Module IV - Space Management in Institutions of Teacher Education › sites › default › files › Module IV... · 2011-11-22 · module 3. Heads of Teacher Education Institutions

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MODULE 4

SPACE MANAGEMENT IN INSTITUTIONS OF TEACHER EDUCATION

By Dr. Jessica N. Aguti


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CONTENTS

PRELIMINARIES ..................................................................................................................... 3 NOTES TO THE USERS ...................................................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................. 3 OBJECTIVES ........................................................................................................................ 3 QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION ....................................................................................... 4

UNIT 1: THE CONTEXT OF SPACE MANAGEMENT IN TEACHER EDUCATION INSTITUTIONS ........................................................................................................................ 5

1.1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................... 5 1.2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES............................................................................................. 5 1.3 KEY CONCEPTS ............................................................................................................ 5 1.4 CONTEXT ....................................................................................................................... 6

1.4.1 Space for different uses ............................................................................................. 6 1.4.2 Increased pressure on space ................................................................................... 10 1.4.3 Changing work demands......................................................................................... 11 1.4.4 Maintenance of space .............................................................................................. 12

SELF ASSESSMENT .......................................................................................................... 12 UNIT 2: PLANNING NORMS FOR SURFACE AREA IN TEIs.......................................... 13

2.1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................ 13 2.2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES........................................................................................... 13 2.3 KEY CONCEPTS .......................................................................................................... 13 2.4 FACTORS TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT WHILE ALLOCATING SPACE .............. 14

2.4.1 Nature of activity .................................................................................................... 15 2.4.2 The number of students/staff .................................................................................. 15

2.5 DIFFERENT NORMS .................................................................................................. 16 UNIT 3: STRATEGIES FOR SPACE MANAGEMENT IN TEIs ......................................... 19

3.1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 19 3.2 UNIT OBJECTIVES ..................................................................................................... 19 3.3 KEY CONCEPTS .......................................................................................................... 19 3.4 NATIONAL STRATEGIES .......................................................................................... 19 3.5 INSTITUTIONAL STRATEGIES ................................................................................ 20

3.5.1 Type of buildings or facilities the institutions need ................................................ 21 3.5.2 Master plan.............................................................................................................. 22 3.5.3 Private Sector involvement ..................................................................................... 22 3.5.4 Rationalization of space .......................................................................................... 23 3.5.5 Space for income generation ................................................................................... 24

4.4 SUMMARY/CONCLUSION ........................................................................................ 25 4.5 LESSONS LEARNED................................................................................................... 26 4.6 SELF ASSESSMENT .................................................................................................... 26 4.7 REFERENCES .............................................................................................................. 27


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PRELIMINARIES

NOTES TO THE USERS This module addresses issues of space management in Teacher Education Institutions (TEIs).

This is important because space is one of the vital ingredients for the achievement of

institution missions and yet, it is becoming increasingly scarce as the demand for education

increases but resources remain meagre. This module is therefore meant to encourage you to

assess space utilization in your institution, identify areas where you could more efficiently

utilise your space and identify strategies you can use to better manage your space.

This module has three units that discuss a variety of issues. It also has a number of activities

and questions for reflection that you should make every effort to do. Some case studies have

been provided to illustrate some of the points raised and to motivate you to reflect on your

own situation and practice. At the end of each unit, you will find self-assessment questions,

and you should try to answer these questions. They are meant to give you an opportunity to

assess yourself, and establish how much of the unit you have understood.

Lastly please note that this module is designed in such a way that you can study it alone. But

it can also be used to initiate discussions and debates in a group activity. Enjoy your study

and good luck as you strive to improve your staff management.

INTRODUCTION

The demand for education in many countries in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has increased

tremendously because of growing populations and growing interest in higher education. The

effect of this on institutions has been increased pressure on existing facilities including space.

This issue of increased demand for higher education has already been discussed in detail in

module 3. Heads of Teacher Education Institutions (TEIs) therefore need to be more

prepared to manage space better for the provision of a good teaching-learning environment.

This module focuses on examining the issues around space management in TEIs.

OBJECTIVES

By the end of this module, you will be able to:

1. Assess space availability and utilization in your institution;


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2. Maximise utilisation of space in your institution;

3. Promote a culture of maintenance of infrastructure in your institution;

4. Identify strategies for improving space management.

However, before delving into the major topics of this module, here are some questions for

your reflection. Please do take time to think about these questions, because it will help you

make a good start on the module. You might also find it useful to note down your thoughts

on these questions, so that and you can return to these answers again and again as you

progress through the module.

QUESTIONS FOR REFLECTION

1. Do you have problems with space in your institution?

2. How do you think space can be utilized in your institution to achieve your

institution’s mission?

There is no correct or wrong answer to these questions. However, your answer to question 1

should help identify some of the challenges that TEIs face in the utilization of space. In

addition, question 2 should have drawn your attention to your institution’s mission, and it

should have prompted you to think about issues of maximum utilization of space for the

fulfilment of the institute’s mission. It is hoped that your reflection on these two questions

has motivated you to explore the issues of space management.


