Innovative learning environments
It is important to re-engineer schools to adapt them for 21st century learning.
OECD findings (2015) suggest a focus on four elements: learners, educators, content, and resources. The report concluded that schools are most powerful when they:
- make learning central and where learners understand themselves as learners
- ensure learning is social and collaborative
- are attuned to learner motivations and emotions
- are sensitive to individual differences
- are demanding of each learner without overloading
- use assessments consistent with aims and emphasize formative feedback
- promote horizontal connectedness across activities and subjects
Other research is beginning to show that a common characteristic of successful investment is active participation in schools’ design. Schools are places of learning for staff and students. Ty Goddard, British Council for Schools Environments said you have to create schools WITH people and not FOR people.
For some great examples see the November 2016 article in Teaching Times by Rebecca Vukovic.
'Designing the schools of the future’ E:\C21 SCHOOLS\Innovative learning environments\Designing the schools of the future - Teacher.mht
And also the article by Peter Lipman in Teaching Times, ‘Creating places for learning’. E:\C21 SCHOOLS\Innovative learning environments\Creating places for learning - Teacher.mht
Culture
A “learning culture” is an environment that supports and encourages the continuous and collective discovery, sharing, and application of knowledge and skills at the individual, team, and whole organisation levels in order to achieve the goals of the organisation. A learning culture is a culture of inquiry; an environment in which employees feel safe challenging the status quo and taking risks to enhance the quality of what they do for customers, themselves, shareholders and other stakeholders. It is an environment in which learning how to learn is valued and accepted. In a learning culture, the pursuit of learning is woven into the whole organisational life.
Any given school environment represents the interplay of school cultural values; the curricular, organisational, and human resources of the school; and student productivity, all seen through the lens of student, teacher, and parent perceptions of the school's climate. Features include:
• committed, school leaders with ambitious goals and supported by strong leadership teams
• effectively communicated, realistic, detailed expectations understood by all members of the school
• highly consistent working practices throughout the school
• a clear understanding of what the school culture is ‘this is how we do things around here, and these are the values we hold’
• high levels of staff and parental commitment to the school vision and strategies
• high levels of support between leadership and staff, for example, staff training
• attention to detail and thoroughness in the execution of school policies and strategies
• high expectations of all students and staff, and a belief that all students matter equally
Useful to read the ILETC Technical Report 4/18. ‘A systematic review of the effects of learning environments on student learning outcomes’. ‘It outlines systematic evidence on the impact that different learning environments have on student learning outcomes in primary and secondary schools’ learning environments.’ There are many case study examples on the web site at: http://www.iletc.com.au/school-case-studies/
If you are interested in the effect of behaviour on a school’s environment, look at Tom Bennett’s ‘Creating a Culture: How school leaders can optimise behavior’. March 2017.
