The purpose of this research is to explore prospective teachers' perspectives on the physical arrangement of an ideal classroom as a learning environment. A phenomenological design was used in this study to reveal the views of prospective teachers about the components and features of an ideal, desired classroom environment. Fifteen teacher…

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…

Although learning spaces research is not new, research approaches that target the specific teaching and learning experiences of faculty and students who occupy active learning classrooms (ALCs) is nascent. We report on two novels data collection approaches: Flashbacks and Re-Captures. Both leverage faculty reflective practice and provide windows…

This descriptive, mixed methods study of one interim certification program explores first year urban teachers' classroom management actions. This study investigates what strategies teachers implement to manage the classroom from programmatic surveys of 87 first-year teachers and interviews, field visits, video recordings, and journals of five case…

This chapter describes the results of an assessment project whose purpose was to improve the faculty-development program for instructors who teach in technology-infused TILE (Transform, Interact, Learn, Engage) classrooms at the University of Iowa. Qualitative research methods were critical for (1) learning about how students and instructors…

The primary contribution of this paper is the finding that lack of activities and interesting learning areas prepared by the teacher in the classroom may negatively impact children's social behavior. Classroom design and the teacher's careful selection of materials to be displayed in each of the learning areas do engage young children in learning…

The study proposes an analysis of the processes through which the material and symbolic features of the setting and the activities of the educators interact to determine the children's experience in an early educational centre. This analysis is of particular interest with regard to both educational practice and understanding developmental…

Describes how play centers can be enriched in the functional uses of print. Details some of the effects observed on the frequency and quality of literacy activities in the spontaneous play of 37 preschoolers. (MG)

Comments of experienced teachers suggest that writing may be avoided in school not simply because of its inherent difficulty, but because its undertaking typically lacks connection to anything else in the lives of students or teachers. It is possible that teachers can best serve the acquisition of writing skills by structuring the social occasions…

This paper argues that progressive pedagogy is a viable alternative to more limited basic skill approaches to school reform. Drawing on qualitative and quantitative data collected during the fourth year of a 7-year multi-site school reform initiative in a besieged urban district, the paper documents ways in which teachers have dramatically altered…