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UNIT 1: THE CONTEXT OF SPACE MANAGEMENT IN TEACHER EDUCATION

INSTITUTIONS

1.1 INTRODUCTION

The utilisation and management of space in any institution is an indication of the institution’s

focus. Teacher education institutions (TEIs) have the major mandate of providing teacher

trainees with a teaching/learning environment that will help them acquire knowledge, skills

and attitudes for effective teaching. This would need to be done using a variety of methods.

An institution whose focus is teacher-centred methodologies is likely to allocate more space

to lectures, while an institution with a focus on learner-centred methodologies is likely to

allocate more space to workshops, tutorials and seminars. Even with distance education

programmes where institutions may not require as much space as institutions providing

residential programmes, space will still be required for various functions. Also, the quality of

programmes and activities of an institution is linked to the quality of space available and how

that space is managed. Institutions therefore need space so as to meet their missions, because

it is intricately linked to academic programmes. TEIs need space to be able to carry out

teaching and learning activities. Ultimately, how that space is managed becomes a matter of

concern.

1.2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of this unit, you should be able to:

1. Identify the different uses of space in your institution;

2. Establish the impact of increased demand for space on space utilization.

1.3 KEY CONCEPT

Norms


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1.4 CONTEXT

Space is critical to academic programmes, but its allocation in any TEI is context-bound. It is

therefore vital that before we examine other issues related to space management in TEIs, we

examine this context.

1.4.1 Space for different uses

As earlier mentioned, TEIs as institutions of higher learning have many activities to carry out

and all these activities demand space. As Abagi (1999) says,

Space requirements and utilization in public universities, like in any other learning institution, should be conditioned by the activities of the required space and the number of students and staff

a) Teaching

The first major activity in TEIs is teaching. To be able to do this, institutions need:

o Classrooms/lecture theatres for general lectures;

o Seminar rooms for tutorials;

o Laboratories and workshops for practical work;

o Computer rooms for e-learning and other computer related teaching learning

activities.

This must be looked at in light of the changing teaching/learning paradigms, because the

extent to which space is allocated for these different teaching/learning activities will depend

on the pedagogy being used by the TEI. For example, as mentioned above, if the institution

uses largely teacher-centred methods, then a lot more space is likely to be allotted to lectures.

This would also apply to new structures being put up. On the other hand, if the institution is

using a lot of learner-centred methodologies, then more space will be allotted to activities like

seminars, workshops and practical work. The furniture in these rooms will also reflect the

dominant pedagogy in the institution. For example, immovable furniture is likely to imply

that the institution does not emphasize variation of teaching/learning methodologies.


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b) Micro teaching

The other major activity of TEIs is giving student-teachers practical skills as teachers. To do

this would require space for micro teaching, demonstrations or peer teaching to give the

students opportunity to practice teaching before going to schools. The type of space required

for peer teaching should not be same as lecture theatres, but would have to be the kind of

room whose furniture can be rearranged to reflect a classroom setting and to cater for the

demands of the methods of teaching being used.

c) Individual study and research

The other major activity for the TEIs is individual study and research. TEIs need to plan

space for student private study time. Again, if institutions are to encourage students to take

charge of their learning, then they must be given opportunity to do research and to study on

their own. There will therefore be need for reading rooms and library space.

Reading rooms can be general reading rooms within the university campus or in the student

hostels or halls of residence. Even where hostels may be privately owned, a TEI should

indicate to hostel owners the need for such space before the institution can recommend a

specific hostel to students. However, many institutions today have large student numbers and

few reading rooms so, finding students studying under trees are a common sight, though

some do so as a matter of choice too.

Photograph of a lecture hall with fixed seats

Photo of a seminar room with chairs arranged around a table


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One of the indicators for the quality of an institution is the quality of its library. This

includes both the quality of the resources in the library and the quality of its building(s). A

good library should have sufficient space for its book and journal collections, for e –resources

and for reading space. In the absence of reading rooms in many TEIs, the library is the sole

space for this and should therefore be planned for. The ideal space allocation is 2.5m2 for

each student. Also, with the growing use of Internet as a research tool, computer laboratories

for research have to be a major component of the library facilities.

d) Management and administration

To ensure that all these activities discussed here actually take place, TEIs will need to plan

for space for management and administration. This includes:

o Office space, including facilities for student guild offices. More and more institutions

are involving students in institute management. Catering for student guild offices

therefore becomes imperative;

o Staff common rooms or staff rooms. In module 3 Unit 3, we discussed the

importance of staff motivation in staff management. Staff rooms or common rooms

can be used to give staff opportunity to work together and to promote team spirit, all

of which are critical for staff efficiency;

o Accommodation for both students and staff;

o Conference facilities.

A photo of students studying under a

tree


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e) Recreation

The last activity that institutions need to plan for is recreation for both students and staff.

Recreation is integral to the holistic development, health and motivation of both students and

staff, and should therefore be planned for. This will require sports fields and facilities,

canteens and other entertainment facilities like dance/disco halls. This last one is sometimes

a reason for conflict if it is not planned for properly. Students may want to dance/listen to

music or watch movies, and if no proper facility is in place, then they engage in these

activities in a manner that might disturb the peace of others.

