Introduction

The topic that I’m reviewing is school layout design, and throughout the use of these resources I want to learn more about its actual implementation in multiple aspects of education and possible impact to the k-16 system. I’m using multiple resources to get the most accurate picture possible.

 

Review of Research: Methods and Findings 

    Part 1. Methods 

One of the many lessons that I’m taking away from this project regarding the method of data collection is that no matter how many techniques are used to collect, examine, and evaluate data, the results can be surprisingly similar.  Many of the resources used information, examples, and guided their research from the Building Schools of the Future (BFS), in conjunction with other organizations, or as stand alone researchers. Together these authors used quantitative and qualitative methods, formal and informal interviews, and they used third parties to collect their data. Overall, most of their information provided depth to their articles. 

The information obtained by Bob Pearlman, C. Kenneth Tanner, and Michael M. Abell, Eunjoo Jung, and Matthew Taylor was full of insight regarding learning environments. I was very impressed with the quantitative data mining Tanner was able to develop using a Likert scale, and by the information obtained qualitatively form Ball, Bemer, Moeller. The article by Pam Woolner, Elaine Hall, Kate Wall and David Dennison was the one the provided me with a better understanding in a small scale of what I’m trying to accomplish. I discovered during this research that the authors methods of investigation ranged from school and classroom re-design using some technology, to school and classroom re-designs using little to no technology. For example, Guardino and Fullerton, Martinho and da Silva, De Gregori, Torelli, Anthony, Tanner, and Cooper all focused their research on the re-design for school and classroom with some to minimum technological involvement, which covered re-design of classrooms, hallways, and of the school building. On the other hand, Harris, Loeffelman, Woolner at el, and Komendat,  Abell, Jung, Taylor, Bemer, Moeller, Ball, Pearlman, focused their research re-design for school and classroom with a strong technological component. What this range in research tells us is that school layout design is not completely dependent on technology. 

Alessandro De Gregori used a qualitative method but it felt that it lacked depth thus his information was not convincing, and I was slightly disappointed with the level of information provided by Stephen Harris and the SCIL. I expected an institution of that magnitude could have put together more information. I also feel that Arthur Lidsky could have dug deeper, through interviews but non the less, his article was convincing. Another point of distinction between the researchers, was that some of this studies used the input from participants like staff and students, and other studies focussed on the environment only. For example, the research of Bemer at el, Pearlman, Abell at el, Woolner at el, Miguel Martinho and José Freire da Silva, Kathryn Anthony, included interviews and input from staff and students, which shaped their outcome as it provided an evaluation of function to changes made. This style was different than Komendat, Torelli, De Gregori,  Lidsky, Tanner, Loeffelman, Harris, Guardino and Fullerton, and Cooper, which mostly focused on the environment with little input from staff or students. Lastly, I’m pleased with the information I’ve been able to gather from these varied resources.

 

    Part 2. Findings 

In the ongoing discovery regarding the impact that school layout design has on learners, multiple researchers have proven similar points and conclusions. Starting with Bob Pearlman and Stephen Harris who have acknowledge that school layout design is not an easy process and programs like Building Schools of the Future (BFS) in England, which will replace or renovate every secondary school in that country, have open the doors to collaboration between architects and educators around the world. With help from organizations like BFS, Pam Woolner, Elaine Hall, Kate Wall and David Dennison have engaged in the meeting of the minds for the re-design of schools. With their focus on multiple factors like, the central aims and background understandings of these design, and how they influence the consultation process of school layout. According to Woolner at el., (2007), and Bob Pearlaman, the design process most be looked upon to implement 21st century skills by linking pedagogy and space (school design). The intertwining of pedagogy and space does truly seem to be one of the final frontiers in education, and its relevance is stated by C. Kenneth Tanner’s study revealing how movement and circulation patterns of students significantly influences scores. Stephen Harris agrees that spaces allowing freedom of movement and circulation provide the improvement of scores, and these findings parallels Wohlwill and van Vliet’s (1985) revelation that heavily populated schools have a negative influence on students. He adds that throughout his study, they discovered that schools need to identify the different spaces they can modify in order to provide meaningful ways of learning. This knowledge fell in complete alignment with Miguel Martinho and José Freire da Silva, and their believe in two main objectives to mindful learning. First was pedagogical, the creation of a building that allowed several possibilities for individual and group teaching and that permitted diverse student learning activities. Second was constructive (school design), the creation of a building that had repetitive modules and few variables in terms of construction elements, with the possibility to adapt to changing numbers of students and various site conditions. Within this two main objectives fall what Louis Torelli and Kathryn Anthony both agree are the fundamental aspects of schools that need to be redesign. These are windows, lighting, classroom furniture, landscape, lab designs, classrooms, meeting rooms, and libraries structures permitting students to move about for their daily work without depending on a teacher. What these researchers are saying agrees with Alessandro De Gregori, and echoes my foundation regarding the basic notion that the physical environment of the school and classroom has to be pliable to encourage mastery individually or in cooperative projects. 

