Objective: Spatial affiliation (belonging) refers to the relation of the index to a particular space. This sense is one of the main effective educational factors in exceptional schools; hence, attention to the architecture of these schools is very important and is one of the main goals of the present research. Method: This survey research is based on quantitative-qualitative method. Structural equation modeling method was used to investigate the effect of sensory perception on the sense of belonging to a place in exceptional schools designed with disability patterns in Zanjan City, Iran. Results: The Likert questionnaire results showed that the senses of sight and touch have the highest importance among the five senses. Among the factors of sense of place, social interactions are more important for students, parents and educators. The results showed that students need to communicate more with the community and the environment around the school to tolerate the school environment more calmly; for this purpose, the presence of windows in appropriate dimensions and the ability to see around are very important. Also diversity in material, texture, building materials and flooring, creating protrusions and indentations in the school structure and facade, and hand-body contact have a significant effect on increasing the students' perceptual sense. Conclusion: One of the main effective educational factors in the design of exceptional schools is to pay attention to the indicators of sensory perception and sense of belonging to a place, which would increase the motivation and desire to return to school and staying in it.
Ajali Z, Torabi Z, Sobouti H. Analysis of the Effect of Sense of Belonging to a Place in Exceptional Schools. JOEC 2022; 22 (4) : 10 URL: http://joec.ir/article-1-1548-en.html