Lastly, as we come to the end of this sub section of space for different uses, as a manager for

a TEI, you should remember to plan for people with disabilities in order to make buildings

and other facilities accessible to them. And if your institution runs distance education

programmes, then you will need to plan for this as well.

f) Space plans for People With Disabilities (PWDs)

All buildings and facilities that your institution plans for should cater for students and staff

with disabilities. Each building should have provisions for the physically disabled to access

the buildings through either ramps or lifts. Are there any multiple storey buildings in the

institution and are there any lifts? If so, have the needs of the blind been catered for? The

other key provision is special parking space for the disabled. Physically disabled persons

may require parking space for either their cars or their wheel chairs and these should be

planned for. Persons with disabilities also need provisions for special lavatories and these too

should be planned for.

Achieving this has in some countries been facilitated through legislations that require that all

public buildings take into account the needs of persons with disabilities.

Does your country and/or institution have any legislation requiring provisions for PWDs in the construction of public buildings?


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g) Space for Distance Education Activities

Module 3 Unit 1 discussed the challenges arising from increased social demand for

education. One of these challenges is the increased demand for teachers. A number of

countries in SSA have therefore adopted distance education methodologies to provide both

pre-service and in-service teacher education. However, distance education programmes do

not have the same space needs as residential programmes because the activities are different.

The space requirements would also depend on the technology being used and on the model of

provision adopted. Regardless of the technology and the model adopted, here are some

activities that would be undertaken in distance education programmes for which space would

be needed:

o Study materials production and storage. Distribution of the study materials,especially

in the case of written study materials, audio cassettes, videos, DVDs, VCDs, and CD-

ROMs;

o Tutorial rooms;

o Study centres. If an institution is to provide services to the distance learners away

from the university, then there will be need for student centres where students can

receive study materials, submit/receive assignments, meet for group

discussions/tutorials, do examinations and for any other activities planned for.

If your institution chooses to engage in distance education, then you will have to plan for all

these activities so as to ensure quality teaching/learning.

1.4.2 Increased pressure on space

Increased student numbers, staff and research demands have created pressure on space in

TEIs, because the growth in the demand is not necessarily met by a corresponding increase in

o In this section we have identified that your institution would need space for teaching, reading rooms, library facilities, recreation, distance education activities and for PWDs. Are there any other functions for which you think your institution would need space?


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space. Many TEIs face challenges, especially in the midst of dwindling financing from

government, and are therefore unable to put up new buildings. Balancing all these demands

certainly requires efficient management of the available space and any other space being put

up. Inappropriate allocation of space can and does lead to tensions among students, staff

and administrators. As a leader of a TEI, you need to be prepared to carefully manage space

so as to ensure full achievement of your institute’s mission. You will need to remember that

there is likely to be a lot of pressure on space at your institution and therefore rationalization

of use of this space will be helpful.

1.4.3 Changing work demands

Changing work practices in the world of work imply that tertiary institutions also need to

revisit their own work practices and therefore space utilization. They need to prepare

students for the new work practices. One of the new corporate strategies in the utilisation of

space is open space offices; where a number of people share an office. There is now more

pressure for staff in tertiary institutions of learning to also adopt new strategies of sharing

office space. Corporate strategies of managing people and space are now being adopted by

TEIs as well. For example, some TEIs and schools are now adopting the open office space

approach. Teacher trainers should lead their trainees by example.

The other emerging issue in relation to changing work demands is the changes in the type of

graduate the job market demands. The job market today demands a graduate that is versatile,

trainable and capable of independent work. Likewise, schools today are looking for teachers

that promote learner-centred, problem-based and collaborative teaching and learning.

Schools are no longer looking for the “I know it all’ teacher.

Previously, schools emphasized teacher-centred methods of teaching, and all study and work

places were designed to ensure the teacher was at the centre of the teaching learning

activities. However, the paradigm shift now sees the teacher as a facilitator and the learner as

taking charge of his/her learning and in many ways contributing to this process. The study

and work places must therefore be designed to facilitate these new roles and to accommodate

collaborative teaching and learning. Classroom and lecture theatres must, of necessity,

change.


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1.4.4 Maintenance of space

It is important to plan and manage the process of putting up various buildings, but it is also

equally important to prepare for the maintenance of these facilities. Sadly, however, many

institutions do not have sufficient funds to do this because, as mentioned earlier, many

institutions have inadequate funds. In addition, even where little or no funds are required for

the maintenance of facilities, some institutions do not have a culture of maintaining their

facilities. As a result, the structures begin to look bad and dilapidated and ultimately require

a lot more funds for major repairs.

To wind up this discussion of the context of the management of space in TEIs, please do the

following assignment. It should help you appreciate your own context.

SELF ASSESSMENT

1. Why is it often said that space is vital but scarce?

2. What are some of the challenges to efficient space utilization in TEIs?

o As a manager of a TEI, what do you think you would have to do with your existing space to achieve collaborative teaching and learning?

o Is the space in your institution adequate for all the institute’s programmes

and activities?

o How many buildings have been put up in your institution in the last five

years?

o What is the total area of this space and how much more space does your

institution still need?

o Are the needs of the disabled taken care of in your buildings and facilities?


