Situative theories of learning challenge the notion of learning as a singular cognitive pursuit. However, the relations between the designed environment and situated learning activity are not well theorised, and this increases the difficulty of designing future learning spaces to accommodate learning communities supported by a range of digital…

In Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand, the impetus to create open learning spaces that afford spatial and pedagogical flexibility have disrupted the nature of teachers' work. In redesigned education facilities, teachers engage in sophisticated processes of collaboration and ongoing teacher professional learning. Moving from traditional classroom…

Australia has been the site of significant school facility design innovation during the past decade. This innovation was showcased in 2013 in a report released by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) titled "Innovative Learning Environments, Educational Research and Innovation." It featured case studies of 40…

Safe learning spaces allow children to explore their environment in an open and inquiring way, whereas unsafe spaces constrain, frustrate and disengage children from experiencing the fullness of their learning spaces. This study explores how children make sense of safe and unsafe learning spaces, and how this understanding affects the ways they…

Public education is one of the central tasks of a democratic society, and the buildings that house this important task not only shape the way one teaches, but provide icons and symbols for the values people hold common as a society. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this context has placed school buildings squarely in a position of debate and innovation…

These four early childhood education conference papers discuss ideas and themes to create healthy educational environments inspired by preschool sites in Reggio Emilia, Italy. The first paper, "Environmental Visions: Daisies and the Possible" (Alma Fleet and Janet Robertson), discusses the influences of Reggio Emilia. The paper notes how…

This issue of the Australian Early Childhood Association Research in Practice Series focuses on creating aesthetically pleasing environments in early childhood care and education settings. The booklet details characteristics of aesthetically pleasing environments and discusses how early childhood practitioners' reflection upon the school or center…

This booklet, revised from the March 1990 version, provides suggestions for reassessing, modifying, and arranging child care center environments to best serve the needs of children and staff. The booklet notes that a well-planned environment can provide young children with appropriate and challenging learning experiences within a consistent and…