be ‘social bridgers’: they are more connected to different social groups and communities, and as a consequence they have a broader world view. Being encouraged to engage with the built environment is one step towards helping social bonders to develop that bridging mindset.
Student projects
Several design projects have been witnesses to the possibility of such change. Since an exercise at a sixth-form college in Hackney took shape, not only did all the students involved pass the grading criteria for the units of study covered in the project, but they all produced their strongest work in its execution.
Two of the students have expressed an interest in architecture as a career, and others are considering interior design. Interestingly, course leaders found the project matched the learning style of students, as it became plain that many of them were 3D thinkers and found this more fulfilling than 2D design work.
Literally and figuratively, this design project has added a further dimension to the capacity of students to interact with – and contribute to – their built environment.
Pedestrians crossing Blackett Street, Newcastle © Stephen McLaren
Big Town Plan
Similarly, young people in Castleford have become involved in a town-wide urban regeneration initiative under the auspices of Channel 4’s Big Town Plan. As a consequence, greater understanding and respect has developed between the younger and older residents as they moved towards their shared goal.
The social lives of the young people have also benefited, as they met new people and extended their networks. Working with town councillors and others has given them an insight into how their town is run and the ways in which they can influence change. In some cases, these connections have led to employment for the young people involved in ways they couldn’t have foreseen.
Students in their early to mid-teens are at a critical life-stage, where open- or closed-minded attitudes are formed. Giving them cultural opportunities at this age, as Engaging Places supports, can play a big part not only in raising their aspirations, but in raising their line of sight – from the shop-front to the rooftop.
