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A Place for Learning: The Physical Environment of Classrooms

A Place for Learning: The Physical Environment of Classrooms
I was supervising a teacher who was enrolled in our program at the University of Massachusetts Amherst that focused on developing student self-knowledge, ego strength, trust and community in classrooms. We had created a manual with over 50 classroom lessons. She was teaching at a high school in an economically depressed district in northern Appalachia. She called me in a state of frustration. Students Take Ownership So I visited the class. I suggested that she ditch the exercises and work with the class to totally change the physical environment. They spent six weeks doing little else. There are at least two lessons from this story. The physical structure of a classroom is a critical variable in affecting student morale and learning. The Custodian’s Favorite Arrangement Here's a related story. A Short Course in Classroom Arrangement It's conventional wisdom that different types of instruction require different seating arrangements. More Ideas, More Resources Well-Being and Motivation Related:  Skolplanering, processCoaching & Professional Learning

Administration • Interview with Peter C. Lippman Author of... Are You a Teacher-Leader? - Getting Smart by Susan Lucille Davis - edchat, edreform, leadership Teachers are master problem-solvers. They learn quickly to adjust on the fly as they react boldly and deftly in a moment’s response, whether to students’ endless questions about how to and what if, to the numerous disruptions blaring from a PA system, or to adapting their lesson plans because the Internet is down…again. When it comes to their own classrooms, teachers do not hesitate to meet daily obstacles and challenges head-on. It’s their job, after all. But solving the problem of changing and reforming the very nature of the schools they work in is a different story. Why? What We Talk About When We Talk About Teacher-Leaders I recently put this question – why isn’t every teacher a teacher-leader – in somewhat different form, to the new teachers at my school who meet weekly to discuss issues and best practices in education. Do you feel a sense of purpose? A sense of purpose provides direction and motivation in any teacher-leader’s professional life. We struggled with this one.

”Det bästa som finns i ett klassrum är hörn” Oavsett om det rör sig om att rita en hel skolbyggnad från grunden eller bara att flytta runt borden i ett klassrum så ska rummet formas utifrån hur människor faktiskt beter sig – inte utifrån hur vi vill att de ska bete sig. Det återkommer Peter Lippman till ofta. Han tycker att den rådande internationella trenden i lärmiljöer - stora öppna ytor - visar på två saker: Arkitekter saknar kunskap om hur människor lär sig saker, och skolföreträdare saknar kunskap om det rumsliga. – Det finns många arkitekter som påstår att ”jag kan det här med att definiera ytor och skapa lärmiljöer” fast att de egentligen inte har förstått vad det handlar om. Peter Lippman har studerat och designat skolmiljöer i tjugo år. 2010 släppte han en bok där han skriver om ”evidensbaserad design” i skolan. – I skolans värld är det visserligen inte alltid lika tydligt vad som fungerar bra, och det som fungerar på ett ställe fungerar inte automatiskt på nästa. – Hur lär sig folk?

Teach Me: Student-Led Instruction Strategies Teaching tools, tricks, and ideas are an essential component of a teacher’s ‘arsenal’ when it comes to having engaged students and strong teachable moments. The one tool that I rely heavily upon is a concept I termed as ‘Teach Me,’ though you may heard it called by other terms. Simply, the idea behind Teach Me is when the teacher lets the student teach a concept to them. The student goes through the whole concept, or study, giving it to you in extreme detail. Benefits of the "Teach Me" Learning Exercise Lets you see where a child needs reinforcementTeach Me is a way to put the power of learning into the hands of your student/learnerAllows students to be the teacherAllows, and gets students, to recall -- in detail what they have learnedGives them ownership over the learningIncreases a student's verbal communication skillsGives a student multiple ways to remember and retain information that they have learned 4 Specific Goals of Student-led Instruction 1. 2. 3. 4. Give it a try, you’ll see.

finpeda.fi Standards Increasing the effectiveness of professional learning is the leverage point with the greatest potential for strengthening and refining the day-to-day performance of educators. Standards for Professional Learning is the third iteration of standards outlining the characteristics of professional learning that lead to effective teaching practices, supportive leadership, and improved student results. Learning Forward, with the contribution of 40 professional associations and education organizations, developed the Standards for Professional Learning. (See the Standards Revision Task Force and the Standards Advisory Team.) The standards make explicit that the purpose of professional learning is for educators to develop the knowledge, skills, practices, and dispositions they need to help students perform at higher levels. Watch Stephanie Hirsh give an overview of the standards These standards call for a new form of educator learning.

