A comparison of Hans Scharoun's schools and the saunalahti school in Finland

Abstract

Hans Scharoun is one of the post-war German architects who considered schools to be places in which to teach social integration. He regarded and designed schools as a continuation of the home where children are initiated into community life, and also as a space where children are not only taught but also brought up. These concepts are compared half a century later with the Saunalahti school in Finland acclaimed as the 'school of tomorrow', and which symbolises the school in a small town and serves as a reminder that education is the basis of society. By comparing Scharoun's schools with an example of Finnish schools, this paper shows how this institution has evolved from a miniature city to the civic centre of the city.