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How many faculty know about the planning, designing, and support that goes on “behind the curtain" to enable us to walk confidently into a classroom and teach? Who is supporting us now and anticipating future trends to keep us on the cutting edge of the physical/technological space and teaching/learning intersect? Meet the wizards from the Office of Classroom Management (OCM): Steve Fitzgerald, Director; Jeremy Todd, Planning; and John Knowles, Instructional Technology Coordinator. The Digital Media Center-Office of Information Technology Faculty Fellows had an opportunity to meet with these leaders to learn more about the current active learning classroom initiative as well as hear ideas that are being considered for future learning-space innovations.
The Active Learning Classroom initiative (http://www.classroom.umn.edu/active-learn-room.asp) is a pilot project of the OCM that involved the renovation of two general purpose classrooms (Biological Sciences Center Room 64) on the St. Paul campus (seats 117) and the Electrical Engineering/Computer Science Building Room 2-260 on the East Bank (seats 45). The classrooms feature nine-seat round tables with laptop hook-ups, flat-panel projection systems and an instructor station that allows the display of information either from the instructor’s laptop or from any of the learner laptops. Additionally, a 360-degree glass board around the room’s perimeter is available for use by the learners. To see how this classroom has been used to facilitate learning, please view the short video clip at http://www.classroom.umn.edu/Interactive_Classroom225p.mov
So why invest resources in active learning environments? Some of the reasons OCM gives for active learning classrooms (ALC) are that they a) enable instructors to better interact with students; b) create a cooperative learning environment by allowing learners to question and teach one another; c) allow instructors to function as learning coaches, answering and asking questions to encourage self-directed learning; and d) allow students to present learning to peers and instructors for feedback. One comment from our speakers was that these spaces function as a “concept laboratory", one in which learners bring into the classroom what they already know from their outside-of-class readings and assignments, share that with peers and the instructor, and have opportunities to further refine and apply the concepts during the class. The spaces allow for learner creativity and innovation. Faculty who have taught in one of these spaces (including three of the DMC Fellows) share similar reactions: the space enhances/deepens the instructor/learner relationships; the instructor’s role changes from expert knowledge-imparter to learning coach/facilitator (the familiar transition from ‘sage on the stage’ to ‘guide on the side’); peer learner relationships are enhanced – students learn from each other and work more effectively together on collaborative projects (see http://www.classroom.umn.edu/ALC_Report_Final.pdf for ALC Pilot Project Evaluation). Additionally, faculty point out that if instructors are to take full advantage of active learning spaces, it “demands" a rethinking of teaching and learning. In this sense, does the infrastructure drive pedagogy?
We asked our guests if investments in these types of active learning spaces are expected to continue. The remodeling of the Classroom Science building on the Minneapolis, East Bank campus will include ALC-type learning environments. And as other spaces/resources are available, other renovations can be expected. It appears that as word of their existence spreads, faculty are getting excited about the potential to teach in an ALC. Our discussion both raised excitement and questions about the potential for learning-space innovation.
What happens when demand exceeds supply? How are decisions made about who has priority to teach in these spaces? If faculty don’t have reasonable assurance that they can continue to teach in one of the ALC spaces, is it cost-effective for them to completely transform their courses only to find themselves back in a traditional lecture hall or classroom in subsequent terms?
Important questions for faculty, but no clear answers….
But while these types of learning environments are exciting and innovative, what’s coming down the road? Mobile computing is really the wave of the future and OCM has already been planning how to meet the tremendous needs and potential that this tsunami will bring. How and where does the UM provide the wireless network “cloud" that will support the demand and diversity of wireless devices expected? How do we deal with platform standardization? In essence, how will the mobile computing phenomenon change the way learners learn and instructors teach? How will “humionics" (wearable computing) change the way we learn/teach? (see http://panuganty.tripod.com/articles/softwear.htm) for a glimpse of the future)
Tune in soon for more conversations on this topic, as in the next few months we will be meeting with other key figures in the University to learn more. In the meantime, share your teaching and/or learning experiences in active learning spaces or via mobile computing.