Active learning has been a growing trend in education for decades based on its impact on student learning and success. As such, schools, colleges, and universities have invested resources into expanding this teaching approach, including active learning classrooms. But why have some schools been successful at rapidly growing their active learning…

This article explores the characteristics of a successful transition of a school from traditional classrooms to an innovative learning environment. Many schools today are converting traditional classrooms into spaces which are flexible, supporting a wide array of teaching and learning possibilities (i.e. an 'innovative learning environment').…

The New Zealand Ministry of Education encourages schools to update to flexible learning spaces and activate teaching approaches that augment such physical settings. Many schools have embraced the concept of innovative learning environments (ILE) and team teaching, motivating a trend fast gaining popularity in New Zealand primary schools. However,…

Cheryl Ferreira vigorously pursues the Montessori principles that are implicit for preparing a classroom where "children find all that is needed to work at self-formation and to maximize their inner potential." The Montessori philosophy is precisely conveyed as Cheryl Ferreira details the specific elements and principles, both physical…

Could new types of pedagogy that involve more classroom projects and peer instruction encourage school districts to replace outdated furniture and redesign classrooms? Or could new classroom designs using modular furniture have an impact on how teachers engage their students? These are just a few of the questions that educators, instructional…

The classroom environment is uppermost in teachers' minds at the start of each school year. Designing an effective classroom environment for learning to read and reading is both an art and a science. Aligning physical space with instructional goals involves the flexible use of space that is adapted to instructional needs. A well-designed classroom…

The author has recently been experimenting with having students work at a set of six blackboards mounted on the walls of a maths teaching space. In this article, he describes this project which he started because he had become impatient with, and aggravated by the usual setup of a maths teaching space. He had started to question why there are…

The design research methodology as it has currently developed centers on the creation of "existence proofs," an important first step. What is needed then are the next steps of expanding the methodology to address the design problems of practical implementation prior to the steps involved in scaling up these designs. This article contributes to…

It is widely recognized that technology in the classroom has the potential to transform education at every stage from Pre-K, to K-12, to Higher Education and Adult Education. Using the Digital Teaching Platform as an exemplar of 21st Century classroom instruction style, the author offers an overview of classroom technology and its effects on…

Good teachers know that the physical environment of the classroom can either enhance or hinder learning. Appropriate room preparation and arrangement of materials reserves class time for learning, while inadequate planning interferes with instruction by causing interruptions and delays. Before the year begins, effective classroom managers…

How teaching and learning takes place in classrooms can be easily seen by the way classrooms are set up: Students' desks and chairs are arranged in rolls while teachers' desks are up front. Yet, why must teachers be the ones who lecture, why can't it be students? Would it be better or worse when teachers are the receivers and the students are the…

Using a sample of 867 students in Grades 5-12, the present study investigated whether students' perceptions toward the instructional environment in classrooms that employed Universal Design for Learning differed by school grade level and teacher gender. High-school students in the study showed higher perception scores than upper-elementary or…

Too many schools are still being built today as warehouses with windows; they get the job done on some minimal level, but beyond that, they simply do not excite the children who spend a great deal of their lives within their walls. Creating an environmentally friendly building is important, but that's only part of the equation. The author and his…

"Educator or Bully?" offers a comprehensive approach to classroom management for both novice and veteran teachers who are interested in examining their current classroom management performance, especially with respect to how it reflects the characteristics of the 21st century classroom. Practices presented are based on sound educational theory.…

This study investigated perceptions of senior high school students towards the Taiwanese information technology (IT) classroom with the What Is Happening in this Class? (WIHIC) survey and explored the physical learning environment of the IT classroom using the Computerised Classroom Environment Inventory (CCEI). The participants included 2,869…