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UNIT 2: PLANNING NORMS FOR SURFACE AREA IN TEIS

2.1 INTRODUCTION

Most TEIs will not have sufficient space for all their

programmes and activities. So, satisfying the needs and

demands of all the programmes, activities and staff will

require careful planning in the construction of

buildings, and for the utilization of whatever space may

already be available. Also, to effectively plan, there is

need for a policy on the utilization of space.

Box 3

The following questions would, for example, need to be answered:

i) How many square meters does a student need in class, laboratory, hall of residence

etc?

ii) How is space to be shared across institutions in the country and/or across

departments?

iii) What are the guidelines for the reassignment of space to other uses?

Setting standards for space allocation helps to achieve efficiency. But before we continue, we

will first identify some of the factors that should be taken into account when planning to

construct or to allocate space.

2.2 LEARNING OBJECTIVES

By the end of this unit, you should be able to:

1. Discuss the major factors that must be taken into account while allocating space for

various uses;

2. Revisit your institution’s space allocation criteria.

2.3 KEY CONCEPT

Space utilization

Space utilization measures and evaluates the use of scheduled and non scheduled academic/administrative facilities. Space utilization studies combine student scheduling, staff, time and space data. Purdue University (2004)


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2.4 FACTORS TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT WHILE ALLOCATING SPACE

Each institution should aim at optimum utilization of all available space. One way of

achieving this is to carefully consider the key factors that should be taken into account while

allocating space. As we prepare to discuss factors that take into account during space

allocation, read through Case Study 1 presented in Box 1 and answer the questions that

follow.

Box 1: Case study 1

CASE STUDY 1: PATONG TEACHERS COLLEGE RUNS EXAMINATIONS

Patong Teachers College run its end of year examinations for its 1000 diploma teacher

trainees. The timetable for the examinations was drawn up by the Academic Registrar while

the Departments were left to provide invigilators for the supervision of these examinations.

At the end of the examination season, the Heads of Department provide reports to the

Academic Registrar. When the reports were discussed, the following major issues were

raised:

1. Rooms in Block A had large student numbers and, as a result, the Department of

Foundation of Education had to provide more invigilators than had earlier been planned,

so to adhere to the invigilator: student ratio prescribed and to reduce chances of students

cheating or aiding one another during the examinations since they sat too close to each

other.

2. In Block D, when each of the rooms could have accommodated at least 50 students each,

three of the rooms had only ten students each. The students were therefore spread across

many rooms when only a few could have been used.

3. The lecture theatre was also used for examinations although only half its lights were

working.

These issues troubled the Academic Board which resolved that such occurrences should be

eliminated completely. The Board therefore appointed a five member ad hoc committee to

look into the causes for these disturbing reports and to recommend strategies for avoiding

similar incidents in the future.


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Questions

1. Why do you think Patong Teachers’ College had problems of space during its

examinations?

2. If Patong is to avoid a repeat of this situation, what factors should the college consider

while allocating students to each room?

3. What would you recommend as the invigilator: student ratio that this college should

use while allocating invigilators to the different rooms, and how far apart should the

students be while sitting in the examination halls?

It is believed that the answers you give to these questions have helped you think about the

factors that need to be taken into account while planning space allocation and utilisation. In

the next sub sections, we will examine these in more detail.

2.4.1 Nature of activity

In section 4.2 we discussed the context of space management in TEIs and one of the issues

raised there was the different uses to which space is likely to be put to use. It is therefore for

you as a manager to remember that your institution will engage in many different activities

and space should be allocated taking this into account. Different activities have different

space needs and this should be one of the key factors to take into account while allocating

space.

2.4.2 The number of students/staff

The number of students or staff that will use the space must also be taken into account. If

each student in a classroom is expected to take up 2.5m2 then you would have to take this into

account while allocating a specific number of students to a specific class or lecture room.

You would need to know the size of each classroom/lecture/seminar room and the number of

students each of these rooms should take in.

Do the following exercise; it will help you establish the different sizes of all your spaces.

You can use the format given in the following table. Follow the example given.


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Space Size of space Maximum number of students/staff

Seminar 1 30m2 12

Please take note that you might require large space for the same number of students if the

activity they are to engage in requires more work space for each student. For example, if to

participate in a science practical, a student requires 3m2 each, then a 30m2 room that would

take in 12 students for a seminar would only take 10 students for the practical.

2.5 DIFFERENT NORMS

As already mentioned in the previous sub section, it is important for each institution to put in

place the norms or minimum standards for the utilisation of space. There are no world

standards set for the utilisation of space, so these norms are likely to vary from country to

country and possibly from institution to institution.

The following example gives the minimum requirements set by the Uganda National Council

for Higher Education for the different infrastructure in any institution for higher learning in

Uganda.

