(from EdSurge) Getting students to weigh in on classroom design can help them learn how to problem-solve as well as create more effective learning spaces, according to Rebecca Hare, a St. Louis design teacher who also serves as a design consultant for schools. Rather than leaving design decisions to top-down administrators, she hopes for one thing when she visits schools: "An educator who's going to feel comfortable enough to give power to the kids to say, 'Hey, is this working? Are you able to learn this way? How can we design this better?'" she told EdSurge. "Because then the kids have control and their voices are heard and the space functions completely differently."
Using this design-thinking approach at the Hillbrook School in California, one outcome is an art and science space called the Hub. Tables and chairs are fitted with casters for easy movement, and ceiling mounts let students hang pulleys, artowk and extension cords (for power tools), enabling mutliple configurations even in a single day.
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