How schools are creating flexible classrooms with cutting edge technology Ultimately, flexible classrooms can promote equity, access, and help facilitate social-emotional learning. Embracing social-emotional learning in early education and continuing to develop these skills throughout all grade levels creates job-ready young adults with soft skills that employers need.
How audio solutions help make classrooms flexible
Many districts are adopting flexible learning spaces to bolster student engagement and collaboration, promote social-emotional learning, and enable different instruction delivery methods. The hallmark of a flexible classroom is to create a space that can adapt to any instruction method, style, or delivery. One obvious characteristic of flexible classrooms is that they must be able to physically accommodate any classroom setup—from the traditional row of desks where teachers primarily remain front of stage to modern layouts that encourage group collaboration and teachers circulate throughout the space to provide guidance to groups or individual students. The technology stack within the classroom also enables classrooms to be flexible. With the right technology stack, classrooms can be used effectively for online and in28
Ops Talk • Spring 2022
person learning. Effective teaching and seamless learning require technology support that is easy to use and enhances teaching and learning, in whatever form they may take. For example, classroom audio distribution systems promote student engagement in every instructional space and connect students who may be learning remotely. Technology control and management systems are also needed make it effortless for teachers to use the technology.
Who benefits from flexible classrooms Flexible classrooms help promote equity in learning among a diverse population of students. Students themselves are the biggest benefactors of this radical shift. Technology reduces learning barriers for both mainstream and special needs students and teaching barriers for instructors.
In its simplest form, a classroom audio solution pairs a microphone device for the teacher with strategically placed speakers for the students. Ideally, the system is specifically designed for K-12 to ensure intelligibility of sound as well as amplification and sound distribution. This allows students to easily hear instruction, which leads them to be more engaged in active learning. For teachers, they can prevent vocal strain because they do not need to use their “teacher’s voice.” Classroom audio also helps make the space effective with any classroom layout chosen. Students can hear the teacher clearly regardless of where or how they are sitting. In addition, audio technology makes it easy to capture live lessons so that teachers can provide learning in different formats. For example, if a student is sick and misses an in-person class, he or she can watch the recorded lesson instead of getting left behind. For districts that offer flexibility between remote and in-person learning, these tools are essential to giving both students the same experience.