Item Ideal Good Acceptable Can be improved

Unacceptable

Classroom space

2.5m2 per 1student

2m2 per 1 student

1m2 per 1 student

1m2 per 4 students

1m2 per 5 students

Library space 2.5m2 per 1 student

2m2 per 1 student

1m2 per 1 student

1m2 per 4 students

1m2 per 5 students

Science laboratories

3m2 per one student

2.5m2 per one student

1m2 per 1 student

1m2 per 4 students

1m2 per 5 students

Computer Laboratory

3m2 per 1student

2.5m2 per 1student

1m2 per 1 student

1m2 per 4 students

1m2 per 5 students

Administrative staff

5m2 per 1 staff

4m2 per 1 staff

3m2 per 1 staff 2m2 per 1staff 1m2 or less per one staff

Academic staff 5m2 per 1 student

4m2 per 1 student

3m2 per 1 student

2m2 per 1 student

1m2 or less per 1 staff

Sports field 1 field for 500 registered students

1 field for 1000 students



1 field for 2500 or more students

Source: National Council for Higher Education (2001)


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You may agree or disagree with these standards as set by Uganda, but the important point

here is that standards are set and institutions are expected to strive to fulfil these standards.

These same standards can also be used by accrediting agencies to determine the level of

quality of infrastructure and service delivery in training institutions.

Now study the norms given in the next example and compare these with what you have

established for your institutions and your country. Please note that these particular norms

apply to office space. However, since every TEI will also have offices, you can study these in

relation to management of office space in your institution.

o What are the minimum standards set by your country?

o What are the minimum standards as set by your

institutions?


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Box 2: Space Norms in South Africa Source: Republic of South Africa 2005:7


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UNIT 3: STRATEGIES FOR SPACE MANAGEMENT IN TEIs

3.1 INTRODUCTION

The previous sections all indicate that space is a very important element in the achievement of

an institution's mission and objectives. However, management of space is a challenge and

each institution needs to carefully plan the construction of all its buildings and other

infrastructure, and also needs to carefully plan the allocation of that space.

In this section, we will identify some of the strategies that you can use to manage your space.

3.2 UNIT OBJECTIVES

By the end of this unit you should be able to:

1. Outline the national strategies used in your country to guide space utilization

2. Identify institutional strategies that you can use to guide space management and

utilization in your institution.

3.3 KEY CONCEPTS

Strategies

3.4 NATIONAL STRATEGIES

In many countries in sub-Saharan Africa, teacher education institutions belong to the

government, which articulates how space in the institutions may be used. For example, the

government may decide that all student teachers are government sponsored, but that students

would not be accommodated by the college or university. When this happens, then colleges

would not be expected to allocate space to student accommodation.

On the other hand, if it is government policy to accommodate all student teachers, then the

universities and colleges would have to plan for student accommodation. The same would

apply to the policy of providing accommodation to staff. All in all, many governments in

SSA are encouraging universities and colleges to increase the amount of space allocated to

teaching/learning and research.


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Governments also need to set guidelines for the sharing of space.

In circumstances where TEIs have inadequate resources, sharing of resources can be a

strategy for coping with the inadequacy. Especially, in the provision of distance education

programmes, collaboration and sharing of resources would be convenient. For example, a TEI

running an in-service teacher training programme can enter into an agreement to use other

TEIs and schools in the country as learning centres.

However, for this to work well, government needs to provide guidance. The following

questions would need to be answered:

o Will there be a facilities charge for the use of facilities of another institution?

o If so, how will this charge rate be determined and who would be paid?

o In addition to guidelines about the sharing of resources, there ought to be guidelines

on how facilities will be maintained. If an institution is public-funded, will

government provide funds for the maintenance of the facilities?

3.5 INSTITUTIONAL STRATEGIES

In addition to national strategies, there ought to be institutional strategies for space planning,

allocation and utilisation. Whatever strategies used should help the institution have well

planned campus or campuses, rationalization of space allocation and optimum space

utilization. The University of North Dakota, for example, has a definite strategy in its

strategic plan that focuses on space utilization that instructs university officials to ‘develop a

comprehensive academic program space utilization/needs plan’ (University of North Dakota

2004). The next sub sections discuss some of the strategies that can be used to achieve this.

Please note that this list is not exhaustive. As you study this unit, you might find other

strategies that might be suitable for your institution. However, before you proceed, read

through this case study which presents a scenario is some universities in Kenya. As you read

through it, reflect on your own institution practices.

What is your government's policy with regard to sharing resources? What must you do to be able to use space at another TEI?


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With the increased number of students, some of the facilities, such as students'

accommodation and library, have been over-stretched. It is impossible to have all

the students (first to fifth years) in the universities at the same time. The

universities have therefore adopted a rotating system in which one group stays

away on holiday while another group is in session. The current situation where

lectures start as early as 7.00 a.m. and go on up to 9.00 p.m. also indicates, as

stated in the Kenyatta University Development Plan (1995:139), that there is:

• inadequate space (either the space is not there at all or the space is

available, but is too small to accommodate the large number of students);

• lack of prudent management and efficient utilisation of available space;

and

• an introduction of unplanned programmes.

Abagi (1999:22)

3.5.1 Type of buildings or facilities the institutions need

In Unit 1 we discussed the context of space allocation in TEIs and we said that TEIs need

space for a variety of purposes and activities that have to be carried out. If you do not recall

the different uses to which space can be put to, you can read through Unit 1 again.

Since a TEI will have many activities to carry out, it follows that it will need different types of

buildings and facilities. This should particularly be taken into account while planning

buildings and making orders for facilities to be purchased. Remodelling buildings can be very

costly. So, the best strategy is to reflect on the anticipated uses for the building then plan,

construct and furnish it according to these needs. To see how the activities influence type of

facilities needed do the following activity.

