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Descriptors:
Educational Environment; Research Methodology; Research Design; Elementary Secondary Education; Educational Research; Technology Uses in Education; Educational Theories; Learning Theories; Models; Social Environment; Class Organization; Classroom Environment; Classroom Design; Interior Space; Space Utilization; Communication Skills

Abstract:
The design research methodology as it has currently developed centers on the creation of "existence proofs," an important first step. What is needed then are the next steps of expanding the methodology to address the design problems of practical implementation prior to the steps involved in scaling up these designs. This article contributes to such an expansion through developing a systematic approach to learning from teachers' enactments of educational models. Design research focused on practical implementations by teachers can create knowledge regarding critical change processes, thus helping to create a theory of trajectories of change, or "implementation paths" (Bielaczyc & Collins, 2006a; Collins, Joseph, & Bielaczyc, 2004). Here I propose using the Social Infrastructure Framework (Bielaczyc, 2006) to analyze the design of classroom social structures by developers and teachers in order to better understand their implications for constructing implementation paths. The analytic technique is exemplified through a case study involving a particular team of teachers who worked over the course of several years to adopt a knowledge-building communities approach (Bereiter, 2002; Scardamalia, 2002; Scardamalia & Bereiter, 1991 1994). The results are used to discuss implications for the methodology of design research. (Contains 2 tables, 9 figures, and 4 footnotes.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Design Requirements; Architecture; Autism; Physical Environment; Foreign Countries; Classroom Design; Expertise; Student Needs; Pervasive Developmental Disorders; Classroom Environment; Guides; Space Utilization; Special Needs Students; Elementary Schools; Educational Technology

Abstract:
Architects and designers have a responsibility to provide an inclusive built environment. However, for those with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the built environment can be a frightening and confusing place, difficult to negotiate and tolerate. The challenge of integrating more fully into society is denied by an alienating built environment. For ASD pupils in a poorly designed school, their environment can distance them from learning. Instead, if more at ease in their surroundings, in an ASD-friendly environment, the ASD pupil stands a greater chance of doing better. However, a difficulty exists in that most architects are not knowledgeable in designing for those with ASD. Any available design guidelines for architects tend, because of the inherent difficulties associated with a spectrum, to be general in their information. Therefore, in order to provide an ASD-friendly learning environment, there is a need to ensure that teachers, as the experts, can most clearly and effectively impart their knowledge and requirements to architects. This article, written by Keith McAllister and Barry Maguire, both from Queen's University Belfast, sets out the challenges and difficulties inherent in the design process when designing for those with ASD. It then sets out an alternative strategy to the usual method of drawing-centric dialogue between teacher and architect by using models instead as a basis for a more common language. An ASD Classroom Design Kit was designed and developed by architecture students at Queen's University Belfast. It was then used by ASD teaching staff from the Southern Education and Library Board in Northern Ireland as a case study to trial its effectiveness. This article outlines how the study was carried out before concluding with reflections by both teaching staff and architect on using the ASD Classroom Design Kit. It is hoped, firstly, that this article will highlight the need for better dialogue between expert and architect when considering ASD and the built environment and, secondly, that it may encourage others to consider using models to convey their ideas and knowledge when designing, not just for ASD, but for other special educational needs and disabilities. (Contains 8 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Technology Education; Vocational High Schools; Information Technology; Student Attitudes; Cross Cultural Studies; Classroom Design; Satisfaction; Computer Science Education; Classroom Environment; Comparative Education; Gender Issues; High School Students; Student Surveys; Rating Scales; Comparative Analysis; Mixed Methods Research; Interviews; Observation; Qualitative Research; Statistical Analysis; Predictor Variables