Thanks to Michael M. Abell, Eunjoo Jung, Matthew Taylor, we have also discovered that the use of UDL and DI provides insight into the physical instructional environment teachers must master to influence learners, not to mention the mental ones which include personalization, participation, independence, and differentiation. Sarah Komendat and Amanda Metz Bemer, Ryan M. Moeller, and Cheryl E. Ball all use these instructional environment or multi-functional spaces and creative learning center spaces to develop Ekvall’s Ten Dimensions of Creative Climate, which opens the door for students to be creative and take learning risks. I agree with their idea that by creating multi-functional spaces and creative learning center spaces collaboration is achievable between school design and pedagogy. Lastly, Pamela Loeffelman makes the valid argument that all these changes if done properly can redefine the 21st century schools by developing ubiquitous technology, Integrated break-out spaces and project rooms, specialized learning environments, multi-functional spaces that support schools as centers of community. In conclusion, many researchers and I agree with Ian Cooper and hope that these valid studies become an attempt at "social engineering". That is, using the advice contained in these documents as influence, if not actually, to determine how school layout designs are created.

 

Summary

Through this research I have discovered several things that modified my understanding of school layout design. First, most of the materials written about this topic is not by educators but by architects, who are consulting with educators. Second, more research needs to be done on the existing schools that are pioneering this topic. Like the works of Woolner at el,l (2007) and Martinbo. Otherwise the information is difficult to piece together. Third, the topic of school layout design needs to be standardized and under one umbrella. This last point is the one that interests me the most because it seems that there are to many topics that cover the same subject under different names and categories. Thus, I believe that my research question has evolved by becoming a more focused vision into this last point, which is what I find worth investigating. 

Initially, what I understood regarding school design layout was a scattered idea of what is consider part of the evolution in education. I was not aware of the lack of depth or breath pertaining to school layout design, or the fact that other countries had done much more work towards the development and implementation of these ideas. One aspect of this topic that surprised me, and I have found to be worth diving more into, is the establishment of a single body that will work to transform the schools one by one in the same way Building Schools for the Future does in England. What does this mean? It means that we would be able to establish a set of proven changes based on data that can be implemented in a large scale. This way we could brake down school layout design into, learning environments (design influenced by the use of tech work, collaboration work, and creativity work in classrooms, libraries, hallways, labs, lounges, and offices), and the physical environment (building infrastructure to do with the improvements and creation of pathways, public areas, outdoor spaces, lighting, and views). Together these make an effective definition of school layout design. Obviously, this would be a collaboration between the educators and architects that have present in mind 21st century education, and students. 

After completing this research project, what I found as a constant theme and occurrence, was how the different studies on institutions and programs had input and information from multiple sources locally and abroad. Again, this particular occurrence is what I feel has pushed and evolved my research question into a more specific view.

 

Appendix: Annotations

1) Citation

Bellanca, J.A., Brandt, R., Pearlman,. (2010). 21st Century Skills: Rethinking How Students Learn by James Bellanca, and Ron Brandt Chapter 6: Designing New Learning Environments to Support 21st Century Learning Skills., 117–147.

