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Flexible work spaces
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Classrooms vs Learning Spaces The Changing Face of EducationThis page contains these sections: Table of contents
1. About this page1.1 Ownership, contributions and history of the page
Contributors to this page include:
1.2 Summary of this pageThis page has been facilitated specifically to challenge education administrators to consider how changes in educational methodology combined with the arrival of the Net Generation learner with their very different learning styles and access to greater technology on a day to day basis by learners, educators and administrators might impact on the design, and/or modification of higher education campuses.Addtionally this page allows readers and contributors to consider how our learning environment has changed over the last 10 years in particular as a result of technological advances from a traditional face to face classroom environment to a concept of learning spaces where learning can occur in both the virtual and physical environments. Whilst this change has brought many advantages to the learner it has also brought challenges to the facilitators and administrators. This page explores classrooms vs. learning spaces , predominantly from a higher education physical perspective, and how these new learner characteristics (the Net Generation) and methodology impacts on the design of new campus environments. Correspondingly education administrators __ looking forward need to also consider if their current learning environment(s) meets the needs of current pedagogy and the Net Generation learners. 1.3 How this page came into beingIn July 2008 I was seated in the lounge of the Windsor Hotel in Cairo, Egypt. An old fashioned hotel, made famous by Michael Palin in "Around the World in Eighty Days" and later as the set for "The Return of the Mummies", it has a faded grandeur that lends one to think about the past. As I sat there, my laptop connected to the world, reading the recommended texts relating to Learning Spaces it struck me that I was demonstrating how much the world had changed. Here I was in Cairo studying with the University of Southern Queensland and contributing to class discussions using Forums in an online environment. How very different that was from my Bachelors degree studies at Canterbury University in the 1970's when I had to leave my home town and move to Christchurch to live for the three years that it would take to complete my studies. My interaction with lecturers and other students primarily occurred on campus in university buildings (lecture halls, seminar rooms and faculty offices) with personal study occuring in my room at the Hall of Residence where I was living. With the University of Southern Queensland my study has occurred in Australia, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates and now in Cairo and Alexandria. The physical locations in which I have sat down to interact with other students have varied from an office at work, my lounge, a coffee shop, a spa pool, my bedroom, a boat and a hotel lounge. What an incredible difference 30 years has made to how and where study occurs - and today change is even more rapid as higher education moves increasingly to integrate blended and online learning opportunities. 2. IntroductionThis page has been developed to allow us to explore the changes that are occurring in our learning spaces, the advantages and disadvantages this provides to learners and what impact this has on us as educators and on administrators responsible for creating learning spaces (physical or virtual). Whilst changes have brought many advantages to the learner it has also brought challenges to the facilitators and administrators. Some of these advantages, disadvantages and challenges are discussed below. What is clear is that technology is changing the face of physical education spaces at a rapid pace.As educators and administrators we have an obligation to our students to enable student learning. Well designed learning spaces ensure that not only does learning occur but it is more successful. 3. The Move from Classrooms to Learning SpacesSignificant changes have occurred, over the last 10 years in particular, in the field of IT and the pedagogical approach to learning. These changes have included: 3.1 Changes in Teaching MethodologyHistorically learners sat in a classroom or lecture hall behind rows of desks facing the teacher/lecturer on the stage who delivered knowledge and required students to reproduce it. Classrooms were designed to support face-face learning.Classrooms, although still core to our learning, have today been extended as pedagogy has evolved to support an interactive, learner centered and knowledge building methodology where learners are assessed on their ability to apply knowledge. Today we can see students congregating outside of the classroom environment to collaborate on group projects - libraries, internet cafes, coffee bars and public spaces and as in my earlier comments even the lounge bar of a local hotel, which importantly had free wireless internet access. As delivery methods have changed the term, "Learning Spaces" , is now a better descriptor of the environment within which our learners learn. Our learners now interact with facilitator and other learners using both synchronous and asynchronous technology. A critical component in the change from classroom to learning spaces has been the advent of wireless networking and with it mobile computing (laptops, PDA's, clickers etc) which have made possible a vast variety of collaborative opportunities. So why have these changes been necessary? 