INTRODUCTION

A gurukul is a type of school in India, residential in nature, with shishyas living in proximity
to the guru, often within the same house. In a gurukul, shishyas reside together as equals,
irrespective of their social standing, learn from the guru and help the guru in his day-to-day
life, including the carrying out of mundane chores such as washing clothes, cooking, etc.

India has a long history of organized education. Gurukuls were traditional Hindu residential
schools of learning; typically the teacher’s house or a monastery. Gurukulas have existed
since the Vedic age. Mahatma Gandhi, Father of India, once said to have described, “The
traditional educational system as a beautiful tree that was destroyed during the British rule”.

 The gurukul style of education emphasizes on

o Communication skills,
o Knowledge of contemporary world,
o Understanding of cultural heritage,
o Development of moral values,
o Environmental awareness,
o Spirit of community service and
o Physical fitness.
 This style of education will help students to inculcate life skills, spiritual lessons,
moral values in them to be self-sufficient in their life.

HISTORY

 Education during Vedic period

The gurukul system of education has been in existence since ancient times. Guru Shishya
tradition has been considered a unique feature of the Indian Educational System. The Vedic
school of thought prescribes the Upanayana (sacred rite of passage) to all individuals before
the age of 8 at least by 12.
The Gurukuls were run by great teachers who never thought of personal prosperity but
always thought of society. The gurukul’s were supported by public donations. This was
followed by the many following Vedic thoughts making gurukul one of the earliest forms of
public school centers. Thus, the system of education in India paved the way to achieve the
following aims of Indian education:

 Infusion of piety and religiousness

 Formation of characters
 Development of personality
 Promotion of social efficiency and happiness
 Preservation and spread of culture
  Education under British Rule
British records show that indigenous education was widespread in the 18th century, with a
school for every temple, mosque or village in most regions of the country. There was a
general decline in Indian society and economy with the coming of British rule. Education
during the British rule, we can find that pre-British schools and colleges were maintained by
grants of revenue-free land. The East India Company, with its policy of maximizing land
revenue, stopped this and thus starved the Indian education system of its financial resources.
The current system of education, with its western style and content, was introduced and
funded by the British in the 19th century, following recommendations by Macaulay.
Traditional structures were not recognized by the British government and have been on the
decline since.
 After Independence
After independence, education became the responsibility of the states. The central
Government’s only obligation was to co-ordinate in technical and higher education and
specify standards. Till continued till 1976, when the education became a joint responsibility
of the state and the Centre. The 86th Amendment of the Indian constitution makes education
a fundamental right for all children aged 6-14years.
 Recent Education System
The Indian Education System is generally marks-based. However, some experiments have
been made to do away with the marks-based system as the existing system was leading to
cases of depression among students. The education system is very unidirectional.

ABSTRACT
In today’s world, education has become very conventional and commercialized. With a
concern for the quality of education imparted through the popular and established system of
standardized curricula and testing, the thesis looks upon gurukul system of education that aim
at holistic development through child-centric strategies. The thesis then departs on its search,
to understand how architecture could contribute towards a holistic learning experience.
Majority of the schools are unidirectional and mark-based, preparing students only for
academics and missing out the basic life skills. The motive of designing a gurukul is to
improve and escalate the education system that is being followed; i.e to enhance personal
growth through experiential learning and increase awareness about various subjects which are
no longer given importance. Education will no longer be a way to gather knowledge but to
enrich one’s thought and inner conscience. It will impart a way whereby one imparts
knowledge through learning, knowledge gathering and discussing, information and skills
during the course of life. Keeping in mind the demands as per the socio-cultural context, it
becomes more desirable to further contextualize construction methodologies and
appropriately place the buildings as per the climate.

JUSTIFICATION OF THE PROJECT

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  The thesis departs on its search, to understand how architecture could contribute towards
a holistic learning experience.

 The project tries to record the design journey in the quest to analyze, critique and apply
the knowledge gained, with an aim to create appropriate, comfortable and flexible
learning environment and with a hope to set better standards for schools’ projects to
come.

 The architecture of such a school plays an integral part by making new modes of
learning physically possible.

AIM
The thesis aims at providing a cohesive campus while adhering to school’s philosophy
of multiple intelligence development under the parameters of a set future growth.

OR

To design a learning environment which has a holistic approach towards education for
students.

OBJECTIVE
 To merge value-based education along with conventional style of education through
child-centric design.

 The design should be in harmony with the surrounding environment.

 To provide proper space for all the activities, for better exposure of students on various
fields.

SCOPE & LIMITATION

SCOPE :

 To design a co-education gurukul for children of age group 6-16 years old, belonging
to different societies.
 To incorporate vernacular materials with modern techniques and design and have a
cost-effective approach as well.
 The number of students enrolling for each class is maximum of 30, which is
equivalent to 300 students in total.

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  The spread is horizontal, having barrier free design approach.
 To provide with open, semi-open, and enclosed classrooms along with spaces for
other co-curricular activities, yoga, meditation Centre, O.A.T, play space, workshop
spaces, hostels for class 5 to class 10 and auditorium spaces.

LIMITATIONS :

 Accommodation for students from class 1 to 4 could not be provided.

 Ratio of admission of a particular gender is not known, so the allocation of rooms is
not appropriate.
 Design is restricted to CRZ( Coastal Regulation Zone) rules.

DESIGN IDEAS
 Providing open, semi-open, and enclosed classrooms where man and nature can enter
into a harmonious relationship.
 Designing built up spaces along with nature without disturbing the existing natural
surroundings.
 Designing spaces according to various age groups, by understanding their psychology
so as to enhance their mental growth.

AGE GROUP MENTAL DEVELOPMENT

0-7 yrs Intelligence through senses
7-14 yrs Emotional intelligence through
feelings
14-18 yrs Abstract thinking

 Design different interactive spaces using the natural contours of the site.
 Scattered planning with courtyards.

DETAILED METHODOLOGY

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