Annotation

Annotation of Designing New Learning Environments to Support 21st Century Skills. This is a secondary source article was written by a highly seasoned education professor who has spent time in both the public and private business sectors. It is a basic, unbiased report of information the author complied through his extensive 30 year career as a teacher, co-director of computer education, union leader, negotiator and director of education and workforce development. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and talks about innovative building designs which promote collaborative learning. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data and pictures of new design layouts. 

    In many countries 21st century knowledge and skills rely on many factors. a higher level of education that reflects these skills for each student and a new assessments for learners that gives them prompt information about their academic improvement is needed. School building construction only support teacher-directed whole-group instruction. These learning environment do not support learners of 21st century. Regardless of the physical designs of schools they can accommodate the use of PBL. All school design needs to allow for individual, small, and large-group work, lectures, presentations, breakouts, and whole-school or cluster meetings. Companies involvement with education is minimum, and here are many resources available to schools from business, yet the chasm has not been breached. The author neglected to mention an important factor to keep in mind when talking about these “digital natives” learners. They need to be challenged as well as engaged. This should be easer with the advent of all the new technologies. Regardless of the tool, mastery is still the goal. This article reminded me of the Independent project, an alternative student driven school-within-a-school in which students are engaged and passionate about learning with experience on mastering content, developing expertise, and learning how to learn.

 

2) Citation

C. Kenneth Tanner, (2009) "Effects of school design on student outcomes", Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 47 Iss: 3, pp.381 - 399

Annotation

This is a partial primary source research paper with original research and partially a secondary article which referenced other written documentation. This research paper was written by a Professor of Workforce Education at the University of Georgia. It is a complex, unbiased study of information the author complied through his extensive research done at the University of Georgia taken from a sampling of 71 schools using comparisons of data collected in many different ways including, regression analysis, testing and measures using a ten point Likert scale. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and presents findings about significant effects found for Reading vocabulary, Reading comprehensions, Language arts, Mathematics and Science. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, tables, statistical findings and samplings of surveys. 

    In this study the author compared leaners achievement under three school design classifications. These were movement and circulation, day lighting, and views. These basic design patterns or categories refine the learners ideas. Many fine points are associated with this three basic design patterns. Freedom of movement and circulation was important. Also, outdoor spaces, daylight, and broken landscapes outside vies are vital for the learning processes.

 

3) Citation

Woolner, P., Hall, E., Wall, K., Dennison, D. (2007). Getting together to improve the school environment: user consultation, participatory design and student voice, Sage Journal, Vol. 10 pp.233-248.

Annotation 

This is a secondary source article was Co-Authored by education professionals in the United Kingdom. It is a basic, unbiased investigation of information the authors complied through investigating historical trends in combination with research of primary source articles and evaluation processes. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and talks about the often disconnect that happens between architects and educators despite best efforts to collaborate effectively. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data, graphs and pictures of new design layouts.

    The author contrasts perspectives of architects, designers, and educators and conflicting views arise. The authors ventures into the contribution educational environment has on the student perspective since talks over school layout design centers on educators. Data shows learners should participate in design, and the analysis shows how one school affects this process of consultation about modern school layout design. The author further discusses the dichotomy of the architecture in contrast to that those involved in education including students. Essentially, under consideration is the learners view and influence on design solutions, together with the progression of teaching and learning.

 

4) Citation

Harris, S. (2010). SCIL, The Place of Virtual, Pedagogic and Physical Space in the 21st Century Classroom. pp. 1-13

Annotation 

This is a secondary source article was written by the Director and Founder of the Sydney Center for Innovation and Learning (SCIL) who is also the Principal of Northern Beaches Christian School in Australia. It is a basic, unbiased report of information the author complied through research and studies done at SCIL. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and the union of digital, pedagogic and physical space. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data and graphs. 

    The author elaborates on how digital, pedagogic, and physical space are connected on a labor of educational passion that The Sydney Centre for Innovation in Learning has been engaged in. He talks about how stuck in an industrial era the education model is, and the possibilities of ICT-enhanced personalized learning exposes. The author focuses on how space is both a fixed and fluid notion and how it impacts the learner, and offers an explanation of the challenge for schools in identifying spaces and how to draw them together for an academic benefit. In this study Lackney highlights how social discourse and collaborative learning are critical learners and how the changes need to occur now. The author goes on to explain how the SCIL is tackling this issue internationally to create 21st century classrooms with proper school layout design.  

5) Citation 

De Grogori, A. (2011). Designing Classroom Space to Better Support 21st Century Learning: Reimagining the Classroom: Opportunities to Link Recent Advances in Pedagogy to Physical Settings, 1–16.

Annotation

This is a secondary source article was written by a Senior Research Consultant with the New Jersey Institute of Technology Center for Building Knowledge. It is a complex, unbiased research article of information the author complied through his extensive research in partial fulfillment of his Master of Science in Architecture, of publications, journals, articles, interviews, film and books regarding Educational Leadership, Teaching Able Students, Learning Design, the Philosophy of Education and several other pertinent educational topics. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and talks about “linking the classroom’s pedagogy to physical settings, involving space, furniture and learning tools. To encompass the concept of what all these represent…” (Page. 12). The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, but not limited to, statistical data and pictures of new design layouts. 

    The author addresses how the typical classroom today is not designed to support 21st century students or instruction. This document illustrates the issue in question in order to help begin a national conversation on how layout and school design can be manipulated and or enhanced to produce a greater learning environment. He explains three case studies where the physical environment has been purposely designed to facilitate a pedagogical model. The author proceeds to elaborate on why the classroom’s physical settings used to optimize pedagogical delivery of content is not been studied more rigorously. Finally, he thinks about what can be done to propagate the knowledge base regarding this issue.

 

6) Citation

Komendat, S., (2010). Creative Classroom Designs. Creative Studies Graduate Student Master’s Projects. Paper 54.

Annotation

This is a secondary source article was written by a student at the Buffalo State College State University of New York as partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of Master of Science. It is a basic, unbiased piece of research the author complied. This article is written for the adult reading level, this research paper did not include complex words or ideas. This research paper talks about creating a classroom design that is conducive for learning by promoting creativity and a positive environment. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, pictures of new design layouts. 

    In learning, the proper classroom space is paramount and learning is an important task for teachers. Through this article the author elaborates on the generation of good classroom design plans that create a positive environment for learning and creativity. The author covers the research and activities that will be implemented on the design and the creation of the design itself. She goes on to finalize how the classroom environment is conducive to learning, and how behavior and creative are improved.

 

7) Citation

Torelli, L., (2002). The Magazine of the National Head Start Association: Enhancing Development through Classroom Design in Early Head Start; Meeting the program Performance Standards and Best Practices. Spring Issue, pp. 44-51

Annotation

This is a secondary source article was written by a highly seasoned education professor Louis Torelli, M.S.Ed., he is the co-founder of Spaces for Children, a child care facility design firm in Berkley California It is a basic, biased report of information the author complied through his education and experience. This article was filled with facts but also slightly self promoting of Mr. Torelli’s Architecture business This article, is presented at a basic reading level and includes discussion on classroom designs which promote safe and healthy learning. This article will provide perspective on class room designs for childcare settings as well as classroom design. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, pictures of new design layouts. 

    The author covers her experience in education and early childhood development, and how through the years she recognized the problem of layout design for her classroom. She elaborates on the multiple issues and scenarios she faced and how she discovered the relationship between well designed facilities and high quality programs, and developing the vision to create a plan that would fit with her budget. An important aspect to mention is that this was one of the few documents that addressed aspect of cost for innovation. The author proceeds to explain the importance of classroom furnishing, lighting, views and perspective and other lesser ones. Although this resource was a magazine, I found it important to now how Head Start is benefiting from the evolution of school layout and design.

 

8) Citation

Anthony, K. H. (1987). Environment – Behavior Research Applied To Design: The Case Of Rosemead High School, 4:2, 91–107.

Annotation

This is a Secondary source article was written by an Assistant Professor of Architecture and the Housing Research and Development Program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. It is a complex, unbiased report of information the author complied through her research and work with the Rosemond High School and collaboration with Cal Poly students. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and talks about environmental behavior in the high school setting as in regards to classroom design as it corresponded to the reinvention of the high school to its historically known grandeur. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data and pictures, and new design layouts. 

