The investigation of children-nature interaction based on biophilic design in the learning environment

Abstract

This thesis aims to define the impacts of the children-nature relationship in a learning environment and suggest a guided approach to establish this relationship by using Biophilic Design principles. To understand the effects of the learning environment on behavior, studies examined learning environments conducted from 1970. Fromm suggested that connecting with nature could help humans achieve intellectual, emotional, and spiritual fulfillment, and Wilson later expanded on this to argue that evolution has forced humans' biological design to respond positively to this contact with nature (Wilson 1993). These studies on the Human-Nature relationship under the concept of biophilia began in 1973, and as the effect of nature on human behavior and well-being was discovered, this issue began to be studied on spatial experience. Studies on this subject have been concentrated, especially in public spaces such as schools, hospitals, etc., where social behavior and psychology are at the forefront (Kellert, 2011). The subject of the Children-Nature Relationship has become an important issue in psychological and architectural studies with the effect of intense urbanization (Kellert, 2011). Learning does not occur as a result of direct instruction, but rather as a result of how children interpret their interactions with people, environments, materials, and ideas (McNally et al., 2017). In this regard, learning environment design is a very important factor affecting the learning process. "Learning Environments integrated with Biophilic Design can establish child-nature interaction." is the hypothesis of the thesis. Therefore comprehensive literature research was conducted for understanding the fundamentals and main patterns of the Biophilic Design concept. The research method can be described as the evaluation of two classrooms on this scale by preparing an evaluation table as a result of the literature examined. In line with the data collected, a design guide has been included within the thesis framework to show that it is possible to adopt a specific approach that will ensure the growth of the child-nature relationship when designing future learning environments.