Tips for Designing Learning Spaces

Libbe, Phyllis

 

Johnson, C. (2010, December). Open the windows: Design new spaces for learning.
       Learning & Leading with Technology.

This article speaks to educators in designing learning spaces. Although it speaks broadly about classroom design, we teacher librarians can take the advice offered here when considering transforming our library media centers to a more open physical learning commons. There is so much in this article that aligns with the PLC design we are learning about and striving for. Here are some examples that seem easily doable to me:

• Give students places to exhibit their work as if it were in a public gallery, then invite the public to come in and have a look . . . [the author suggests displaying in a public area, but interestingly never mentions the school library].
• Most school environments, especially the furniture, are designed to limit students’ physical movement . . . take into account the needs of growing bodies . . . Give students furniture that lets them twist and lean safely. The movement will increase their ability to concentrate [furniture consideration is high on the list in the school library media transformation].
• Creating a learning space that’s safe and comfortable to navigate in socked or slippered feet offers an opportunity to use a physical act--the taking off of shoes--as mental preparation for learning [I admit, this is odd to me, but we are seeing a lot of it in contemporary library design].

• Increasing daylight in classrooms has been shown to cut down on absenteeism and improve test scores [it has been repeatedly recommended in other library design articles to have good lighting, both artificially and naturally].
• Injecting a learning space with playfulness and humor creates a warm and welcoming atmosphere [isn’t one of our transformation goals--to create a space for play?].
• Make sure a classroom has the capacity to link into learning opportunities beyond its four walls--even beyond Earth itself [this addresses access to the internet and being global].
• The rate of technological advancement is increasing exponentially. When designing schools, don’t let today’s reality limit tomorrow’s possibilities [this addresses our need as teacher librarians to be forward thinkers prepared for changes by keeping up through daily practice of reading].

Johnson (2010) speaks of the transformation we seek when he says, “It’s time to envision a new model of learning where students, teachers, and the community can take advantage of the wide range of emerging technological tools in spaces that foster creativity and collaboration in a safe and secure environment” (p 15). Speaking of being a forward thinker; this article was written over three years ago.