Jadgal Elementary School / Daaz Office

Architects: Daaz Office
Area: 480 m²
Year: 2020
Photographs: Deed Studio
Lead Architect: Arash Aliabadi
Client: Iraneman Organization
Project Architects: Mahsa Hosseini, Nazanin Mojahed
Social Facilitator: Mina Kamran
Structure Design: A. Giahi
Project Manager: Mehran Goodarzyar
Contractor: A. Noghrehkar
Mechanical and Electrical: A. Delavar
City: Seyyed Bar
Country: Iran

Jadgal Elementary School by Daaz Office, located in Seyedbar-Jadgal village near Chabahar, Iran, was initiated by the Iran-e-Man NGO using a participatory approach to address educational and community needs. The 470 sqm school features four interconnected classrooms, a library, a multifunctional hall, and play areas, with a circular layout and perforated walls that foster community engagement and openness. Built with earthquake-resistant Insulating Concrete Formwork (ICF) and finished with Simgel for durability, the project involved villagers contributing labor, finances, and needlework sales, while empowering women through workshops and online platforms. Beyond education, the school functions as a community hub, gathering space, and tourist residence, promoting creativity, critical thinking, and a democratic approach to learning while challenging traditional boundaries and hierarchies.

Project History – This project originated as a public call for the construction of a school with a sustainable development approach by a non-governmental organization, Iran-e-Man, which has been actively involved in school construction for several years. It was initiated in response to a request from the residents and youth of Seyedbar-Jadgal village, located 100 kilometers from Chabahar, to have a school built in their community. Consequently, the architectural design team and project facilitators voluntarily took on the responsibility of designing and supervising the construction process. The team began with extensive architectural and social studies in the village and surrounding region, spanning several months. Through a participatory approach, they identified, categorized, and prioritized the needs, challenges, potentials, and capacities of the village and its indigenous people.

Given the project’s limited budget and reliance solely on donations from the community, the team decided against a “build and donate” approach. Instead, they adopted a participatory construction method aimed at fostering sustainable development while creating social, economic, and cultural infrastructures. Consequently, the school was envisioned not only as an educational space for children but also as a development hub for the village and its neighboring communities. It was designed to serve as both a learning center for children and a communal gathering place for all residents to engage and learn together.

To bring this idea to life, and in collaboration with social facilitators, several key initiatives were implemented. These included organizing group activities, encouraging villagers to maintain hygiene and cleanliness within the village, constructing a septic sewage system, and establishing a needlework workshop along with an Instagram page, @Banook, to display and sell needlework products. These efforts actively engaged the women of the village in social activities, enhancing their involvement in the village’s social and economic spheres and helping them be recognized as more influential contributors. Moreover, following the participatory development approach, villagers worked as site laborers to construct the school. Beyond this, families contributed financially and raised funds by selling needlework products, allowing the school to be realized through collective effort. This participatory process fostered a sense of ownership and goodwill among all members of the community.

Currently, the school serves multiple purposes beyond education. It functions as a children’s play area during holidays and evenings, a gathering space for villagers and their families, a venue for group activities like watching movies and football, a library, and even a tourist residence. The management and upkeep of the school are handled by a team of villagers and teachers. A portion of the income generated from the tourism and needlework initiatives is allocated toward its maintenance. This approach ensures that the school, built through community participation, continues to be sustained and managed collectively.

Project Description – The school in Seyedbar Village spans 470 square meters on a single floor and includes four elementary classrooms, designed to combine and overlap as needed. It also features a library, a multi-function hall that serves as a conference room, workshop, or exam hall, and primary and secondary play yards. These spaces are thoughtfully designed not only to provide education for children but also to function as a community center, fostering learning and interaction for the entire village population.

Given the student-to-teacher ratio in the village and compliance with school renovation codes, the school required four classrooms. The design connects two classrooms of varying sizes to each other. In the largest grouping, an intermediate space was incorporated, allowing younger students to join the larger class. This approach enables a single teacher to manage both groups, addressing the shortage of teaching staff, while also creating a shared space for younger students to interact and engage with senior students.

Material, Construction, and Technology – In compliance with school renovation codes set by the Legislative Institution and Control of School Construction in Iran, and to ensure earthquake resistance, the school’s structure was built using the Insulating Concrete Formwork (ICF) method. This approach incorporated polystyrene panels (EPS), galvanized iron profiles, and reinforced concrete, enabling the structure to be built without columns due to its curvilinear design. The final coating applied was Simgel, a semi-local material made of cement and local soil, which prevents rusting caused by floods and heavy rain while blending harmoniously with the surrounding colors and textures. Moreover, this coating can be easily repaired by the villagers in the event of damage or cracking.

Project Significance and Impact – The circular layout of the schoolyard and the arrangement of the classrooms reflect the central educational concept of “learning together” in a democratic, non-hierarchical system. The rotation of the classrooms, connected at their corners, promotes air circulation and creates smaller secondary yards for group work and outdoor activities. This spatial arrangement results in a central primary yard that serves as a communal gathering space for schoolchildren and village residents. Furthermore, the design incorporates a circular area around the classrooms and the penetrated outer wall, which houses private yards and further reinforces the sense of community within the school.

The surrounding wall, traditionally perceived as a protective and separating element, was reimagined in this project as an inviting and playful shell. Positioned in the middle of a vast, flat field, the wall was designed with various openings, allowing seated students in classrooms to view the expansive surrounding plain. These openings, varying in size and shape, also provide multiple entrances to the school, fostering accessibility and connectivity. Furthermore, the wall’s increased thickness accommodates essential functions such as a tuck shop, a school guard’s room, and a storeroom. The main entrance, emphasized with added depth, enhances its inviting nature, drawing people into the school.

The design of this school was driven by a vision of education as a dialectic, bilateral, and participatory concept. Conventional school spaces were reinterpreted to align with this vision, transforming the school wall from a “separator” into a shell structure that acts as a permeable, borderless, and playful skin. This design invites people to gather, fosters a sense of community, and strengthens communication among individuals. The transformation aimed to dismantle hierarchical systems and cultivate a culture of questioning, emphasizing the fundamental essence of education as “being together.” Ultimately, the school was conceived as a nurturing environment for creativity, freedom, and critical thinking.

The project began as an initiative to transform the intellectual and social fabric of the villagers, empower rural women, foster public participation, and use this collective effort as a catalyst for building the school. Ultimately, it challenged the traditional political and social concept of the “boundary” (The Wall) between free will and coercion within the context of the school. In a society historically shaped by tyranny, the project succeeded in shifting the mindset of many villagers—who initially resisted the construction of the wall—and transformed the school into the heart of the neighborhood and a gathering place for all residents. This endeavor stands as an exercise in using architecture as a tool for promoting democratic transition.