This article discusses how local history can be used by teachers to help develop historical thinking skills such as source analysis, the collection of data, and the creation of historical arguments. Using New York City as a case study, this article argues that urban spaces and local communities provide historical evidence that can be read and…

Purpose: This paper aims to assess the perception of the Ghanaian construction industry of the performance of entry-level building technology graduates. Also, other non-technical skills or attributes expected from building technology graduates are to be compared with the actual proficiency of the graduates. Design/methodology/approach: The…

In this article, the author describes a landscape project using Grant Wood's paintings as an example. As part of the project, the students are required to include a barn in their picture. This project is a great opportunity to study an Iowa artist who did landscape painting and to study perspective. This is also an excellent project for teaching…

There are some words in the building industry that seem to be clear and understandable to say, yet they need some help in understanding the depth of the meaning. When the term maintenance is talked about there seems to be some agreement that it does not mean building a new building. Maintenance as a term covers many areas and if not clarified…

For a science teacher in a city, it can sometimes be a challenge to find curricula that are geared specifically toward urban students. The author tackled this dilemma by creating a unit that focused on the urban surroundings experienced by his second-grade students in New York City. The inquiry-based unit centered on unifying concepts such as the…

As cities across the country and globe continue to generate new solutions to a wide variety of vexing problems, sharing information about what works and what doesn't has become more important than ever. Yet, outside of a few prominent policies, the vast majority of successful municipal experiments never reach a national audience or, for that…

Describes central administration buildings in Houston, Texas; Mason, Michigan; and Wilmette, Illinois. (JF)

This article features the Cliffs Cottage, a "showcase home" at Furman University which demonstrates the use of green technology in residential building and teaches about sustainability. Custom-built for the shelter-magazine dreams of "Southern Living," a sponsor of the home, the house seems better suited for a tony subdivision.…

In this article, the author shares a painting unit she introduced to her students. In this unit, her students painted pictures of barns and discussed the historical significance of barns in Wisconsin.

Systems approach as used in this paper refers to the process of a building coming into being. The systems approach attempts to relate the processes of factory production and school construction in that the problems of the spacing and fitting of construction components are considered at the beginning of the design stage of construction. For the…

This article describes how the Old Federal Courts Building in St. Paul, Minnesota was preserved. (PD)

AT THE END OF WORLD WAR II, ENGLAND EXPERIENCED A SHORTAGE OF TRADITIONAL BUILDING MATERIALS WHILE HAVING TO FACE THE PROBLEM OF PROVIDING MORE THAN 1 MILLION PLACES FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN IN 7 YEARS. IN 1946, THE COUNTY OF HERTFORDSHIRE BEGAN USING PREFABRICATED STANDARDIZED MATERIALS FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION TO MEET THIS NEED. STANDARDIZATION HAS SO…

Industrial taxonomies have the potential to automate information retrieval, facilitate interoperability and, most importantly, improve decision making - decisions that must comply with existing government regulations and codes of practice. However, it is difficult to find those regulations and codes most relevant to a particular decision, even…

The construction of an instant library is shown in photographs prefaced by a brief note about its history. (DH)