DiU 3-12 Framtidens lärmiljö – en fråga som angår eleverna Text: Moa Dickmark arkitektstuderande Aarhus Arkitektskola Studio Lärmiljö/Framtidens lärande 2012: Framtidens lärmiljö – en fråga som angår eleverna Framtidens lärmiljö är en fråga som engagerar och väcker tankar. I denna artikel beskriver Moa sin syn på arbetet med framtidens lärmiljöer och det sätt hon vill arbeta på i framtiden. Einstein, en av personerna som fått erkännandet för att ha myntat uttrycket “Om du inte kan ge ett enkelt svar, förstår du inte problemet tillräckligt väl”, skulle inte vara nöjd med mitt svar till denna fråga. Vad vi ser mer och mer i våra studier av olika ny-designade och omdesignade skolor världen över är att flertalet arkitekter använder lärares och ledningens kunskaper gällande sin arbetsmiljö som underlag för sitt arbete. Orsakerna till detta kan vara många, men så vitt vi förstår så handlar det till stor del om att elevernas åsikter kan framstå som oseriösa eller rent av oviktiga för vissa arkitekter. Moa presenterar sig Mitt namn är Moa.

Questioning Toolkit Essential Questions These are questions which touch our hearts and souls. They are central to our lives. They help to define what it means to be human. Most important thought during our lives will center on such essential questions. What does it mean to be a good friend? If we were to draw a cluster diagram of the Questioning Toolkit, Essential Questions would be at the center of all the other types of questions. All the other questions and questioning skills serve the purpose of "casting light upon" or illuminating Essential Questions. Most Essential Questions are interdisciplinary in nature. Essential Questions probe the deepest issues confronting us . . . complex and baffling matters which elude simple answers: Life - Death - Marriage - Identity - Purpose - Betrayal - Honor - Integrity - Courage - Temptation - Faith - Leadership - Addiction - Invention - Inspiration. Essential Questions are at the heart of the search for Truth. Essential Questions offer the organizing focus for a unit.

Lärmiljö i skolan får inte gå samma väg som IT i skolan Den kommande åren kommer många huvudmän bygga nya skolor eller renovera gamla. Skälen varierar. Små och medelstora kommuner börjar på allvar inse hur tex en gymnasieskola faktiskt attraherar eller behåller det lokala näringslivet och en modern skola blir då en viktig signal. Huvudmän med bristfälliga och slitna skollokaler tycks har kommit till vägs ände och måste nu helt enkelt göra något åt alltihop, man kan helt enkelt inte längre blundat för hälsoaspekten, särskilt nu när Arbetsmiljöverket ska granska Sveriges alla skolor. Att bygga nytt, renovera eller modernisera gammalt i skolan är en strategiskt viktig process. Då var det av hävd så att IT-chefen ställde kravspecen till vad skolan skulle använda i det pedagogiska arbetet. Det är som att en bilmekaniker på en bilverkstad skulle ansvara för beställningar av råvaror till Restaurang Gondolen utan att Erik Lallerstedt hade något att säga till om.

Why 2016 is about Work / Life Integration | Collective Hub | Collective Hub Guest Editor, Life WORDS BY Vanessa Bennett | Guest Blogger ...not Work / Life Balance In today’s society, work/life balance seems to be the Holy Grail that everyone strives for, yet very few achieve. The reality of this widespread struggle begs the question – Is this concept of balance more of a hot trend, rather than an achievable resolution to stress and burnout? These days people tend to glorify being busy so much that even our time for ‘balance’ is so overwhelmed with “relaxation” activities, that we end up exhausted. When we talk about work/life balance we are automatically suggesting that work is in the ‘non-life’ category. Top 6 tips on how to achieve work/life integration this year: Give yourself permission Enhancing your happiness and health starts with giving yourself permission to feel better, be better, and become better. *Take control of your scheduleWe actually have more control over our daily schedules than we like to believe.

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