If teaching and learning are relational how come I can’t use social networks at work?

We are coming towards the end of the first decade of the 21st Century.

What has changed in schooling over the last decade?

I’m not sure if that much has really changed.

I work at the educational authority/system level. My own experience is that I can’t even get a del.icio.us button added to my desktop because it is a social networking site.

The fact is that del.icio.us, along with twitter, facebook and LinkedIn have become tools that I have used in my work. They allow me to connect with other professionals.

Unfortunately, the bulk of my professional social networking occurs outside of my work place and official work hours. Yet it is a powerful professional tool and reflects new ways of working and learning.

In school education the practice of erring on the side of caution is very strong. I feel at times that we are still tinkering around the edges.

For me it reinforces that education authorities, school systems and schools continue to be at risk of being obsolete - a point I blogged about over 2 years ago.

Ewan McIntosh recently blogged about Why backward social network banning education authorities are wrong. It is an interesting read and highlights the frequently overlooked professional benefits of social networking.

At the recent World Innovation Summit for Education, Lord David Putnam, the Chairman of FutureLab talks about possibilities for education in the next decade. I love his story of the teacher directing the class to copy the set homework from the blackboard (or perhaps an interactive whiteboard) and the student who used a mobile phone to take a photo of the board.

Is it a case of "the more things change the more things stay the same in schooling?" I hope not.

Images:

Interactive whiteboard: http://static.guim.co.uk/sysimages/Environment/Pix/pictures/2007/08/31/classroom1.jpg

Blackboard: http://www.easygraphics.com/images/uploads/Polyvision/TS_Classroom-Teacher.jpg

Space for Personalised Learning

There is another FutureLab project that is examining the necessity to re-design schools on the basis of a solid understanding of how learning can be supported.

This project is the Space for Personalised Learning (Space4PL). Space4PL is set within the UK.

"Space4PL is an ambitious project funded by the DCSF (Department for Children, Schools and Families) that will provide schools with tools and support to re-design their spaces according to a clear educational vision, rather than following the superficial appeal of new buildings and resources which court the risk of being disconnected from effective learning."

"They will be talking to pupils, teachers and parents, identifying possibilities and testing actual design solutions to personalise learning. The findings and the tools that will emerge from this project will be communicated to all schools in the country, providing them with help and advice as they are approaching the most delicate phases of their renovation and re-building programmes."

http://www.futurelab.org.uk/projects/space4pl/

Playing Spaces, Learning Spaces

I love FutureLab! I always enjoying getting their newsletter. The February 2009 Newsletter linked through to a presentation by Tim Rudd (photo left) on Re-imagining the design of outdoor play and learning spaces.

Whilst the presentation is about 43 minutes in length, it is well worth having a look at. The screen shot below is linked to the presentation.



The presentation explores the link between school design and personalisation. The challenge is put forward that school design requires visioning and thinking differently.

I think this is particularly pertinent with the recent announcement (4 February, 2009) by the Australian Government to fund 7,700 primary schools to construct or upgrade buildings.

There is a danger that we set about building the same style of buildings that will not serve us well into the future.

Tim Rudd from FutureLab puts forward the challenge to place children at the centre of the design process and to involve children as co-designers.

In the presentation a number of questions are posed that got me thinking - no answers - just lots of thoughts!

• Should we be even thinking in terms of "school"?


• How do you actually think of a school as a learning community?


• How are children involved in the co-design of learning spaces?


• Do our environments really constitute areas that really stimulate people and get them to think and relax and play as well?

He argues that in building schools there has been a lack of emphasis on outdoor learning spaces

"because it’s building schools and everybody automatically starts to think about the structure."

He believes that outdoor spaces in schools are often under-utilised and often unimaginative.

In developing outdoor learning spaces he explores the place of technologies (handheld and projection technologies) and the possibilities for developing sensory environments.

FutureLab have also published a handbook, Reimagining outdoor learning spaces which maybe of interest.

Designing Learning Spaces

It's funny how things sort of converge! Today I was in a meeting discussing the design of staff spaces to support teacher learning and collaboration. The regulations seemed to dominate the thinking as to why things couldn't be done differently.

Upon getting home I opened up my email to find an email from Futurelab, a UK non-profit organisation that explores innovation in education. The email indicated that in January 2008 Futurelab conducted a workshop in which particpants explored personalising learning and school design.

CARTOON PASTED FROM <http://flux.futurelab.org.uk/>

The workshop explored

• The biggest barriers
• Principles of personalisation
• Technologies and future learning opportunities
• Student voice
• Generated a set of outcomes of the workshop.

The summary document of the workshop, Learning spaces and personalisation workshop outcomes, makes for an interesting read.

Further information about this workshop can be found at the Themes section on learning spaces http://www.futurelab.org.uk/themes/learning_spaces at Futurelab.

Futurelab has also produced a more comprehensive report on learning spaces, Opening education: What if … re-imagining learning spaces.

In addition, the blog FLUX is running a themed week this week (9-16 May 2008) on Learning Spaces. Entries include:

• Tomorrow's schools more than just learning spaces
• Personalising space and school redesign
• A 'practical tool' for redesigning learning spaces?