Abstract:
This study investigated perceptions of senior high school students towards the Taiwanese information technology (IT) classroom with the What Is Happening in this Class? (WIHIC) survey and explored the physical learning environment of the IT classroom using the Computerised Classroom Environment Inventory (CCEI). The participants included 2,869 students from 80 classes of senior high schools, vocational high schools and comprehensive high schools in Taiwan. This study had a mixed-method design in which both quantitative (WIHIC and CCEI scales) and qualitative (classroom observations and interview) methods were used. In order to have a cross-cultural perspective, the results of this study were also compared with the earlier findings of Zandvliet and Straker (Ergonomics 44:838-857, 2001) and Zandvliet and Fraser (Learn Environ Res 8:1-17, 2005), which involved Canadian and Australian students in IT settings. Further, we attempted to understand the influence of different gender compositions (all boys, all girls and mixed-gender classes) on students' perceptions of the IT learning environment and students' satisfaction with the IT course. Both the "Spatial environment" of physical environments and "Autonomy/Independence" of psychosocial environments were found to be indicators of students' satisfaction with learning in IT courses, but physical variables as measured with the CCEI scales were not able to predict students' perceptions of the psychosocial environment. Furthermore, relationships among students' satisfaction, psychosocial environment and physical environment were quite different among students from classes with different gender compositions. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Design Requirements; Autism; Classroom Environment; Foreign Countries; Classroom Design; Pervasive Developmental Disorders; Young Children; Classroom Techniques; Elementary School Students; Space Utilization

Abstract:
There is a growing consensus that an appropriate classroom environment will aid the performance of the pupil with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There are, however, very few design guidelines available when considering ASD and the school environment. Such guidelines that do exist tend only to be in general terms. Therefore, this article seeks to highlight design considerations specifically for the ASD-friendly Key Stage 1 (age five to eight) classroom. It will first highlight some of the challenges for those with autism spectrum disorder in a school environment and the "triad of challenges" faced by architects and designers when considering ASD-friendly classroom design. It will then go on to describe the findings and results of a two-year study carried out in conjunction with the ASD teaching staff of Northern Ireland's Southern Education and Library Board. These consist of 16 specific design considerations for the Key Stage 1 ASD-friendly classroom applicable to all classrooms for pupils between five and eight years of age. (Contains 7 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Mathematics Instruction; Preservice Teachers; Space Utilization; Freehand Drawing; Middle Schools; Classroom Design; Hands on Science; Inquiry; Educational Technology; Cognitive Style; Student Needs; Classroom Environment; Interpersonal Relationship; Models

Abstract:
This study reports the results of an innovative assignment in which preservice teachers' mental representations were examined through drawing floor plans of an "ideal middle-level mathematics classroom." The 41 middle-level mathematics preservice teachers created two floor plans, one at the beginning of the semester and the other for the course final. An essay was also submitted describing how the final floor plan addressed the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics principle of Teaching. Participants designed and described floor plans that encouraged the use of inquiry and hands-on activities and technology as instructional strategies, focused on student learning styles and individual needs, established a comfortable, organized and safe learning environment, demonstrated flexibility in grouping strategies, and encouraged communication between peers and with the teacher. The essays also suggest that the preservice teachers' emerging teacher identity was influenced by professional experiences such as field placements and peer lessons. (Contains 3 tables and 3 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Child Caregivers; Preschool Children; Child Care Centers; Video Technology; Early Childhood Education; Developmental Tasks; Case Studies; Qualitative Research; Ethnography; Meetings; Audiovisual Aids; Age Differences; Child Development; Classroom Environment; Educational Practices; Scheduling; Educational Policy; Semi Structured Interviews; Observation; Child Care; Interior Space; Classroom Design; Classroom Research; Preschool Teachers

Abstract:
This qualitative case study approaches early childhood education and care practices from a socio-spatial point of view. One Finnish daycare group for one- to three-year-olds participated in the study. The ethnographic observations from the practices are analyzed together with the ECE practitioners' audio-recorded team meetings and video-elicited interviews. The analysis focuses first on the practitioners' role in structuring the physical and symbolic space, then on how age is used as a category to construct divergences in spatio-temporal practices. The practitioners constrained children's use of the physical space and directed children's attention and interests with different emphases on "activities with predefined objective and location", "transitions" and "activities with flexible objectives and locations". Age was used to justify differentiated spatio-temporal practices. Practitioners supported children in their developmental tasks to enhance adaptation to the institutional order and routines. (Contains 1 figure and 1 note.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Classroom Design; Furniture; Ecology; Educational Change; Educational Environment; Space Utilization