3.2 The Arrival of the Digital Native LearnerToday’s generation of students are the Net Generation (N-Gen). Other terms used to describe this generation include Digital Generation (D-gen), or Digital Natives.Net Generation students think and process information “fundamentally differently from their predecessors” (Prensky, 2001 p.1  ).As Dr Bruce Perry states, “different kinds of experiences lead to different brain structures” (Prensky, 2001 p.1 ).Characteristics of Net Generation learning styles include the following: • Students like to receive information very quickly, and therefore have little patience for lecture style or “tell-test” instruction; • Students like to engage in parallel processing; • Students like to multi-task; • Students prefer graphics based materials rather text; • Students prefer random access to materials rather than learning being logically sequenced; • Students learn best through social networks; • Students thrive on instant gratification and frequently being rewarded for their efforts; and • Students prefer to play games rather than doing “serious” work. (Prensky, 2001 ).Wim Veen and Ben Vrakking (2006) in Homo Zappiens examined how children growing up in a world of technology and change show more reluctance to fit within the education system than any generation before them. Furthermore, they frequently have a better grasp of technology than those who educate them. Instead of attempting to control, understand or master technology, they simply use it! As technology enables us to capture information, society is changing its learning demands away from information and focusing instead on communication, interpretation and negotiation. Veen ad Vrakking challenge us to not judge the Homo zappiens generation by our old standards or we may never see how their ways of playing and communicating are actually emerging strategies for our digital, creative future. In accepting education as the facilitation of learning, Veen and Vrakking challenge us to reconsider our teaching as we witness a different type of learning. 3.4 New TechnologyMalcolm Brown (unknown) lists a variety of tools that are now available to our Net Generation Learners and educators, which correspondingly impact on our learning space design.Teacher/StudentTools
Tools such as those listed above have opened up opportunities for educators support the change in teaching methodology and the changing expectation of the Net Generation learner who demands interactive, student centred teaching which builds on their existing knowledge. The traditional classroom, as evidenced in section below which describes an educators perspective as to why faculty should be included in design, is no longer an effective environment when using the new technological tools at our disposal. 3.4 Net Generation FacultyOur current Net Generation learners (who have grown up using computers) are social and team orientated. They are becoming, and will be, our future faculty members. They are not only a single generation but they are also the future of education. Accustomed to using new technologies and, having been taught in a learner centered environment, they are bringing into faculties their own delivery expectations . Laptops, mp3/4 players, digital materials are part of their everyday life. It is their expectation that these facilities are available to them in order to deliver courses to learners. The Net Generation, and their influences, will therefore be felt for many years.3.5 The Need for Change - From Classroom to Learning SpacesWhile many of todays educators are still digital immigrants, it is imperative that all educators consider these factors when preparing learning experiences for their students. Specifically, educators need to reconsider the pedagogies that they use and the content that they teach. Both “legacy” content, which refers to the content of our “traditional” curriculum such as reading, writing and arithmetic; and “future” content, which refers to digital and technological content such as software, hardware, robotics and nanotechnology; need to be included into the curriculum that we teach today (Prensky, 2001).By considering these factors, higher percentages of students should remain engaged in learning. Educators need to be smart. They need to accept that they probably don’t know everything and need to take advantage of the wealth of knowledge that some of their students possess regarding these new technologies (Prensky, 2001 ).A revolution is occurring in education today and we as educators and administrators need to ensure that we provide the correct learning environment for our learners. This means looking at our existing campuses and reconsidering the design of new campuses. Our campuses need to reflect the needs of the new generation of learners and the technology that is available to enhance todays learner centered educational model. In short we need to move from the traditional campus with formal lecture room based environments to a campus that provides opportunities for both formal and informal learning to occur in a technology enhanced environment. Learning spaces not classrooms are necessary to provide educational opportunities to our current learners. Above all else it is critical for administrators to remember that good design enables student learning. 4. What is a learning space?Larry McPhee in his 2007 study defines a learning space as a location, either physical or virtual, formal or informal, that faciliatates the learning process.LLarry McPhee (2007) went on to categorise learning spaces by location.1. Formal - in the classroom 2. Informal - near the classroom. 3. Virtual 4. Mixed Examples of learning spaces by location include: 1. Formal
Other Less Common Formal Environments include:
2. Informal McPhee (2007) defines informal learning spaces (in relationship to a campus) as pleace for collaboration to occur before or after class that are near a classroom.3. Virtual As defined by Brown in his Learning Spaces article: Virtual space is any location where people can meet using networked digital devices. Within this category we can list examples of spaces as synchronous or asynchronous. Examples of Virtual Learning Spaces include: Synchronous
Asynchronous
