Figure 1. Organic Table. From OpenBuildings. Retrieved from http://openbuildings.com/buildings/vittra-telefonplan-school-profile-43177/media#!buildings-media/9 Copyright: Kim Wendt, Rosan Bosch. Reprinted with permission
Introduction
"We shape our dwellings, and afterwards our dwellings shape us" (Winston Churchill,1944)
To what extent has our society considered this statement? Not a lot, I would argue. Especially in regard to the attention we have given to the dwellings of our schools.
Learning spaces mediate the relationship and social practices of teaching and learning, and whether physical or virtual, have a significant impact on learning (Oblinger, 2006; Earthman, 2004; Keep, 2002; Higgins et al, 2005; Lackney & Jacobs, 2002; Sundstrom, 1987; McNamara & Waugh, 1993; Weinstein, 1979). They not only affect the morale and engagement of students, but teachers also (Filardo, 2008; DEECD, 2009; Flutter, 2006). A well-designed learning space can increase a student’s academic achievement by up to 25% (Barratt, 2013). Therefore, an essential element of a teacher’s role should involve considering the learning spaces their students inhabit. This website explores important learning spaces a teacher should consider (the classroom and the school, the electronic space, the group space, the individual space, and beyond the classroom) and provides a written and visual prediction about the learning spaces of the future. The website is intended to consider the learning spaces of students from Foundation to Year 6.