Marilyn Read

541-737-0982

Marilyn.Read@oregonstate.edu

People and Faculty

Marilyn Read

Overview

Background

Publications

Overview

Credentials

Ph. D.: Oregon State University, Human Behavior in the Near Environment Minor: Early Childhood Development and Education

Career Interests

Research area: The design of child care and development environments

Research interests: My research area is the design of child development and care facilities. Children’s memories of place are significant. An enriched child care and development center designed with color, form, and light provides children opportunities to explore and engage with the environment, thereby creating a sense of place. The center then becomes a familiar place of meaning, belonging, and connection for children, families, and teachers.

Background

Experience

Professional Affiliations

Associate Editor, Journal of Interior Design

Member, Interior Design Educators Council

Honors & Awards

Laura B. Smith Faculty Scholar – Endowed Professorship

IDEC Special Projects Award

University Award: The Student Learning and Success Teamwork Award (DHE Department Faculty)

Member of Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi

Member of Kappa Omicron Nu Honor Society

Publications

Academic Journal

DSGN - Interior Design

“Color, Form, and Light: Recommendations for Design of ECE Classrooms Based on Group Structure and Activity Type”

The aim of this study is to present recommendations for the design of ECE classrooms based on time children spent on activities and the structure of the groups in the classrooms. The study focused on data collected for the National Survey of Early Care and Education (NSECE,) a large national study in the United States. The analyses revealed that the majority children typically spent up to one hour each day on each activity, including physical activity; book reading, looking, and sharing; and singing/rhyming activities. Children spent one hour or more engaged in free-play activities at the majority of the centers. Design recommendations based on the empirical literature are detailed with a focus on images of activity areas in existing early childhood education and care centers. Recommendations are also made for loft design ideas to enhance children’s experiences with different activities in the environment. Variation of these design elements encourages exploration and movement within the space. Color, form, and light combine to enhance the activity areas for children with sensory experiences and inspiration.

Details

Other

DSGN - Interior Design

“Sustainable Living: Cultural Meaning of Home, Work, and Retail.”

Details

Academic Journal

DSGN - Interior Design

“Environmental Color and the Cooperative Behavior of Children with Sensory Processing Challenges: An Exploratory Study”

The difficult challenge faced by occupational therapists and preschool teachers today is creating environments that benefit concurrently the behaviors of all children within one classroom setting. Occupational therapists and teachers design both the physical environment and the social environment for children with developmental needs across a broad spectrum of abilities. Children who have atypical reactions to sensory stimuli may benefit from a space with environmental color because it could act as a modifier for their attention in the environment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of environmental color on the cooperative behavior of preschool children assessed with having one or more sensory processing challenges. It was predicted that walls with environmental color from focal colors (purple, blue, green, yellow, orange, and red) would positively impact the overall cooperative behavior of children with sensory processing challenges relative to a wall of white color scheme. The male participant showed higher cooperation scores in all visible-spectrum focal color conditions compared to the white color conditions. The cooperation scores for the female participant were lower on all visible-spectrum focal color conditions, except for orange, as compared with the white conditions. The results of the two different case studies within the environmental conditions are illustrated with discussion and implications of the research findings.

Details

Academic Journal

DSGN - Interior Design

“Designing with Color in the Early Childhood Education Classroom: A Theoretical Perspective”

Details

Academic Journal

DSGN - Interior Design

“Examining student behavior under two correlated color temperature levels of lighting in an elementary school classroom”

Details

Academic Journal

DSGN - Interior Design

“Identity Expression and Bedroom Personalization by Urban Adolescents in Botswana”

Identity expression through the design of urban adolescents’ bedrooms in Gaborone, Botswana, was the focus of this qualitative study. Interviews were conducted to determine the manner in which decorative and personal items played a role in identity exploration and expression. The findings indicated a clear interplay between personalization and identity formation for adolescents. Identities expressed through personalization of bedrooms were private self, gender identity, age identity, family/social identity, and relationships; past, present, and future roles/identities; and religious identity. In addition to these, boys clearly expressed sport identity, self-image, creative self, and achievements through their bedroom personalization. A model is presented that illustrates the interplay between personalization and identity formation.

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