Designed for possibility, anticipated as risk: educators’ pre-occupancy sensemaking of spatial affordances in a planned school

This study examines educators’ pre-occupancy sensemaking of a planned school environment, focusing on how spatial affordances are interpreted in relation to professional responsibility, safety, and pedagogical feasibility. Virtual pedagogical walkthroughs were conducted with 35 staff members using a digital 3D model of a planned Swedish primary school. Data were analysed abductively through affordance theory, task perception, and interpretative frameworks. Findings show that spatial possibilities were frequently interpreted through anticipated risks concerning movement, supervision, sensory exposure, and organisational demands. These judgements reflected participants’ understandings of everyday teaching and care, with previous professional experience providing an important reference point. The study demonstrates how educators give professional meaning to proposed spatial innovation before the environment is inhabited. It contributes to learning environment research by showing how spatial affordances become meaningful through relationships between professional experience, organisational conditions, safety, and pedagogical practice.