Page 32 - aruba-today-20190712

A32 FEATURE
Friday 12 July 2019

Today’s assignment for classroom design: flexibility

By KIM COOK Over the decades, famous
Associated Press designers have lent their
Desks lined up in precise talents to school furniture
rows with teacher firmly — among them, Jean
planted at the front: That Prouve’s mid-1930s tubular
was the standard class- steel and wood single desk,
room format for much of double bench and chair;
the last century. Alvar Aalto’s inclinable ta-
But with many educators bletop desk of the 1950s;
saying kids can do better in and Arne Jacobsen’s bent
a more relaxed and flexible plywood desk and chair of
learning environment, de- the same era.
signers and architects have Today, classroom furniture
been providing spaces and runs the gamut from chairs
furnishings to fit that bill. to chaises, with work tables
“Innovators no longer of varying heights.
speak of ‘classrooms,’” Imagine Charter Schools,
says Bob Pearlman, a Tuc- based in Arlington, Virginia,
son, Arizona-based educa- and operating schools in
tion consultant. “Students This photo provided by Feaster Charter School in Chula Vista, Calif., shows students using bean nine states, offers colorful
now work in learning stu- bags in a classroom. swivel seating, as well as
dios, plazas and home bas- Associated Press comfy upholstered bench-
es. They shift into varied ex- changed that,” Pearlman them in groups as the class- “I personally incorporate es. Montessori schools have
tended learning areas and says. “This has transformed room dynamic becomes some innovative spaces soft lighting similar to home
collaboration zones that all school spaces into po- clearer and projects are into my traditional layout; environments, and more
include project-planning tential extended learning undertaken. there’s a peace corner subdued furniture and de-
rooms, workrooms, focused areas, even the corridors Natural light and views, re- where students can go to cor than traditional class-
labs, group learning spac- and alcoves.” duced background noise calm down, a VIP table for rooms.
es, individual pods.” LAYOUT and good air quality are all students who show exem- Marianne Box, a design
He mentions Albemarle Back in the 1970s, Ameri- considerations in classroom plary work ethics, and flex specialist at school-furni-
County’s public school can psychologist Robert design, says Aaron Jobson seating for students who ture maker Hertz Furniture,
system, in Charlottesville, Sommer was urging a criti- of Quattrocchi Kwok Archi- need alternative options to in Ramsey, New Jersey,
Virginia. The district invited cal look at traditional class- tects in Santa Rosa, Califor- stay focused.” says ergonomic seating
teams from all its schools room layouts, saying class- nia. “More and more evi- Stephanie Dominguez, a and mobile, flexible pieces
to conceptualize learning rooms aren’t just simple dence connects the physi- principal at Feaster Char- are big sellers. The focus is
spaces that would inspire cubes, says Jo Earp, edi- cal environment to learning ter School in Chula Vista, on managing kids’ energy
kids to tackle complex tor of Teacher magazine, outcomes,” he says. California, says her aim is levels, and giving them
ideas and work on creative a publication of the non- New designs include inter- to prepare kids for the work places to concentrate.
building projects. Now, the profit Australian Council nal glass walls and doors world. “There isn’t one in- Classroom bean bags give
elementary grades have for Educational Research. that increase connected- dustry in which profession- younger students a place
swapped out traditional Sommer noted that in any ness among students and al adults work in isolation; to read. “They mold to fit
desks for stools, soft seat- given room, the lighting provide good sightlines for most professionals work in each student, giving them
ing, mobile chairs and con- or heating will be better teachers. collaborative settings,” she support and a sense of
nectable tables. in some spots than in oth- The concept of dynamic, says. Teachers at her school comfort,” she says.
Another new reality chang- ers, as will the view of the explorative learning spaces have flexibility to design Self-contained study
ing the dynamic: connec- blackboard. was championed by futur- their own spaces, she says, booths have tablet surfac-
tivity. Besides the alternative ist David Thornburg in his but across the 70 class- es, power supplies, footrests
“Classrooms, libraries, “freeform” classroom, Earp book “From the Campfire rooms there’s one thing in and armrests.
and labs used to be the says, some teachers can to the Holodeck” (Jossey- common: “Students must A molded plastic wobble
only spaces where stu- find good results with a hy- Bass, 2013). He said schools have spaces or desk struc- stool comes in various sizes
dents spent their school brid model, perhaps lining should provide spaces tures that make collaborat- and colors; Box says it also
hours. Wireless, laptops up desks at the start of the based on how humans ing with their peers easy.” promotes torso and leg
and project learning have year and then rearranging learn, with a balance of FURNISHINGS movement.q
campfire (lecture space),
watering hole (conversa-
tion space), cave (reflec-
tion space) and life (expe-
riential space).
That could mean one room
is used in different ways at
different times, or in differ-
ent ways at the same time.
Loren Myers, a first-grade
teacher at a public char-
ter school in San Jose,
California, says retrofitting
traditional schools can be
expensive, and teachers
don’t have big budgets.
This photo shows Humanscale’s Ballo stool, airfilled domes on This photo provided by Hertz Furniture shows upholstered,
each end of a sturdy central column, the Ballo is an example She says many get creative moveable ottomans that can be configured into sofa-style
of the kind of dynamic seating office and learning spaces are with resources to create a seating, high/low adjustable stools, and worktables provide
offering. unique classroom. students at Entrepreneur High School in San Bernardino, Calif.
Associated Press Associated Press