A commonly applied term in the field of education is "educational adequacy." While often used in reference to school finance, curriculum and instruction, and in other educational functions, the phrase is also applicable to the quality of school facilities in which students learn. The Problem-Based Learning approach identified the need to apply educational adequacy as both a concept and an assessment to the evaluation, renovation, planning, design, and construction of school facilities.

The problem is that students are expected to make achievement gains while housed in less than adequate schools. Problem resolution involved developing a valid and reliable Field Scoring Instrument as a product of considerable research, data collection, and analysis. The project team conducted a review of literature taking into consideration the influence of the school structure on student learning and achievement, physical attributes that support the curriculum, leadership responsibilities that support the educational adequacy of facilities, essential steps in product development that meet quality standards, and criteria and descriptors of what is needed for a facility to be educationally adequate.

In the development process of the Field Scoring Instrument, the project team incorporated six phases in resolving the identified problem. Phase 1 included: the construction of a questionnaire for use as a needs assessment. Phase 2 included: pilot testing conducted at three school sites in Missouri to test the Field Scoring Instrument. Phase 3 involved: administering the questionnaire to Missouri public school administrators for purposes of rating the items considered by those practitioners to be educational adequate. Phase 4 included: updating the Field Scoring Instrument based on continued review of literature and questionnaire data. Phase 5 involved: field tests conducted at ten school sites throughout Missouri to collect data. Phase 6 involved: the exploration of any additional needs for the Field Scoring Instrument and preparation of the final product.

The questionnaire, field test procedures, and final product may be useful for those who lead efforts to attain educationally adequate school facilities.