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Teaching & Learning Strategies For Agile Learning Spaces (or any space really)
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Table of Contents Considerations for learning/Ideal Approaches……………..….…….. 3 The Learning Journey …………………………………………...…….…….. 4 Learning space groupings …………………………………………………. 5 Teacher roles ………………………………………………………………….. 6 Classroom display and instruction ……………………...……………. 7 Providing support for students ………………………….….…………… 8 Communicating with and directing students ………..……………… 9 Monitoring progress and understanding ……………..……….…….. 10 Learning Zones/Stations ………………………………… ………… 11-12 Providing Feedback ………………………………………………..………. 13 Student Centred Learning We all know this often used phrase, but consider how much of it comprises your practice. Challenge: What tasks do you currently do for students that they could potentially do for themselves? Identify one task that you currently do for students that you think they could do. What support, scaffolds or practice would students need to assume responsibility for this particular task? What might the value be of shifting this responsibility to your students? How would this shift impact your teaching reality?
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Learning Space Groupings In Central’s General Learning Areas (GLAs) there will ideally be a fluid movement of students in and around the space as well as in a range of group configurations. The work of David Thornburg may guide your transition to groups in this space.
The Campfire (large group) The campfire is is a space where the whole group meets to receive instructions. The experts are not only teachers and guest speakers, but also students who are empowered to share their learning with peers and other teachers
The Waterhole (small group) The watering hole is an informal space where peers can share information and discoveries, acting as both learner and teacher simultaneously. It is a space where students work in small groups to complete tasks. They are encouraged to discuss, collaborate and share ideas. This shared space can serve as an incubator for ideas and can promote a sense of shared culture
The Cave (individual work) The cave is a private space where students work independently to complete tasks. They can reframe ideas gathered from interaction with other students and stay focused on their reading and research.
Place in the Learning Journey: all stages
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Teacher roles In a large, shared space, teachers will assume and shift through a range of roles and responsibilities. This is best agreed upon by all involved (teachers, teachers aides) and needs to be equitable but also playing to strengths. Key roles include the following:
‘Director’ ● Establishes and discusses learning intention/s ● Can direct co-construction of success criteria ● Can introduce/conclude lesson and direct entrance/exit ticket responses
‘Expert’ ● Responsible for explicit teaching of content
‘Rover’ ● Moving between groups/individuals to monitor work, respond to questions, informally assess when possible
‘Trouble-shooter’
● Specifically tasked to assist students who need support or have questions. Easily identified to students to distinguish their role. Can be dedicated as a station or free moving.
‘Extender/Enrichment’ ● Specifically tasked to extend capable students beyond Stage outcomes
‘Marker’ ● Specifically tasked to assess student progress and understanding. dedicated as a station, free moving, or targeting specific students.
‘Student Expert’ ● This role falls to students who have mastered content and understanding, so much that they can teach or assist others. They should be identified in some fashion, eg badge, desk label or lanyard, so that other students can seek them out
Can be
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Classroom Display & Instruction In Central’s General Learning Areas (GLAs) there is no ‘front of the room’. No central whiteboard or teacher’s desk. So consider - How you will adapt your current practice in the absence of them.
Vivi Screen mirroring and video streaming in Central will be via Vivi© software. This will offer a range of features that will require PD over time. In the short term, teachers will be able to display to all screens in the GLA, while students will be able to use single screens. Access to Vivi© will require download of relevant software that can be found at https://www.vivi.io/downloads
Annotation Options ● Google Slides: use annotation options (Q & A, Pointer) in presentation mode ● Google Slides: use ‘Caption’s option when in presentation for your voice to become captions at the bottom of your slideshow (it will require no background noise to be present)
● Thinglink: requires preparation before lessons
● Mac Image Preview: Access annotation menu from the ‘Tool’s menu
Place in the Learning Journey:
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Providing support for students In a large, shared space, it is vital that students can access you for support, to have questions answered, or to clarify instructions. Below are a few options available to you.
Ask Three Before Me
Encourage students to clarify instructions or have questions answered by insisting on this initial approach before they seek your help. These three approaches can include reference to the items in their Learning Journey backpack or to their peers. Alternatively, allocate student ‘experts’ who you deem capable of teaching or supporting other students.
Tangible request for help
Several LED light switches made available to students in a central location in the space can be an organised and methodical way for students to seek your attention. They should be numbered so that you know the order in which students have been waiting. The switch is returned to the central position once you have attended to their needs.
