Seismic Design Education In Schools Of Architecture

Currently, no comprehensive or coordinated information exists on seismic design education for architects and architecture students in the United States. This subject deserves attention, particularly in view of recent trends toward the nationalization and globalization of architectural practice. Many architects, educated and based in areas of infrequent seismicity, find themselves more and more frequently required to design in regions of the U.S. or abroad where the seismic hazard is more serious. Unfortunately, this has not been adequately reflected in architectural education. Architects assume a pivotal role in seismic resistant design and are responsible for communicating seismic resistant strategies to building owners and community leaders. It is important that seismic design educators and practitioners understand how seismic design is currently taught in schools of architecture in order to identify new avenues for seismic design education and disseminate best teaching practices. This paper reports on findings from: a survey of professors who teach structures in the U.S. schools accredited by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB); a review of school catalog materials; and an examination of school performance related to relevant student performance criteria used in the accreditation process. It includes a review of the seismic design content of architecture programs and the methods used to teach seismic design in an effort to chart how students learn seismic design concepts at various institutions. Findings include information about regional influences and the professional profile of instructors as well as faculty assessment of currently available teaching materials and identification of future teaching materials needs. Most significant is evidence suggesting that although most schools of architecture address the concepts central to seismic design across the curriculum in a variety of courses, there are barriers that may prevent students from learning how to incorporate seismic design lessons into the architectural design process. Background In the past two decades the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have funded several projects directed to architectural education. Recently, the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI), with the support of FEMA, completed Designing for Earthquakes, a manual for practicing architects that was developed in response to the need for a text that consolidated information needed by architects preparing for practice in earthquake country. P ge .2 In 2000, the Building Science Safety Council (BSSC), with the support of FEMA, funded the development of a number of modules of a slide show directed to architects, predominantly related to the FEMA publications on the NEHRP Provisions for New Buildings and the publication on the Seismic Rehabilitation of Existing Buildings. These presentations have been given to a number of AIA continuing education classes but have had limited reach into the required curricula in schools of architecture. In 1995, following the great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake, NSF funded a team from the American Institute of Architects (AIA), in cooperation with the Japan Institute of Architects (JIA), to visit Kobe to focus on architecture and planning issues of reconstruction. Subsequently, in 1996 a joint AIA/JIA workshop was held in Washington, DC and a set of proceedings was published entitled “Architectural and Planning Lessons from the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake. Prior to this work a number of seminars for architects were developed and presented through support by FEMA to the AIA and the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) through the AIA/ACSA Council on Research. Later, derived from these seminars, a self-study course was developed that includes a short textbook and a videotape: this course was aimed at the AIA Continuing Education program. However, the work was not followed up, the course is no longer available, and the AIA/ACSA Council on Research was disbanded and reconstituted into the Institute for Architectural Research (IAR), which ceased to be active in 2003. Unfortunately in the process, past initiatives related to seismic design education for architects have been disregarded and resources are becoming out-of-date and out-of-print. In addition to the seminars, two institutes on seismic design education involved architectural faculty members teaching general building design. This activity culminated in a charrette--a three-day, hands-on design course-held in Los Angeles in 1997. In this course, faculty/student teams from a number of Los Angeles architectural schools participated in a Rapid Visual Screening exercise in Pasadena, California, designed information kiosks for use at FEMA disaster sites, and finally, constructed full size prototypes of the kiosks using wood frame construction and requiring some seismic calculations and construction detailing. In 1998 the AIA/ACSA team organized a national student design competition for the design of seismically resistant housing on a site in Hollywood, California. These projects gave researchers some experience in the possibilities and constraints involved in teaching seismic design, both to students and practitioners. In addition researchers gained understanding of the state of seismic design education at architectural schools that enabled them to develop a list of faculty members involved in teaching, using a variety of approaches. This experience provided a valuable foundation upon which to develop a more systematic and extensive survey of seismic design education. P ge .3 Project Approach Information about the seismic design education of architects in the United States was gathered using the following methods: A review of recent studies of building technology education in U.S. schools of architecture. Analysis of data provided by the National Architectural Accrediting Board (NAAB). A survey of faculty members most familiar with the seismic design curriculum at schools of architecture accredited by NAAB. An examination of architecture school catalogs and course information available on the internet. (This method was used to assist the survey process and augment information gathered in the survey.) Bibliographic research and a review of data collected in prior studies of building technology education in U.S. schools of architecture. Based on this information the project team developed recommendations for approaches to improving seismic design education in schools of architecture. NAAB Accredited Programs in Earthquake Country The NAAB accredits professional programs offering the Bachelor of Architecture (B.Arch.), Master of Architecture (M.Arch.) and Doctor of Architecture (D.Arch.) degrees. Most state architectural licensure boards identify completion of an accredited degree as the minimum educational requirement to qualify for architectural licensure. There are currently 114 accredited architecture programs in the United States. The distribution of schools and programs in relation to the United States Geological Survey (USGS) ranking of states according to earthquake activity is shown in the table below.