    The author expands on environment behavior research for Rosemead High School, and how previous research on windowless, open classrooms, school size and participation in student activities, disruptive behavior, and other factors influenced their research. After interviews with the school architect, students, faculty and staff, and a student and staff questionnaire, programatic guidelines were created for several variables. These variable were the listed in terms of cost from low to high in order to asses what could be done at the school. Finally, recommendation were made for improvements that helped build the self esteem of students and staff.

 

9) Citation

Abell, M.M, Jung, E., Taylor, M. (2011). Students’ perceptions of classroom instructional environments in the context of Universal Design for Learners, Learning Environment Resources Journal, 14:171-185.

Annotation 

This is a secondary source article was written by three highly seasoned education professionals. It is a complex, unbiased study and report of information the authors complied through research, testing, observation and collaboration. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and talks classroom design and the universal design for learning. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data, tables and pictures of design layouts. 

    With student sampling, the authors presented the study investigating aspects of students perceptions toward the instructional environment in classrooms that employed Universal Design for Learning, basing their results on grade level and gender. The authors used five variable for this study that check wether instructional perceptions in a classroom aligned with the UDL principles. The findings from this case study provided a deeper understanding to the relationship between UDL, grade level, gender, and student instructional perceptions. 

 

10) Citation

Loeffelman, P. (2007). Design Manuals: A Design Manual Schools and Kindergartens: Spatial Configurations, 2: 22-27.

Annotation

This is a secondary source article was written by a highly seasoned Architect, she serves as Managing Principal of the Stamford CT office of Perkins Eastman Architects, P.C. She has more than 30 years of professional experience in design ranging from educational, civic buildings to large scale commercial developments. This article is written for basic reading level and talks about special configuration from the architectures perspective. The article was accurate based on the opinion of the professional who wrote it, but was not a research paper, it was written based on her experiences throughout her career and contained visuals such as, pictures of new design layouts. 

    This document looks at four emerging trends that can act as incremental catalysts in the design of specific program components that make up traditional elementary schools design; together they can also be viewed as components of a larger transformation. The author looks at school layout and design in two way which are, designing from the inside out and taking in consideration the student first, and design from the outside in, and the consideration of the sequence from public to semi-public to private progression towards the school. Finally, she elaborates regarding the overall importance of spatial relationships in the design of any school and how its requirements are related to the ratio of net to gross. Net represents the area of all spaces that are designed for specific functions. Gross is the area required to connect and service these functional spaces.

 

11) Citation

Guardino, C.A, Fullerton, E. (2010). Teaching Exceptional Children: Changing Behaviors by Changing the Classroom Environment, Vol. 42. No. 6, pp 8-13.

Annotation 

This is a primary source case study in combination with secondary source references and was written by two educational professionals at the University of Northern Florida. It is a complex, unbiased case study of information the authors complied through work with schools in the southeastern United States of America. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and touts that “this is the first study to explore modifications in an inclusive classroom.” (Page 12). The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data, diagrams, before and after pictures of classroom setup and pictures of new design layouts. 

    In this case study, the authors collect data on students' engagement about disruptive behavior during instruction. With these observations, teachers can address disruptive behaviors and can identify which physical aspects of their classroom need to be improved in order to evaluate how classroom environment can affect behavior and it is affected by behavior. They proceed to propose and proved three steps and subsequent breakdowns in order to change the classroom environment, change behavior, and improve academic engagement.

 

12) Citation

Cooper, I. (1981). The politics of education and architectural design: the instructive example of British primary education. British Educational Research Journal, 7(2), 125–36.

Annotation 

This is a secondary source article written by an architectural education professional from The Martic Center for Architectural and Urban Studies. It is a complex, unbiased report of information drawn from a study, Patterns of space use in primary schools: an observational study. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and talks about the politics of education to architectural design. Te article gives a perspective of classroom environments outside of the United States and also covers quite a bit of historical data in conjunction with classroom design, architecture and politics. This article itself is quite dated, but could be used for historical content. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data and pictures of new design layouts. 

