If you could create your dream classroom what would it look like? This week in my masters class CEP 811, we played around with design programs. The first step in our redesign was to create our current classroom. My real classroom looks very much like a traditional classroom you’d see in a movie. Due to the pandemic, my district has mandated all students to sit in rows, facing the same direction and desks need to be spread out as much as possible. I know based on readings and personal experience that this isn’t the best set up for students. This is not how I’d normally set up my classroom during a “normal” year. Even with the restrictions, I do have some positives in my classroom. The south side of my classroom is all windows. This lets in a lot of natural light. I also have a bike desk which allows for students to move. In past years, students were able to use the bike desk as needed, however, this year, one student is allowed to use it for the entire day, and then it is disinfected. Another positive is the wall colors which are painted a light yellow. According to Vanhemert (2013), “…color, choice, complexity, flexibility, connection, and light–had a significant effect on learning.” My current classroom does not allow for flexibility for students. In my redesigned classroom many of the elements listed are accounted for.
In my redesigned classroom, I asked my current students what they’d like in a classroom. Many of my students who looped with me this year, mentioned elements of our classroom from last year. They’d like multiple learning spaces, wiggle chairs, floor seats and more flexibility. Based on their feedback, my personal knowledge and research, I have created a space which allows for changes, and student choice. It also has large windows like I currently have, allowing for natural light and a soft color paint which I find soothing. I have also added full walls of whiteboards and screens. This will also allow for students to move about the room, write on the walls if they’d prefer to stand and use a large space or see what is being presented from various positions throughout the room. The technology used in the classroom doesn’t take away from content learned but is used as another manner to present learning. Following the TPACK guidelines, the technology connects to pedagogy and content knowledge.
The dream element of my classroom includes an outdoor space. I would use this space as an extension of the classroom and to learn through nature. Many of the science standards for 4th and 5th grade would be powerful if we had a large outdoor learning lab. According to Dettweiler et al. (2017), “Research has shown that outdoor educational interventions can lead to students' increased self-regulated motivational behavior.”
The classroom allows for collaborative and/or individualistic work. I have opted to open up the classroom to allow for groups of students to work together in the large spaces. Students can also work independently by moving furniture, using some of the soft pillows or ball chairs, or opting for a more traditional desk. There is also a large space for an entire group of students to gather. The furniture that was selected can be moved so students can transform the classroom with ease, thus allowing for constructionism learning to happen. As Rob & Rob state, “learning is most effective when the learner designs or constructs a tangible or meaningful product as part of an educational activity... the creation process and the end product must be shared with others to get the full benefit of learning” (2018, p. 275). My redesigned class allows for students to take ownership of their learning by selecting how they’d like the classroom to look and where they learn in the room.
Sources:
Vanhemert, K. (2013, January 18). “…color, choice, complexity, flexibility, connection, and light–had a significant effect on learning.” Fast Company. https://www.fastcompany.com/1671627/study-shows-how-classroom-design-affects-student-learning
Reed, H. (2019, December 13). Flexible classroom seating allows for students to be more focused, less nervous: teacher. Chicago Tribune. https://search-proquest-com.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/docview/2350910374?pq-origsite=summon
Dettweiler, U., Lauterbach, G., Becker, C., & Simon, P. (2017, December 19). A Bayesian Mixed-Methods Analysis of Basic Psychological Needs Satisfaction through Outdoor Learning and Its Influence on Motivational Behavior in Science Class. Frontiers in Psychology. https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.02235/full?&utm_source=Email_to_authors_&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=T1_11.5e1_author&utm_campaign=Email_publication&field=&journalName=Frontiers_in_Psychology&id=291635
