By D r. C H I P K I M B A L L Superintendent
CONTEMPORARY LEARNING SPACES
A NIGHTMARE OF THE PAST, OR A VISION OF THE FUTURE? It’s the age-old education question: how do kids learn best? And as far as facilities go, do students best learn sitting in rows of desks, or in flexible environments where they can explore and learn in a variety of ways? This isn’t the first time educators at Singapore American School have considered that question, or tried new learning environments. In the late 1970s, SAS began experimenting with a new approach called Individually Guided Education. This personalized approach was adopted in part to account for the diversity of our student backgrounds; plus, the movement was sweeping the US and was considered to be the most effective emerging teaching methodology. Mostly remembered for its open classroom layout and multi-grade mixes of student learning groups, the movement did away with whole-class lessons and standardized tests, and promoted a less detailed curriculum.
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The experiment of the 1970s had some successes, but in many other respects had deep failures, with unintended consequences for a generation of students and educators. The physical space often resulted in one large unregulated open space, and noise and distractions were a consistent battle cry of classroom teachers. But there were successes as well. The best open classrooms had planned settings where students learned at an individualized pace, guided by teachers while circulating through centers of learning. Teachers helped students negotiate each subject and learning center activity on the principle that children learn best when they are interested in what they are doing. There were sound concepts that have persisted in good learning theory for the subsequent 50 years.