No. Activity Type of facilities needed

1 Teaching

2 Micro teaching

3 Individual study/research

4 Recreation


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3.5.2 Master plan

Each institution needs an institutional master plan that should guide the expansion of existing

buildings and the construction of any new building. Such a plan should clearly indicate the

position of buildings, services, roads, vegetation and other facilities. This way the institution

will ensure optimum utilization of its land in an aesthetically attractive manner. Allocation of

space for the construction of any buildings or facilities should be based on a carefully thought

out master plan and not dependant on the whims of administrators, managers or politicians.

Having a master plan is only the first step, but it is vital that the institution carefully takes this

plan into account in all the renovations and construction activities. Failure to adhere to a

master plan is likely to result in unplanned and chaotic construction, and there is the risk of

losing all the advantages of well thought-out and carefully implemented master plans.

Institutional master plans require the input of a physical planner at the institution. But if the

institution is being overseen by the ministry of education, then they may rely on the

government physical planner. The key point here is that there ought to be someone with

expertise in physical planning to guide the institution but the planner should not be left alone

to draw up the master plan, as the users of the space (administrators, managers and academic

staff) should also be involved.

Also, TEIs ought to be good examples of well planned and well maintained educational

institutions. TEIs should not train teachers in chaotic environments and then expect the

teachers to go out as organized teachers.

3.5.3 Private sector involvement

One of the challenges identified Unit 3, is inadequate funds for TEIs. As a result, a number

of them are now drawing in the private sector and involving them in supporting institutions.

As part of their corporate responsibility, and as a strategy for advertising their products, there

is an increased willingness by the private sector to support academic institutions. TEIs can

1. Does your institution have a master plan? 2. If it has, is this plan being carefully implemented?

3. Are there any buildings in your institutions that have been

put up without following a master plan?


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therefore collaborate with the private sector in the construction of buildings, equipping

classrooms, laboratories, halls of residence or recreation facilities. Each TEI should have

guidelines and strategies to tap into this. However, since each company or organization will

have its own vision and mission, heads of TEIs should be careful on how they involve the

private sector. Otherwise, these companies and organizations could dictate their terms during

their support to the TEI.

Support being sought should be within the general demands of the institute’s master plan and

should be to help the TEI achieve its vision and mission.

3.5.4 Rationalization of space

Each TEI needs to carefully allocate space for its different uses. There are three ways in

which an institution can do this and this, is by the central administration taking all the

decisions, allowing departments or faculties to take decisions on how space shall be used, and

thirdly by central administration taking decisions on central activities and services like

recreation, capital developments, roads, and parks while leaving departments to take decisions

on department-specific activities.

If, for example, the TEI has a centralized timetabling of all the courses, then all teaching space

would be allocated centrally. To achieve maximum benefits from this strategy will require

careful analysis and coordination of all the courses, their requirements and class sizes. On the

other hand, the TEI can leave individual departments to decide how the space in their

command is utilized. This would be on the assumption that each department has sufficient

space for its teaching activities. However, it would be necessary to ask how accessible space

in one department would be to students and staff of other departments. For example, if the

department of science has a good computer laboratory, how accessible will this laboratory be

to students and staff of the department of arts, if at all they find a need to? Also what are the

regulations regarding facilities charge if facilities are shared across departments?

Regardless of whether decisions on space utilization are taken centrally or at departmental

level, the institution needs to carefully weigh the implications of whatever strategy is adopted.


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3.5.5 Space for income generation

As we come to the close of this section, it must be pointed out that institutions also need to

plan for the maximum utilization of space for income generation. There could be opportunity

for the institution to generate additional income by having the space used during weekends,

evenings, holiday periods to cater for other students and by hiring out space and other

facilities. Some TEIs have end-of-year vacations as long as three months and in most cases,

the facilities are left unused during these periods. Yet, the institutions continue incurring

costs through maintenance and utility bills. The option that some TEIs adopt is to rent out

rooms in the halls of residences during such times. For example, the Institute of Education,

University of London rents out the rooms in some of its halls of residence during the summer

vacation as bed and breakfast facilities.

The following box gives the five guidelines that the University at Albany, New York, uses for

its space management. As you read through these guidelines, reflect on each of them. How

applicable are these to your own institution?

Guiding Principles of Space Management

The following are guiding principles which underpin campus space management efforts:

1. Space is considered as much a university resource as faculty and staff or budget dollars.

2. Space is a university property to be allocated in a manner which best advances university priorities.

3. University space can and will be reassigned. 4. University space needs will be evaluated in the context of traditional

quantitative and functional considerations. 5. Responsibility for assignment and reassignment of space will generally follow

divisional and departmental organizational hierarchies.

University at Albany Space Allocation Policies and Procedures

o How is space allocated in your institution? Who takes decisions about which space is allocated to which activity?

o Are there any challenges arising from this strategy? If so, how do you think these challenges can be addressed?


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The government of South Africa has identified a number of guidelines that ought to be

applied in the ‘…planning, procurement and management of office space’ and these are given

in the following box. Study these carefully and see how applicable these can be to

management of space in your institution.

