Kokokali looks radically different to every other school in Mexico. And the difference goes beyond appearance: The architects of AT103 developed a holistic education concept which also influences the design of the school.

AT103, along with a multidisciplinary team, not only designed the building and the furniture but also developed an education concept and an expanded curriculum for 75 the school. This includes the national school curriculum – after all, the children from San Andrés Payuca should ultimately receive a certificate that is recognized everywhere – and it also includes many other subjects, such as farming.

Julio Amezcua from AT103 provides the project’s context: “The face of schools hasn’t changed since time eternal: The teacher stands at the front of a rectangular classroom, facing rows of the more clever students, and far at the back the lesser ones. We wanted to break down this hierarchy, so there are no corners in our classrooms, no edges, no front and back.”

Read feature interview in 4th Holcim Awards 2014/2015 (flip-book)