The following are links to further information about Virtual World. A list of links relating to Virtual World collated by Fiona Banjer Global Kids investigates "the emerging field of digital media and learning." 4. Mixed Mixed learning spaces are hybrid or blended learning spaces where students learn in formal and in virtual environments. An example of a mixed learning space would be a blended learning course recently created by the author: The 4 P's of Marketing - Travel & Tourism . Learning occured in a formal classroom situation, outside of the classroom as destinations were researched and tour presentations practised and delivered.Other Examples of Mixed Learning Spaces include: * Any environment that uses a combination of a course management system or learning management system, combined with formal classroom lessons. This learning space can be quite advantageous to the students as they are able to clarify and consult with the teacher in a traditional setting as well as be able to progress at their own speed and work according to the hours that best suits them. LMS's such as Moodle or BBVista if set up correctly allow the students to take control of their learning, something that traditional classrooms did not afford to them. Also it allows students to self assess provided that enough revision activities are included. This then tends to lead to more meaningful class discussions and questions as the students are able to hone in on the concepts that are proving difficult to them. Chris It is important to bear in mind the scope of these spaces is limited to the educational sphere. There are, however, a multitude of others one associates with the real world in the sense of a learner's personal, community and work contexts. The privileged status of 'legitimate' learning contexts is the subject of debate in some contemporary literature. This is timely considering the trend for work-integrated learning initiatives. "Debates proliferate around the legitimacy and significance of individual actors, agency, power to negotiate, to confer accreditation and qualifications (via assessment), and the privileged position of academe and other formal learning institutions over the workplace. Farouk (2002) questions the trend to discount informal learning, arguing that it exhibits common features and interpretations of formal learning. Formal institutions are criticised as unable to provide authentic learning experiences" (White, 2007, p8). Learning in the workplace, at staff development workshops, is considered 'non-formal'. Incidental learning in the workplace would be considered 'informal' learning. These distinctions are often encountered in literature focused on situated learning in communities of practice (Brown et al, 1989) . 5. Design Considerations5.1 Learning Space EssentialsMcPhee (2007) identifies three hierarchical sets of needs for his ideal learning space:1. The space should meet the basis health, safety and security needs of learners. 2. The space should be conducive to learning. (good acoustics, minimal background noise, good adjustable lighting, good lines of sight, movable furniture, space to move around) 3. The space should have abundant, high quality resources to facilitate teaching and learning. (whiteboard with markers that work, functional technology and a cabinet with teaching supplies.) Diana Oblinger (2005) when considering design of new, and the redesign of exiting campuses, lists the following factors as critical design principals:
AND once designed and applied ensure that assessment of the learning space design occurs in order to establish the effectiveness of the learning environment. Simple concepts - yes. But sometimes the basics are overlooked and in providing us with these two summaries Oblinger and McPhee provide administrators with the basis on which to build a vision of a technology enhanced, learning space focused, campus. 5.2 Designing for New CampusesDiana Oblinger in her 2005 article reminds us that learning spaces convey an image of the institution's philosophy about teaching and learning. She expands further by reminding us that spaces can either enable - or inhibit - different styles of teaching as well as learning.In considering the physical design (or redesign) of our campuses we should first of all consider the vision of our learning space. By vison I mean the underlying philosophy of our insitution and our courses of study. In order to ensure that our Net Gen learners participate in active and constructive learning then we need to have vastly different learning spaces than classrooms of old. Oblinger (2005) encourages those involved in the design of learning spaces to consider campuses as "interactive learning devices". Campuses, using new interactive technologies (synchronous and asynchronous) are also creating new patterns of social and intellectual interactions.The design of new learning physical learning space is in many ways easier than the redesign of existing spaces. However with either objective it is first of all critical to establish what learning activities will occur on the premises in question. This will determine the allocation of space (e.g. small or large group learning, practical involving equipment such as chemistry or interactive group work such as learning a foreign language.) The following two references detail a week long seminar held by the Carrick Institute which brought together administrators, designers and educators to look at the design of a new campus. Draft Report: Places and Spaces for Learning Seminars (SEp 2007) Evaluation Report. (Sep 2007)
5.3 Redesign Considerations (Existing Campuses)The following factors are raised by Oblinger (2005) when considering the redesign of existing learning spaces:1. Analysis
2. Gap Analysis How does the current learning space vary from the current learning processes? Issues might include:
5.3 Involve the Users in Designing Learning SpacesOblinger, McPhee and the Carrick Institute are united in their support of multi disciplinary design teams involving administrators, architects, planners, contractors, financial managers and end users. Each team member by the very nature of their appointment will often come to the table with vastly different concepts thus it is critical that each member of a mutlidisciplinary team has a clear understanding of the learning vision of the organisation.An Educators Personal Perspective - Why the end users should be involved in classroom design.One common mistake that administrators make is to not involve the user of a physical learning space in the design process leaving the design to architects and decision makers. I am sure that we have all had experiences of being in a classroom that is unsuited to its purpose. Whilst teaching a postgraduate course recently in the United Arab Emirates I had the pleasure to be in a brand new campus with wireless access. The particular institution included in its marketing references to "excellence" and " forward thinking" - a model for the future of education.However reality within the classroom environment was very different. Yes, I had all the bells and whistles - Smartboard, teachers desk PC, data projector, wireless access and even laptops for every student - but delivering a student centered class was a challenge. Why? Because the classroom was physically set up in a traditional manner and had been done so without any input from the teaching faculty. Student desks were in rows facing the front of the room. Laptops were wired in (ostensibily to prevent theft in a country that has one of the lowest property crime rates in the world). This meant that the desks could not be moved to any other configuration to facilitate group work. On top of this was the fact that the desks lines were so close the the row behind that it was impossible to move behind the desks in order to assist students. Any group work had to be done seated on the floor. Brainstorming (or if more politically correct in Britain - Thought Shower) charts were unable to be displayed within the room due to the use of wallpaper and a directive from above that no posters could be displayed in the classrooms. Had the teaching staff, in this predominately English Second Language environment, been involved in the design process the following changes would have been recommended:within the classroom environment:
Learners were Net Gener's - technologically savvy and familiar with using the internet to facilitate study. Ah, I can see you thinking that this is good. However key sites were blocked by the IT support staff over and above sites blocked by the UAE government. A request to unblock You Tube to access videos in order to teach marketing was a major mission. Likewise there were no real areas outside of the classrooms for students to sit and meet to continue their informal learning. A few chairs were scattered here and there without any adjacent tables and although wireless internet was available the lack of physical meeting spaces meant that students were unable to group together to work on collaborative projects. This illustrates the importance of involving the user in the design process. 5.4. Cultural Considerations when Designing Learning Spaces"One of the most important activities of a college or university is enabling student learning" - Diana Oblinger in Leading the Transition from Classrooms to Learning Spaces, Educause Quarterly. No. 1 2005 pg 14.A consideration often overlooked by facilitators and administrators is that of the society's culture. Even the best designed learning spaces have the potential to remain under utilised, or at worst unused, if the culture of the learner is not also considered. The move towards collaborative learning which by its very nature brings learners together outside formal classroom situations (virtual or in a physical location) can cause direct conflict with traditional societal values e.g. in a traditional Islamic society girls are not expected to meet, and talk, with the opposite sex unless in a supervised environment. What societal challenges are likely to be faced by a course facilitator when introducing physical and virtual collaborative spaces? How could these challenges be overcome? An cautionary example of overlooking cultural considerations Over the past academic year and continuing into this year (2008-09), there has been a move to replace walls with glass at Abu Dhabi Women's College in the United Arab Emirates. There has been no consultation with teachers or students. The style, which does make the building look more up-to-date, less institutional, more open is driven from management at a system level. Our department returned to two redesigned classrooms this fall and the results have been striking. In the UAE, the cultural norm for local, UAE national women (our students) is to dress in a black abaya (a dress like garment that covers the body and other clothing from shoulder to floor) and shayla (a scarf tor covering the hair). When cutting and mounting graphic design projects, students used to remove these in the classroom for safety reasons (e.g. the garments are loose and can get in the way when using cutting tools). Students were very upset upon arriving at the college this semester and finding glass doors on the classes. They are more concerned about being seen by other, conservative students, than by male teachers (although that does concern some). Even though activity like cutting and mounting has not taken place yet this year, instructors have noticed that students all try to move to the side of the room that cannot be viewed by passers-by through the glass doors. This style of class architecture, which might be perfectly acceptable in other cultures is negatively impacting the classroom experience for Emirati women at this government college. -Steve Roberts, Sept 2008 5.6 Practical Ideas for Informal Learning SpacesMcPhee (2007) advocates the provision of designed informal learning spaces as places for collaboration and study to occur before or after a class. I am sure that we have all left a classroom only to be approached by our learners immediately seeking clarification of our lesson and have also seen groups of learners congregating outside a classroom to further discuss the content of our lesson.The following list has been collated from a variety of readings but draws heavily on McPhee (2007) and Brown (unknown).Informal Learning Spaces might include: (Please add to this list)