4.4 SUMMARY/CONCLUSION

Management of space is vital for efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of all TEI

activities and services. Every institution needs space that is adequate and appropriate for all

its activities. However, to achieve results, institutions need to carefully plan for the

Fit: Care must be taken to ensure that there is a good 'fit' between the organisation, its functions and the office accommodation… Standards of Fittings and Finishes: Government office space must represent effective and efficient use of government resources… Flexibility and Adaptability: Office buildings must be able to accommodate change easily and inexpensively… Environmental Quality: Space must provide good levels of occupant comfort and health. This includes good day lighting (30% of lighting levels to be provided by natural light); external views; low energy consumption (20% of energy to be provided by renewable sources); low water usage (all sanitary fittings to be water efficient units); acceptable indoor air quality and reasonable thermal (18 - 22" C) and acoustic conditions. Lifecycle costs: The operational costs of maintaining space, such as maintenance, cleaning and energy costs must be carefully considered and where appropriate, minimized... Inclusion: This requires office layouts, procurement and management processes to comply with environmental standards that enable a wide diversity of people to visit and work in the building comfortably including old people, parents and children and people with disabilities. Health and Safety: Accommodation used by government must be fully compliant with the Occupational Health and Safety Act and all current building regulations... Service Delivery: Where an office building has a component which is open to the general public, care must be taken to ensure that appropriate environmental and service standards are maintained… (Republic of South Africa 2005:5-6)


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construction, maintenance and utilisation of space taking into account the activities of the

institution, number of students and staff,, national and institutional norms on space.

The case study and activities that were given in this module are meant to help you apply

whatever is being discussed in this module in your institution..

4.5 LESSONS LEARNED

A number of lessons can be drawn from the discussions in this module and these include:

1. Demand for space in TEIs is increasing for a variety of reasons. So, space

management and utilization requires deliberate and careful thought.

2. Existing space must be utilised efficiently.

3. Expansion of space is likely to be very costly and may not be achieved in the short

run, but space available can be used much more productively as long as the institution

plans for all its space.

4.6 SELF ASSESSMENT

1. What are the challenges of enforcing norms and standards in space management in your

institution?


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4.7 REFERENCES

National Council for Higher Education 2001, Checklist for Quality and Institution Capacity Indicators for Assessment of Institutions and Programmes under the Universities and Other Tertiary Institutions Act, 2001: Rules and Regulations No.7. Kampala Uganda --- accessed on 11th December 2007.

Okwach Abagi Resource utilisation in public universities in Kenya. Occasional Paper No.

005/1999, Nairobi: Institute of Policy Analysis and Research. http://www.ipar.or.ke/op5.pdf accessed 11th December 2007.

Purdue University, 2004, Overview of Space Management, Purdue University.

http://www.smas.purdue.edu/space_management.shtml. accessed 11th December 2007.

Republic of South Africa 2005, Space planning norms and standards for office

accommodation used by organs of state, Government Gazette, Vol. 483 Pretoria 2 September 2005 No. 27985 http://www.info.gov.za/gazette/notices/2005/27985.pdf. Accessed 15th January 2008.

University of North Dakota 2004, Strategic Plan II University of North Dakota.

http://www.und.edu/stratplan/goals_action_strategies.html. Accessed 11th December 2007.

University of Albany 2008, Space Allocation Policies and Procedures University of Albany,

http://www.albany.edu/space/policy_procedure.html. Accessed 15th January 2008.


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The Use of ICT in Space Management

Overview

ICT integration in the administration of teacher education institutions accelerates and simplifies space management in terms of the assignment, inventory, utilization, modification and evaluation of academic and administrative facilities. For ICT use in space management to be effective, it must be linked to overall institutional resource planning and management, and must be relevant not only to general purpose teaching space but to specialist space, research, office and support space. To some degree, the vitality of a teacher education institution can be measured by the frequency of requests for modifications or changes in assignment of space. Since space is a fixed, highly visible, but generally scarce resource in many TEIs in Africa, assignment or reassignment of space is often a very sensitive issue. Thus the ability to view space assignment issues on a long-term, college-wide basis is very important. ICT solutions can go a long way to assist heads of TEIs to keep up with the complex, inter-related demands on space at their institution. ICT tools in space management can cover all physical locations on a large number of campuses including:

• residences (staff and student residence halls) • new buildings • remodelling/refurbishment programmes, eg science laboratories • sports facilities • students' union/bars/recreational areas • acquisition/purchase of land and buildings • libraries

The main ICT space management tools that can support heads of TEIs can, for convenience, be broadly divided into two: time-tabling/ scheduling software, and facilities management – but note that there is quite a lot of overlap between both sets of tools. Timetabling and Scheduling software The use of a master/ central timetabling and scheduling system can enable a TEI to achieve significant improvement in the efficiency of space use.

Some of the main challenges in scheduling are caused by increases in the number of students, rapid expansion of institutions and an increase in remote learning. Administrators need to ensure that every class meets in a location and at a time that is acceptable to tutors and students. Most ICT systems can provide automatic room allocation, and can deal with scheduling of rooms and equipment across multiple locations.


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Scheduling applications can also provide staff organising meetings and events access to a powerful array of tools for booking single- or multi-day events, reserving the services and resources required for those events, producing operational and statistical reports, and tracking financial transactions.

