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6 ways to create engaging elementary learning spaces

eSchool News

Our goal is to shift pedagogy toward a “culture of thinking” that supports more student agency and more effective use of the learning space itself. As part of that mission, we knew we needed innovative furnishings for the learning environments, which would go hand-in-hand with that work.

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For Online Class Discussions, Instructors Move From Text to Video

Edsurge

Many instructors see them as drudgery as well. The threaded discussion felt always like the wrong medium for learning,” says Joyce Valenza, an assistant teaching professor at Rutgers University's School of Communication and Information, who has been teaching online since 2001. I can peek into their environment a bit,” she says. “I

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Function Follows Form: How Two Colleges Redesigned the Classroom for Active Learning

Edsurge

Form follows function, as the adage says, but these universities are flipping that script and betting that a more flexible and adaptive form will unlock needed changes in the teaching and learning function. And that dialogue helps inform the work of IU’s learning spaces team. Collaborative Learning Studio at Indiana University.

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6 tips for making the most of your iPad and Chromebook carts

eSchool News

Here’s what they had to say: Understand the learning space. Don’t just roll a few carts into a school building and hope that they fit well in the learning space. Understand the environment that instructors are working in,” said Rob Dickson, executive director of IMS at Omaha Public Schools in Omaha, Neb., “and

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Space Matters: Lessons Learned from an Active-Learning Classroom

Edsurge

The old arrangement strongly suggested—and really only supported—interactions between student and instructor or student and computer. Now, as an active-learning classroom, the default arrangement is for students to work in teams—six team stations for up to 36 students. Markers, markers, markers, eraser. Conclusion: It’s helping.

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Can We Design Online Learning Platforms That Feel More Intimate Than Massive?

Edsurge

An entire graduate course at Stanford University explores the principles for designing spaces that support learning. Yet most of our energy has been focused on designing physical learning spaces, even as more teaching and learning shifts online. This type of structure is not revolutionary.

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FAQ 5: What to Ask Before Starting Your Classroom Redesign

EdTech Magazine

MORE FROM EDTECH: See how physical classroom arrangements set the tone for modern learning environments. Don’t be afraid to define an ideal vision for what a learning space could look like in your school. Students and instructors will need support as they adjust to the new environment. We Refreshed — Now What?