Evaluating Quality in Educational Facilities

In 2005, the OECD Programme on Educational Building (PEB) organised two international experts’ group meetings to discuss how countries define and evaluate quality in educational facilities. The research and experiences of six experts are presented in this article, in addition to the lessons learned from the experts’ group meetings. The director of a state construction programme describes the standards used to assess the educational adequacy of all public school facilities in the State of Maryland in the United States. A researcher presents a post-occupancy evaluation methodology used in schools in São Paulo, Brazil. Another researcher presents a data collection tool used to develop indicators on educational infrastructure in a number of municipalities in Greece. Two administrators discuss the development of norms to ensure minimum standards of quality and security in educational facilities in Mexico. Two architects present the results of a recent post-occupancy evaluation conducted in a new school in Pendão, Portugal. And an urban planner presents an international project to construct new schools in El Salvador using quality criteria.