Generating and maintaining an online campus calendar is made easy by pulling data automatically and displaying it. However, the program also allows for a distributed management approach in which an administrator oversees the whole system, but individual calendar managers make entries on their organization’s or department’s calendar.

Some of the best timetabling and scheduling solutions are introduced below.

Open Source

FET

http://lalescu.ro/liviu/fet/

FET is free open source software for automatically scheduling the timetable of a school, high-school or university. It uses a fast and efficient timetabling algorithm. It is licensed under GNU/GPL.

Currently at version 5, FET could claim to be comparable with expensive commercial timetabling software.

Commercial products

http://corp.collegenet.com/depts/higher_ed/series/R25/

R25 is a professional level system that enables an institution to securely manage class and event scheduling campus-wide. R25 makes it easy to create and manage academic and non-academic events of any kind, from simple one-off meetings to the most complex series of regular classes and conference events. You can also assign selected spaces and/or resources to individual meetings of any class or event.

Full overview here http://corp.collegenet.com/depts/higher_ed/series/Scheduling_Overview/R25

Mimosa

http://www.mimosasoftware.com/

Mimosa is a universal scheduling and course planning software for use in any kind of school and university of varying type and size. It is also used to schedule conferences and work-shifts in business and industry environments. The application is fast, user-friendly and has an


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extremely large capacity. It has a very rich set of efficient optimisation tools and interactive timetabling selections for all kind of scheduling tasks.

Licensing and Prices

Site License Sample Prices Including free updates for

Students Price in Euros Next year (+10%) Forever (+25%)

200 480 528 600

400 520 572 650

600 720 792 900

800 920 1012 1150

1000 1120 1232 1400

2000 2120 2332 2650

3000 3120 3432 3900

4000 4120 4532 5150

5000 4800 5280 6000

EMS Campus

http://www.dea.com/Campus/Campus.aspx

EMS Campus has the three primary facets of campus-wide space management – academic scheduling, event management and campus calendaring – these three are seamlessly


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integrated into one “complete campus scheduling” product. EMS campus can also generate an online campus calendar.

There is a licence fee to pay for this product and details can be found at [email protected]

Facilities Management Software supporting facilities management often has a focus on one or both of the following: space standards and space charging. Space standards As you have read in the module on space management, different practices exist in the application of space standards between TEIs, with variation between countries. Whether TEIs have developed their own standards or norms or follow set national standards, elimination of inappropriate, unfair or inaccurate space allocation is desirable. Space charging TEIs need to determine costs in relation to their physical infrastructure taking into account operating costs, maintenance and depreciation. ICT systems allow the allocation of a space cost charged per square foot or metre. This can be determined for any of the main physical spaces, and the cost can then be assigned to the appropriate budget, or charged to the users of the space.

Regarding terminology, note the term Computer Aided Facility Management (CAFM) : the support of facilities management by information technology. The tools of CAFM are called CAFM software, CAFM applications or CAFM systems.


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We have not been able to identify free open source products covering this area, so the following are commercial products.

ARCHIBUS Space Management

http://www.archibus.com/products/app_overview.cfm?id=5

ARCHIBUS Space Management application helps users improve space efficiency and evaluate the true costs associated with space usage. The reports resulting from a space management analysis will reveal how each square foot or meter of space is being allocated.

Analyze space inventory by department, simplifying the chargeback process

with accurate, defensible information

See further details at http://www.archibus.com/highered/

VisionFM http://www.visionfm.com/discipline/SpaceManagement.html

This is another commercial product that offers the full range of support to space management, covering most of the areas so far discussed including space charging. Some illustrations of their system follow:


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Licensing and fees link http://www.visionfm.com/sales/Pricing.html Finally, here is an Online/Web based solution:

NetFacilities: http://netfacilities.com/

NetFacilities is a comprehensive system for total facility, property, maintenance, and grounds management. It can link every person, place and thing together in one centralized network for real-time collaboration. This could include administrative buildings, libraries, classrooms, student housing (dormitories), modular buildings, grounds, athletic departments/gymnasiums,


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auditoriums, fleets (buses, vans, etc.), and campus medical facilities. Assisted deployment is offered to get the system ready for use quickly for any institution. NetFacilities charges by the site.

Caution: If a TEI wishes to buy a commercial product it is important to check that the company offering it has a good reputation locally in terms of product quality, speedy and efficient support, etc. Decision-makers at the TEI should ask the company for local references which can be followed up. References

http://www.collegenet.com/ As accessed on 28/03/2008

http://www.mimosasoftware.com/ As accessed on 17/03/2008

http://www.dea.com/Campus/Campus.aspx As accessed on 14/03/2008

http://lalescu.ro/liviu/fet/ As accessed on 23/03/2008

http://www.archibus.com/products/app_overview.cfm?id=5 As accessed on 03/03/2008 http://www.visionfm.com/discipline/SpaceManagement.html As accessed on 06/04/2008 http://netfacilities.com/ As accessed on 12/04/2008

Documents

Module IV - Space Management in Institutions of Teacher Education › sites › default › files › Module IV... · 2011-11-22 · module 3. Heads of Teacher Education Institutions