Mainstreaming environmental education for architects: the need for basic literacies

What are recent architectural graduates’ perceptions about the level of knowledge required of interns entering architectural practice and the suitability of architectural education? Research is presented that examines recent alumni’s engagement with environmental sustainability while in school. Two aspects of their educational experience are surveyed: their readiness for sustainable design work and their familiarity with the benefits of reusing existing buildings. Recent alumni of the Virginia Tech School of Architecture + Design were asked to explain the areas of practice for which they were best and least prepared, to identify additional educational topics they would have found useful, to name the key purposes and priorities of the discipline of architecture, and to articulate changes they wished to see in schools of architecture. The results point to a current pedagogy where the tacit and explicit knowledge that is critical to the adoption of sustainable approaches to design of new and retrofit structures is undervalued in architectural education. Suggestions from the literature and strategies to ameliorate this situation are presented.

Practice relevance

Two basic areas of literacy necessary for graduating architecture students are addressed. The first is readiness for environmentally sustainable work, which includes understanding building science concepts. Results of rating and open-ended survey questions indicate that many recent undergraduate alumni feel a sense of obligation to protect the natural environment through their design efforts, but do not claim facility with tangible means to achieve this goal in the design of buildings. The second is appreciation of the existing building fabric, which involves engaging a range of preservation and reuse strategies that preserve the embodied energy present in existing structures. Many alumni felt their education did not prepare them for renovation and reuse work that is often prevalent in their current practices. Architectural educators can take an active role to anticipate the changing needs of the profession and adjust their curricula to provide appropriate capabilities.