US Highschool prison like Architecture, cheapeness or future wage slave conditioning?

Architectural design of most High schools in USA is not impressive, bleak, cheap, warehouse-prison like but there are schools which "stands out" from the crowd. Like Central Union High School in El Centro, CA. You can see it from I-8. I've driven pass the construction site a few times. First, I've thought they were building a warehouse, then it started looking like a county jail site. Finally, a few weeks ago I've driven past finished "product". It looked like a prison without barbed wire, which perplexed me for the time it took to read "high school".

 

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lol they converted a prison to a school near us. Your point is taken.

 

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It is an institution with two groups, one who must control the movement, behavior, speech and activities - and as much as possible the mental processes - of the other. Form fits function. So prisons and schools may end up looking similar. Schools are not primarily about learning the stuff you need in the work world. Form is teaching. Form is teaching you to move when bells ring, when you the permission of the authorities. They are teaching you that information the authority figure gives is to be taken in, memorized and spat out on the proper occasion. You are taught that learning is primarily passive and that 'real' learning mediated by authority and is parroting. You are learning that you are in competition with your peers. You are taught via shame. You are taught that your body, at best, will interfere with your education so it must be carefully controlled and restricted.

Know your place.
Don't move.
Do as you are told.

From there the goal is to make sure kid can read enough figure out where to sign his or her name on various documents and do enough math to make change.

 

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so what the exterior of the building looks like makes it harder/easier to learn?

 

No difference whatsoever .
But we all need some style do we not ?.

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My local Highschool is being completely renovated with the monies they received from the Federal Stimulus package. A lot of schools will be renovated in the coming years.

 

Style costs money. I'd rather have a plain looking building and better quality teachers. A plain building and more computers/better science labs. I care more about what is in the building than if the building is aesthetically pleasing.

 

I agree ......

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At our school they just put in a 3 million dollar football/soccer stadium with artificial turf. Everyone threw a fit. But we have made that money back from conferences being played here. Even if we aren't playing, they are still held here. We also host the WFA every Saturday.