5.7 A Case Study - Dartmouth College
A strong advocate of learning space design is Malcolm Brown |
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| Date | Name | Location | Comment | |
| 2 Aug 08 | John Test | Turkey | A thought provoking look at changes to come and the impact for administrators. | |
| 6 Aug 08 | Stacey | Australia | What a great start Wendy! Well done! Perhaps you might like to consider exploring and including "Extended Learning" (which involves classroom instruction being augmented with communication technologies) as a middle ground between "traditional classroom practices" and learning spaces. This "middle ground" may be less daunting for "digital immigrant" educators to pursue than learning spaces. | |
| 7 Aug 08 | Janice | Australia | An excellent resource you're creating here Wendy. A hard act to follow! I will revisit as soon as possible, but it did come to mind (I realise it is not the main focus of this page) that 3D multi-user virtual environments could be included as one of the synchronous virtual learning spaces. Second Life is one popular such MUVE but is by no means the only one. I hope to establish a facilitated page on this in the next couple of days now I have access and will provide a link here as it may 'augment' the possibilities. A book I found fascinating when exploring the Net Generation was 'Homo Zapians' but I will need to look up the full details and send them to you. | |
| 7 Aug 08 | Janice | Reference worth exploring I had in mind was: Homo zappiens : growing up in a digital age / Wim Veen and Ben Vrakking. Publication Details London : Network Continuum Education, c2006. | ||
| Annotation notes quote: Homo Zappiens examines how children growing up in a world of technology and change show more reluctance to fit within the education system than any generation before them. Furthermore, they frequently have a better grasp of technology than those who educate them. Instead of attempting to control, understand or master technology, they simply use it! | ||||
| As technology enables,us to capture information, society is changing its learning demands away from information and focusing instead on communication, interpretation and negotiation. As long as we keep judging the Homo zappiens generation by our old standards, we may never see how their ways of playing and communicating are actually emerging strategies for our digital, creative future. Accepting education as the facilitation of learning, we must reconsider our teaching as we witness a different type of learning. | ||||
| It's easy to read and worth following up, although that may be difficult for your in your current EXOTIC location! | ||||
| 14 Aug 08 | Fiona Banjer | Australia | Hope you don't mind my input! I am currently involved in a trial of 3 virtual worlds for my Education Department. If you are interested I have links to Virtual World discussion and networking sites that may be useful http://www.diigo.com/user/mrs_banjer/elearning and search del.icio.us for more. Another site worth looking at is http://www.globalkids.org/?id=13&news=16 Global Kids investigates "the emerging field of digital media and learning." There is an 'unconference' soon on the island of Jokaydia in Second Life if you are interested in following up http://jokaydia.com/
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| 20 Aug 08 | Seema | Fiji | I personally believe that support provided by administrators/stakeholders is very essential. Before the administrators decide to implement a technology enhanced classroom, there is a need to first change the pedagogy of the teacher. After all current teachers have been taught in a face to face environment. Ganeshan & Komosny (n.d) in an article Rojak: A New Paradigm in Teaching and Learning looks at new paradigm Rojak. Rojak paradigm addresses the change in teaching and learning styles which is a result of introduction of new technologies. Parents, students, teachers and education administrators now have different expectations from education system. Rojak paradigm takes into account of such changes.
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| 9 September 08 | Paul Watkins | Australia | I've been thinking about your comments re work spaces, the changing face of schools and the need to provide common areas that are available to all with access to the school network. Gone are the days when schools could put one or two wireless access points in - whilst they have their place they can be restrictive when used in this manner. Today schools need to look at a wireless mesh, or cloud as you have referred to the system. These systems provide access to the network in all areas of the campus, both indoors and outdoors - creating a work environment wherever and whenever required. These systems are particularly relevant to Australian schools in that our government has a Digital Education Revolution Policy to support the use of IT and is prepared to finance many changes, particularly in secondary schooling. They have introduced the National Secondary School Computer Fund; National Braodband Network; and the Fibre Connections to Schools Program all of which will have a significant impact over the coming years. Wireless will no doubt play a major role in many schools receiving funding under these programs. You only have to look at the NSW government plan to provide all students in yrs 9 -12 with a tablet PC supprted by DER funding.
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Contributors to this page: janicebreenwhite
,
q9621731
,
steveRoberts
,
SeemaNand
,
shaby
,
Fiona.Banjer
,
watkinp
,
NickSaunders
,
Stacey
and
aklhoney
.
Page last modified on Saturday 20 of September, 2008 20:26:02 EST by janicebreenwhite .
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