| dc.description.abstract | This article is prepared on the basis of the author’s report made at an international conference "Architecture and studies" (Vilnius, September 1997). Its material is collected from the teaching programmes of 8 various architectural schools (University of Siettle, Moscow Institute of Architecture, Budapest Technical University, Warsaw Polytechnics, Vilnius Academy of Art. Kaunas Institute of Art, Kaunas Technological University, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University). In order to compare these quite different teaching programmes the author grouped them into five conventional categories: 1) architectural design, 2) the humanities (history, theory of art and architecture, philosophy, ethics etc.), 3) artistic disciplines (painting, compositional topics, architectural graphics), 4) technical disciplines, 5) social-economic disciplines. By comparig the proportion of these categories one can imagine the main trend of architectural studies in each school examined. For example, Budapest Technical University (which trains architects-engineers) allots very little time to architectural design exercises (22,9%), while in Vilnius Academy of Art it comprises almost half of all the study volume (47,2%). The greatest attention is paid to the humanities in Kaunas Technological University (36,9%). Technical disciplines in the training of architects, of course, have "the lion part" in Budapest TU (45,3%). Estimated arithmetic average amount of these discipline groups may be of a practical use in improving the programmes of architectural studies. In further considerations the author adapted a four-level didactic system of disciplines according to the need of mastering them during architectural studies at university (the principles of this system were elaborated by the scientists of teaching methods from Moscow Institute of Architecture). These levels were evaluated gradually and designated by the following indexes (coefficients): information - 1, reproductional skills- 2,. practical skills - 3, creative skills - 4. Repeated evaluation of the discipline groups mentioned above by using such a"coefficient of effectiveness" enabled to state the rationality of students’ academic "load" in each school examined. Too great attention and requirements given to the less important disciplines, as a rule, cause useless fatigue of both students and their teachers (the author approves the opinion that a sufficient amount of leisure time for students and a rational way of its spending is also a necessary habit of a highly qualified specialist. Comparison of various disciplines according to this coefficient revealed that the disciplines with the highest mastering level in teaching programmes on the average make 42,1 % (except Budapest TU). The arithmetical mean of five discipline groups "weight" was calculated and deviations from it in 8 compared architectural schools were established. The closest position to this "ideal composition" was found in the teaching programmes of Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (the generalized indicator is 17,6%), while the greatest deviation was in Budapest TU. The author intends to continue this investigation but even at this stage its results and conclusions can be useful for improving and modernizing the process of architectural education. | eng |
