Space: GSB Classroom Typical Setup:
Analysis: Advantages The auditorium style seating and crescent moon shape of GSB classrooms are effective. Students are able to see each other and professors are able to view and speak to the entire class. The setup makes it conversation and interaction easy as most people can look each other in the eye as they dialogue. The white boards and screens on both sides make seeing visuals easy for all in the classroom. And the white boards stack and slide feature is extremely useful as professors are able to write on the boards and move to the next board without wasting time to erase or erasing before all learners have copied what they have placed on the board.
Disadvantages The wooden chairs are small and extremely uncomfortable forcing students to shift often. The fact that the chairs are fixed to the ground force a certain distance between students that is not compatible for working closely and interacting during class.
Also, the walking space behind the chairs is extremely small, which creates a HUGE distraction as classmates get up and go to the bathroom.
I have never cared about this before, but being in this class I realize that no learning can take place unless there a class is in session. Without classes, there is nothing to interact with or the stimulate the mind.
Dan Gilbert Nice comments. Sounds like the space works for you and for your learning style as well as the teaching style of the instructor. I think this is an important thing. It also sounds like that with an upgrade just to teh chairs, you might be able to engage in more activities. Perhaps this is the kind of intervention that would facilitate conversation, community, challenging one another, etc. .
Deb Kim: Nice observation and thank for picking a GSB classroom for this reflection. You pointed out several design features of the classroom which are designed to promote a particular kind of teaching and learning, but if attention to additional learning styles, and respecting that learning is also best facilitated if there are uses of multiple representations of the content (e.g., hands-on activities, group work, breakout discussion sessions, etc.) then the rigidity of the space as a learning and then a work space are not conducive. When we think of learning space design it will be important not only to weigh the learning, but the financial pros and cons will most certainly come into play, right? The more ways a space can be useful is one consideration, but then again the multiplicity of needs and audiences being address can decrease the effectiveness. Nice initial observations of learning space, this is exactly the right kinds of reflections and observations we're hoping to find in Project 1 and also the kinds of tensions we'll consider for the learning space design rubric.
Co Barry Detavio, I like your comments on the B-school classrooms. Having spent some time in those classrooms and contrasting them with others I have also thought about how effective they are as learning spaces. I think Dan's point about the space being designed with a particular kind of instruction in mind is very well taken. The classrooms are ideal for lecture based classes that are relatively teacher centered. While they work well for this kind of instruction it is very difficult to have much student driven learning. Detavio, I really like your point that there is very little opportunity for learning when there is not a class in session. Is this a positive or a negative attribute? In some ways I could see that it would be very positive because there is nothing to distract from the lesson going on. Finally, I completely agree that the amount of space behind those chairs makes it distracting when people leave.