국·공립 어린이집의 유니버설디자인 적용 현황 연구

Abstract

(Background and Purpose) Universal design is expanding and evolving into an emotional environment with various accompanying aspects that go beyond the physical environment. However, before examining the emotional environment or providing suggestions with different meanings, it must be acknowledged that the physical environment of childcare centers is not sufficiently reflected in terms of planning, design, and application. This study aimed to prove the need for the application of universal design to places shared by children, teachers, and administrators, as well as to the planning of childcare environments. It also sought to provide a database of the range of universal design’s application to childcare centers and its orientation. (Method) First, the characteristics of children and the application of universal design to childcare centers were considered theoretically through a review of the literature. Then, a field investigation was conducted using Seoul’s checklist for the universal design of childcare centers, and we also conducted a survey of teachers regarding the applicability of a universal design. (Result) A universal design has not been systematically applied to childcare centers. In particular, many childcare centers are close to carriageways and are not designated as child protection zones. There are toilet facilities but they need to be improved to ensure sanitary and pleasurable surroundings. We felt the need for further study of the actual usability standards from the points of view of both observers and users. It is also necessary to supplement the evaluation system and standardize the physical and emotional environments for children and teachers. We expect that a higher level of childcare will be achieved through the application of a universal design. (Conclusions) The application of a universal design must be subdivided according to the evaluation standard based on the type, location, and age groups of childcare centers. The ratio of national/public childcare centers is considerably low, even when the total number of childcare centers is decreasing because of the low birth rate. Therefore, the evaluation standards of a universal design must be subdivided. A direct standard of universal design is also required to improve the quality of communal living for teachers and children. We hope that this study will provide basic data on the applicability of universal design to childcare centers based on the evaluation index of universal design.