Abstract:
Effective classroom design is a crucial element in learning. Additionally, learning opportunities can be extended well beyond the classroom to create entire learning environments that support student success. Despite the transformations necessary to equip students with 21st-century skills, planners and decision-makers at education institutions continue to design classrooms and campuses that reflect outdated modes of teaching. Exploring educational space design using a "learning per square foot" concept can improve student success, creating a community of learning and strengthening the country's competitive position. Schools can think of furniture and furnishings in new ways. The need to transform education has a profound effect on the planning and use of space. Conversely, classroom design also can serve as an agent for effective changes in education, supporting a diversity of learning styles, as well as new teaching styles. Opportunities for learning go beyond the classroom, and good planning and space design can help harness them. It's important to integrate planning for both informal and formal spaces across a school or campus in an effort to establish an entire learning ecosystem, one that enables learning to take place anytime, anywhere. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Classroom Design; Classroom Environment; Classrooms; Proximity; Classroom Techniques; Personal Space; Class Organization; Data Analysis; Teaching Styles; Visual Aids

Abstract:
The positioning and movement of the teacher in the classroom are fundamental to the pedagogical process. Specific spaces in the classroom take on certain meanings because of the nature of pedagogic discourse that occurs on the site and the positioning and distance of the site relative to the students and the teaching resources. Spatial pedagogy is realised through the patterns of positioning and the directionality of movement, as well as the intersemiotic correspondences in the use of space with other semiotic resources (e.g. language, gesture and teaching materials). This paper investigates the different types of space in the classroom and their associated meanings. It also discusses an approach for annotating the teacher's use of space, and the usefulness of visualising this annotation through digital graphical methods. The notion of "structured informality" in the classroom is proposed through data analysis of two teachers conducting similar lessons, but with apparently different pedagogical styles. (Contains 9 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Foreign Countries; Developed Nations; Educational Facilities Design; School Buildings; Lighting; Public Education; Environmental Standards; Politics of Education; Educational History; Role of Education; Educational Trends; Acoustics; Educational Policy; Public Policy; Evaluation Criteria; Ventilation; School Construction; Educational Facilities Planning; Educational Facilities Improvement; School Expansion; School Safety; Structural Elements (Construction); Design Requirements; Facility Guidelines; Compliance (Legal); Building Design; Educational Environment; Classroom Design; Federal Legislation; Federal Regulation; Heat; Energy Conservation; Interior Space; Federal Programs

Abstract:
Public education is one of the central tasks of a democratic society, and the buildings that house this important task not only shape the way one teaches, but provide icons and symbols for the values people hold common as a society. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this context has placed school buildings squarely in a position of debate and innovation since the nation began, and school buildings continue to be the subject of careful study and debate today. Schools are influenced by political and social movements, new technologies and trends, the growing awareness of what makes one learn better and thus the notions of what makes a great school are constantly shifting and adapting to new ideas. This paper provides a brief history of the past century and a half of school design, focusing particularly on the systems that made schools livable and conducive to learning: lighting, heating, cooling, ventilation, and acoustics. (Contains 14 figures.) Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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Descriptors:
Chalkboards; Teaching Methods; Teaching Styles; Teaching Models; Classroom Environment; Classroom Techniques; Classroom Design; Mathematics Instruction; Program Implementation; Student Attitudes; Instructional Innovation

Abstract:
The author has recently been experimenting with having students work at a set of six blackboards mounted on the walls of a maths teaching space. In this article, he describes this project which he started because he had become impatient with, and aggravated by the usual setup of a maths teaching space. He had started to question why there are students (in the prime of their physical life) sitting down during lessons while he (just short of requiring a Zimmer frame) does all the moving around? He had also noticed that for himself, he could do much smarter work if he did it standing at a black (or white) board and he wondered which of his students would respond similarly. Note:The following two links are not-applicable for text-based browsers or screen-reading software. Show Hide Full Abstract

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