The room set-up, designed by Phillip Henderson and I at the beginning of the school year, is designed to optimize student interactions in a collaborative learning environment. The seating arrangement is designed to shift the center of learning from the front of the classroom to many centers around the room. For most classes, the grouping of 4-5 students allows for individual, pair and small groupings of students to collaborate in a variety of ways, while an additional area is left open for workshops with students who have additional needs. We find this set-up to be optimal for all phases of the lesson including preparation, practice and production.
The classroom environment is focused on providing students with the opportunity to make meaning through the exploration of broad, open-ended questions which nevertheless fall within the parameters of essential understandings. After sufficient instruction and practice, students spend significant time exploring the content through a wide variety of performance tasks which allow students to demonstrate knowledge and skills through challenging performance tasks.
Keeping in mind that the students in our school come from widely divergent backgrounds, including government, private and international programs, and with a vast array of skills, language abilities and interests, students are given significant leeway to pursue meanings and demonstrate comprehension in a way the fits their needs as learners and individuals. While all students are required to meet the same essential outcomes, effort and evidence of growth are significant factors in scoring performance tasks, and students are always given ample opportunities to seek feedback and improve their work.
The classroom environment is focused on providing students with the opportunity to make meaning through the exploration of broad, open-ended questions which nevertheless fall within the parameters of essential understandings. After sufficient instruction and practice, students spend significant time exploring the content through a wide variety of performance tasks which allow students to demonstrate knowledge and skills through challenging performance tasks.
Keeping in mind that the students in our school come from widely divergent backgrounds, including government, private and international programs, and with a vast array of skills, language abilities and interests, students are given significant leeway to pursue meanings and demonstrate comprehension in a way the fits their needs as learners and individuals. While all students are required to meet the same essential outcomes, effort and evidence of growth are significant factors in scoring performance tasks, and students are always given ample opportunities to seek feedback and improve their work.