    During the times where the pedagogy of education was being re-invented, a similar controversy gripped Britain. Similar modifications were occurring in school layout design, which were necessary to accommodate these changes. In this article, the author reviews the impact the British government had in altering schools, teachers, and learners. He proceeds to elaborate on how a great part of this happened thanks to “social engineering”. That is, unintended influential advice that when distributed through public articles from the Department of Education, in turn helped determine how teachers, children, and educators behave in primary school buildings. As a result, years later, the aspects that created controversy in school layout design are gathering momentum and acceptance from educators and architects alike.

 

13) Citation

Ball, C.E., Bemer, M.A., Moeller, R.M. (2009). Designing Collaborative Learning Spaces Where Material Culture Meets Mobile Writing Process, Programmatic Perspectives: The Journal of the Council for Programs in Technical and Scientific Communication, Vol. 1 Issue 2, 139–166.

 Annotation

This is a secondary source article it was written by a group of highly educated and experienced Education Professionals from both the Utah State University and Illinois State Universities. It is a complex, unbiased report of information the authors complied through a study at the University of Utah computer labs. This article, is written for the educational professionals and includes specialized terms and concepts, and talks about collaborative group work, mobility of spaces and importance of material use. This article will give a perspective of design in higher education. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, statistical data and pictures of new design layouts, and an appendix of information such as surveys. 

    The authors were evaluating and researching why lab work in computer labs was seen as isolated, individual, and single-authored work. With the use of a grant, they converted and improved the layout an technology of a writing lab, in order to see if there would be an increase mobility and collaboration in the lab. The authors use three elements to measure the impact of the re-design, these were formality, presence, and confidentiality. The successful Suit Lab presented gains on both mobility and collaboration. The overall knowledge discovered was that learners will work inside the framework of what they are accustom to, unless told otherwise. 

 

14) Citation

Lidsky, A, N. (1980). Connection: The Journal of the New England Board of Higher Education:  Form follows Function: Innovations in Education Demand Flexible Building Design. Vol. 17:1 pp. 13-15

Annotation

This is a secondary source article co authored by a Professor from the Ministry of Education in Portugal and an Architect from the Ministry of Education. The authors used both reference material and assessment of the Escola da Ponte open design plan located in Portugal. It is a basic, unbiased report of research gathered by the co authors. This article is written for anyone with an interest in learning about open plan school design. This article will serve as additional information about the history of open plan design from as used abroad. This article ties teacher buy in with the success of the open plan design. The article was accurate and contained visuals such as, and pictures of design layouts. 

    The author tackles how innovation in education is demanding more flexible building designs.  through an investigation he addresses several aspects of building design that can help with the new demands. He elaborates on how aria, smart classrooms, lab design, meeting rooms, faculty offices, and libraries have a direct effect on school environment, learners, and educators. He concludes with the understanding that explanation that if most academic institutions do not improve they will begin to struggle. 

 

15) Citation

da Silva, J.F., Martinbo, M. (2008). PEB Exchange: Open Plan Schools in Portugal: Failure or Innovation?: Escola Da Ponte, An Exemplary Case

Annotation

This is a primary source article was written by a highly accredited and esteemed consultant, he is the President of Dober Lidsky Craig and Associates, a Belmont Mass., consulting firm that specializes in campus and facility planning for schools, colleges and universities. This article breaks down smart classrooms, lab designs and the reintroduction of Atria into campus design. It is a basic, unbiased account of Lidskey’s experience in working with higher education in relation to design and learning. This article is written for the educational professionals interested in revolution of building design in higher education and the fundamental change from teaching to learning as it pertains to layout and design. The article was accurate and contained pictures of new design layouts. 

    After World War II, an issue of passion in portugal arose,  Open plan schools. These are schools built to a design which does not include self contained classrooms. Many teachers, administrators, and parents disliked this school model. After years of struggle this school survived and the author points out the main reasons for the school’s success, which was the open space design. He goes on to list the advantages and benefits that open plan schools present to the learner and the educator. With the help of a school in the United Kingdom, at Finmere, built in 1959 by David Medd, and other global successes of the same school model, the Escola da Ponte, one of the last open plan schools that has survived was recognized for its innovation.