Digital request for help ClassroomQ is an online tool designed to organise student questions or requests for help. Video overview of ClassroomQ
Left: student view Above: teacher view
Place in the Learning Journey:
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Communicating with & directing students In a large, shared space you will need to establish routines to call for student attention or direct their learning. This is important for voice preservation, to avoid repetitive instructions, and built self-discipline within the spaces. Consider the options below as potential aids.
Slideshow of basic instructions
Key protocols for learning can be presented on the TV screens in the learning space. They can be adapted to suit your subject and/or needs. A basic template can be found at http://tiny.cc/yh1ggz
Regulating noise levels Large agile spaces will be notable for noise, hopefully productive learning noise. To ensure a suitable volume of noise for all you can use a variety of noise monitoring tools that visually indicate to students appropriate noise levels.
https://bouncyballs.org/
Zero Noise Classroom
Place in the Learning Journey:
https://calmcounter.ictgames.com/
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Monitoring progress and understanding In a large, shared space, it becomes even more important to effectively monitor progress and student understanding. Below are a few options that are often used, but become essential in this type of learning environment.
Learning Intention/Success Criteria
● Did you understand the learning intention for this lesson? ● To what extent did you achieve the success criteria?
Generic Learning Questions ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●
What other information would have been useful for you today? What aspects of the lesson deepened your understanding of the topic? What have you learnt from others in your class? Was there anything surprising in your learning? What are you likely to remember from this lesson? What strategies worked today that you could use in future lessons? What might you do next time? What might you do every time?
Entrance/Exit Tickets
Any content question or progress report required by the teacher.
Progress Tickets Student reporting of progress through tasks at any stage of the lesson/learning.
Smarter, not harder
Reduce your workload by using a Google Form, Padlet or Flipgrid instead of paper version
Entrance/Exit tickets to inform learning
Use the information gleaned from entrance/exit tickets to direct students to zones in your classroom based on need and/or progress.
Place in the Learning Journey:
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Learning Zones/Stations
Large shared spaces, with their furniture and potential for break out groups, lend themselves extremely well to learning through zones and/or learning stations.
Principles to consider: ● ● ● ● ● ●
each station should have an explicit problem or content point for the student engage with activities should encourage independence and are guided by clear instructions important concepts should emerge and be identifiable by the students materials should not be onerous and minimal time should be required for set-up diversity/differentiation occurs through rich tasks rather than individual tasks the teacher should be free to guide and assist students according to need
Potential structures Single Content/Concept Aspect 1 Aspect 2 Aspect 3 Aspect 4 Aspect 5
Varied Differentiated Content/Concept Zones Content 1 Extension task Content 2 A level tasks Content 3 B level tasks Content 4 C level tasks (students to complete 2, Content 5 the aim being to attain growth)
Jigsaw/Expert Instruction
Group A Group B Group C Group D Group E (students to return to their original grouping as an expert)
Flipped Learning Stations In this mode, each student moves at their own pace, visiting the stations they need only. Teacher monitors, clarifies and provides support. Free flowing - potential for students to revisit and shift to stations as needed.
Teacher: role of the teacher can vary. Possibilities include - i) move among students/groups according to need, ii) teacher positioned as a zone/station for all students to pass through and for a specific purpose (support, monitoring, explicit instruction, extension, assessment, etc), iii) independent teacher zone to call for individual students or offer an optional location of support and assistance
Movement between zones/learning stations Plan, clearly instruct students, and insist on a process for movement between zones/stations that will meet the needs of your lesson. Clear expectations here can make the difference between the success and failure of your lesson.
Evaluation and Assessment Zones and stations are most effective when the teacher uses them to evaluate the learning phase and assess student progress. The conclusion of zoned activities or learning stations should include decisions around revisiting or extending content/concepts once student achievement (group or individual) is assessed. This can occur in the lesson or by asking students to submit a piece of work that demonstrates the outcome/learning intention.
Place in the Learning Journey:
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Providing Feedback In a large, shared space, it will be imperative that you efficiently and regularly provide feedback within a dynamic and mobile learning environment. It is important that this reduces the marking/feedback load that you typically undertake outside of class time.
Feedback Options (for any classroom) ● Regularly use Learning Intentions, Success Criteria, and NESA Grade Descriptors to guide your feedback ● Sticky notes ● Teacher as feedback station/location for students to access ● Peer feedback: consider making this a learning station ● Individual conferences/appointments ● Verbal: consider using a stamp or labels (see right) ● Single point rubrics ● Insisting feedback is part of a D.I.R.T. lesson ● Using a ‘skill meter’ (see right)
Place in the Learning Journey: