Big Misconceptions
Sandra Dodd
I wanted to cite "Open Classroom," and poked around a bit. I was glad
to find a Wikipedia page, but amused at this:
-=-Open-space schools continue to be a very controversial idea for the
obvious reason that a lack of architectural walls increases the noise
and distraction making the teaching environment non-conducive to
learning.-=-
When people talked about "School without walls" they weren't talking
about INSIDE walls--they were talking about acknowledging that
learning happens inside and outside, and that kids shouldn't be locked
up by age in rows, nor should they be limited to learning from just
the teachers at their school. "School without walls" had to do with
seeing "school" not as the building, but as the experience of learning
in different, more flexible, more creative ways.
When schools were built with open floor plans, the idea was that kids
could go from the library to the science center to the reading place
to the math games when and as they wanted to, and that there would be
teachers in those areas to help the kids who came there. So the
teachers would be with the subjects rather than with the kids. All
the teachers would be all the kids' teachers.
Oh well...
It failed in schools, but it lives in unschooling.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
to find a Wikipedia page, but amused at this:
-=-Open-space schools continue to be a very controversial idea for the
obvious reason that a lack of architectural walls increases the noise
and distraction making the teaching environment non-conducive to
learning.-=-
When people talked about "School without walls" they weren't talking
about INSIDE walls--they were talking about acknowledging that
learning happens inside and outside, and that kids shouldn't be locked
up by age in rows, nor should they be limited to learning from just
the teachers at their school. "School without walls" had to do with
seeing "school" not as the building, but as the experience of learning
in different, more flexible, more creative ways.
When schools were built with open floor plans, the idea was that kids
could go from the library to the science center to the reading place
to the math games when and as they wanted to, and that there would be
teachers in those areas to help the kids who came there. So the
teachers would be with the subjects rather than with the kids. All
the teachers would be all the kids' teachers.
Oh well...
It failed in schools, but it lives in unschooling.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Linda Knauff
I student "taught" in an elementary school that had been designed as open classroom and continued to be called open classroom. Over the years, though, the school had become more traditional in it's approach. So the physical space really didn't work--imagine trying to run 4 structured classes in a large room with partitions. The noise level was very high, children were constantly "sneaking" around, under, and above barriers to wave to their friends, etc. etc. I thought it was pretty humorous..actually... and had a lot of fun in that placement...every day was like herding cats--and the cats had been given quite an advantage! I met some pretty interesting characters with a lot of unappreciated creativity and ingenuity. However, many of the teachers were consistently at their wits end and some child was ALWAYS in time out in one form or another.
It was never the open classroom approach that was non-conducive to learning. It was the teachers /parents misunderstanding of the open classroom approach and not following through on its philosophy that led to its demise. Now, when people think of "open classrooms" they think of a big room with partitions to enforce structure. Of course that doesn't work. Duh.
Linda
It was never the open classroom approach that was non-conducive to learning. It was the teachers /parents misunderstanding of the open classroom approach and not following through on its philosophy that led to its demise. Now, when people think of "open classrooms" they think of a big room with partitions to enforce structure. Of course that doesn't work. Duh.
Linda
----- Original Message -----
From: Sandra Dodd
To: [email protected]
Sent: Saturday, July 11, 2009 8:45 PM
Subject: [AlwaysLearning] Big Misconceptions
I wanted to cite "Open Classroom," and poked around a bit. I was glad
to find a Wikipedia page, but amused at this:
-=-Open-space schools continue to be a very controversial idea for the
obvious reason that a lack of architectural walls increases the noise
and distraction making the teaching environment non-conducive to
learning.-=-
When people talked about "School without walls" they weren't talking
about INSIDE walls--they were talking about acknowledging that
learning happens inside and outside, and that kids shouldn't be locked
up by age in rows, nor should they be limited to learning from just
the teachers at their school. "School without walls" had to do with
seeing "school" not as the building, but as the experience of learning
in different, more flexible, more creative ways.
When schools were built with open floor plans, the idea was that kids
could go from the library to the science center to the reading place
to the math games when and as they wanted to, and that there would be
teachers in those areas to help the kids who came there. So the
teachers would be with the subjects rather than with the kids. All
the teachers would be all the kids' teachers.
Oh well...
It failed in schools, but it lives in unschooling.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Sandra Dodd
-=-It was never the open classroom approach that was non-conducive to
learning. It was the teachers /parents misunderstanding of the open
classroom approach and not following through on its philosophy that
led to its demise. -=-
That was a big part of it. Teachers who didn't understand it and
didn't want to understand it were told "this is the new deal," and
they sensibly balked. Parents who needed grades so they would know
whether to reward or punish kids at home (I'm serious) didn't like the
idea of not having letter grades and tests and all.
But on top of that, when it had worked in lab schools, it was partly
because the kids were there by choice, or by encouragement at least.
They knew they were getting to do something new and cool and
different. When it was foisted on kids who didn't even want to go to
school, with teachers who didn't understand their new role as
facilitators of learning, the kids didn't do the cool fun stuff. They
said "Do we have to do this?" and now the answer was "No." They tore
up the new equipment in their boredom.
-=-Now, when people think of "open classrooms" they think of a big
room with partitions to enforce structure. Of course that doesn't
work. Duh.-=-
And it was wrong anyway. The ideal physical plant was to have been a
big open area with several smaller rooms opening off that ("interest
areas" I think they called them) and outside areas where kids could
play or read or sit or do outside kind of experiments, and places for
reading and resting inside with shade or warmth. Ideally, it would
be a strewing festival.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
learning. It was the teachers /parents misunderstanding of the open
classroom approach and not following through on its philosophy that
led to its demise. -=-
That was a big part of it. Teachers who didn't understand it and
didn't want to understand it were told "this is the new deal," and
they sensibly balked. Parents who needed grades so they would know
whether to reward or punish kids at home (I'm serious) didn't like the
idea of not having letter grades and tests and all.
But on top of that, when it had worked in lab schools, it was partly
because the kids were there by choice, or by encouragement at least.
They knew they were getting to do something new and cool and
different. When it was foisted on kids who didn't even want to go to
school, with teachers who didn't understand their new role as
facilitators of learning, the kids didn't do the cool fun stuff. They
said "Do we have to do this?" and now the answer was "No." They tore
up the new equipment in their boredom.
-=-Now, when people think of "open classrooms" they think of a big
room with partitions to enforce structure. Of course that doesn't
work. Duh.-=-
And it was wrong anyway. The ideal physical plant was to have been a
big open area with several smaller rooms opening off that ("interest
areas" I think they called them) and outside areas where kids could
play or read or sit or do outside kind of experiments, and places for
reading and resting inside with shade or warmth. Ideally, it would
be a strewing festival.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Cara Barlow
And it was wrong anyway. The ideal physical plant was to have been a
big open area with several smaller rooms opening off that ("interest
areas" I think they called them) and outside areas where kids could
play or read or sit or do outside kind of experiments, and places for
reading and resting inside with shade or warmth. Ideally, it would
be a strewing festival.
*****
I attended an open classroom school for grades 3-5 (1972-1975). The
strongest memories I have of it is spending an enormous amount of time
with a few kids out in the hallway creating a mural of dinosaurs on a
sheet of paper rolled out on the hallway floor, and escaping to the
library to read books and copy maps. I always maintained (jokingly)
that it ruined me for traditional school. I was there the first years
it opened. I understand after I left that they put the partitions up
and it turned into a traditional school.
Best wishes, Cara B
big open area with several smaller rooms opening off that ("interest
areas" I think they called them) and outside areas where kids could
play or read or sit or do outside kind of experiments, and places for
reading and resting inside with shade or warmth. Ideally, it would
be a strewing festival.
*****
I attended an open classroom school for grades 3-5 (1972-1975). The
strongest memories I have of it is spending an enormous amount of time
with a few kids out in the hallway creating a mural of dinosaurs on a
sheet of paper rolled out on the hallway floor, and escaping to the
library to read books and copy maps. I always maintained (jokingly)
that it ruined me for traditional school. I was there the first years
it opened. I understand after I left that they put the partitions up
and it turned into a traditional school.
Best wishes, Cara B
Sandra Dodd
-=- I always maintained (jokingly)
that it ruined me for traditional school. -=-
So you deschooled first and then went to school? <bwg>
-=-I was there the first years
it opened. I understand after I left that they put the partitions up
and it turned into a traditional school.-=-
Albuquerque has several elementaries built for that purpose. Keith
and I went to do a little presentation to a classroom once, on
medieval kids. The "classroom" we were in looked just like desks in
rows, teacher's desk... but the walls were made of filing cabinets and
metal cabinets and shelves on two sides.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
that it ruined me for traditional school. -=-
So you deschooled first and then went to school? <bwg>
-=-I was there the first years
it opened. I understand after I left that they put the partitions up
and it turned into a traditional school.-=-
Albuquerque has several elementaries built for that purpose. Keith
and I went to do a little presentation to a classroom once, on
medieval kids. The "classroom" we were in looked just like desks in
rows, teacher's desk... but the walls were made of filing cabinets and
metal cabinets and shelves on two sides.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Erin
My elementary school had "open classrooms", but it functioned exactly like a regular school. I remember sitting in my desk and seeing all of the other 3rd (or 4th or 5th...depending on which grade I was in) grade classrooms. It was very distracting and entertaining! The "open classrooms" simply had no walls and doors...we still did everything as if we had "closed classrooms"!
--- In [email protected], Cara Barlow <carabarlow@...> wrote:
>
> And it was wrong anyway. The ideal physical plant was to have been a
> big open area with several smaller rooms opening off that ("interest
> areas" I think they called them) and outside areas where kids could
> play or read or sit or do outside kind of experiments, and places for
> reading and resting inside with shade or warmth. Ideally, it would
> be a strewing festival.
>
> *****
>
> I attended an open classroom school for grades 3-5 (1972-1975). The
> strongest memories I have of it is spending an enormous amount of time
> with a few kids out in the hallway creating a mural of dinosaurs on a
> sheet of paper rolled out on the hallway floor, and escaping to the
> library to read books and copy maps. I always maintained (jokingly)
> that it ruined me for traditional school. I was there the first years
> it opened. I understand after I left that they put the partitions up
> and it turned into a traditional school.
>
> Best wishes, Cara B
>
diana jenner
>Hmmmm, just like my new house? Just like the houses of every (successful)
> The ideal physical plant was to have been a big open area with several
> smaller rooms opening off that ("interest areas" I think they called them)
> and outside areas where kids could play or read or sit or do outside kind
> of experiments, and places for reading and resting inside with shade or
> warmth. Ideally, it would be a strewing festival.
>
unschooler I've visited? Yeah!
A Strewing Festival... yep that's where we live <3 Paradise, really ;)
(you need only read the comments about last night's gathering on my FaceBook
page - we had it ALL!)
~diana :)
xoxoxoxo
hannahbearski.blogspot.com
hannahsashes.blogspot.com
dianas365.blogspot.com
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Robin Bentley
My grade 7 class was in a new, "progressive" school. We had moveable
walls for mass instruction, but I don't remember them being moved as
much as they might have planned.
I do remember a math class, where I sat in the back with a math-whiz
friend. He spent his time drawing "Die Fledermaus Man" - his ironic
version of Batman. I don't remember learning much math <g>.
Robin B.
walls for mass instruction, but I don't remember them being moved as
much as they might have planned.
I do remember a math class, where I sat in the back with a math-whiz
friend. He spent his time drawing "Die Fledermaus Man" - his ironic
version of Batman. I don't remember learning much math <g>.
Robin B.
On Jul 12, 2009, at 8:04 AM, Erin wrote:
> My elementary school had "open classrooms", but it functioned
> exactly like a regular school. I remember sitting in my desk and
> seeing all of the other 3rd (or 4th or 5th...depending on which
> grade I was in) grade classrooms. It was very distracting and
> entertaining! The "open classrooms" simply had no walls and
> doors...we still did everything as if we had "closed classrooms"!
>
Robin Bentley
>Oh! I just looked up Die Fledermaus on Wikipedia for fun and found a
link to one of my favorite cartoons:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die_Fledermaus_(The_Tick)
My friend was ahead of his time <g>.
Robin B.
Cara Barlow
So you deschooled first and then went to school? <bwg>
That thought made me laugh! - I do date my "you expect me to
(do/believe) what?" thinking from that time period.
The only bad memory I have of that school is of a substitute teacher
telling me how rude I was because she caught me reading Call of the
Wild when I was supposed to be paying attention to her <g>. I'd hidden
it inside my social studies book. I guess I was supposed to be
listening to her talk or reading the text book, both of which I found
pretty boring. It's kind of funny that's the title that got me in
trouble.
Best wishes, Cara
That thought made me laugh! - I do date my "you expect me to
(do/believe) what?" thinking from that time period.
The only bad memory I have of that school is of a substitute teacher
telling me how rude I was because she caught me reading Call of the
Wild when I was supposed to be paying attention to her <g>. I'd hidden
it inside my social studies book. I guess I was supposed to be
listening to her talk or reading the text book, both of which I found
pretty boring. It's kind of funny that's the title that got me in
trouble.
Best wishes, Cara