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Paying for technology shouldn't have to come solely out of a school or district's already-strapped budget.

For some districts, the best way to attain massive amounts of money to pay for edtech purchases or initiatives is through bonds. Take Milpitas Unified School District in the San Francisco Bay Area, which proposed a bond measure to pay for technology remodeling school spaces back in 2012. It eventually passed -a total of $95 million.

But for others, the pecuniary need may be more immediate-replacing a group of iPads that got broken, for example. Or, perhaps it's not a $95 million bond that a district wants, but rather, small grants to indulge a teacher who wants to bring more equipment into the science lab.

There is a seemingly endless collection of online tools to address this problem, but for those who don't know where to begin, here is a small collection of resources to kickstart the search for money-as well as any pertinent deadlines.

Grants to Fund Small Teacher-Led Edtech Initiatives (<$10,000)

Sometimes, teachers ask for a little bit of funding to do something tech-related in their classroom. And for those who wish to crowdfund money from their own contacts and communities, there are sites like DonorsChoose, Class Wish and Adopt-a-Classroom, where individual educators can post their needs and solicit funds. One edtech-specific site, Digital Wish, is a more tech-focused version of Class Wish-and don't get fooled by the website's 90s-like appearance. There's money to be found on that site.

But sites like DonorsChoose and Digital Wish are only where the money train begins. For educators looking for small sums of money, the following websites are worth checking out.

Big Money from the Big Guys ($10,000+)

If the monetary need is larger-perhaps something schoolwide-foundations are potential sources of support. For example, the Entertainment Software Association Foundation has a program ( application from last year here) that opens up in 2017 for schools and districts looking to fund technology, including computer and video games, for students between the ages of seven and 18. Grants extend upward of $50,000.

Likewise, the Corning Incorporated Foundation gives away 136 grants totaling about $3 million towards instructional technology in the classroom. Corning specifically supports programs in the communities where the corporation has a presence, including North Carolina, Arizona and Texas.

If you'd rather work with a corporation, consider applying for an award from the likes of the Sony Corporation of America, which gives away funding to various academic institutions throughout the year. Some districts make the jump to launch partnerships with high-tech private organizations like Qualcomm, Samsung and Intel, where districts agree to pilot certain products in exchange for free access to infrastructure and software.

I Just Want Devices (Value Varies)

For schools and districts looking to acquire devices above all else, two initiatives come to mind.

First, the U.S. General Services Administration provides the Computers For Learning program, and applicants can submit on a rolling deadline. Any school-public, private or parochial, serving Pre-K through 12th grade students-is eligible to receive device donations (and other relevant equipment) through the program.

Additionally, the Computers Recycling Center (Computers and Education) provides refurbished devices to "qualified programs serving the community with social justice and public benefit programs." While shipping costs for delivery are not provided by CRC, the organization does make sure that all devices have passed through a quality control inspection.

And That's Not All...

This article only skims the surface of sources of funding for any teacher, administrator or school's education technology needs. Luckily, there are sites out there for continuing the search. GetEdFunding, provided by CDW-G, provides a database for hundreds of educational grants, and includes a " deadline alerts" feature. The U.S. Office of Education Technology also has a page on funding digital learning and connectivity, with information about local and state funding.

The funding stream certainly doesn't run dry, if one looks hard enough. But don't wait! While many of the aforementioned deadlines are rolling or don't close until the spring, it's never too early to get a start on applying for funds.

Mary Jo Madda (@MJMadda) is Senior Editor at EdSurge, as well as a former STEM middle school teacher and administrator. In 2016, Mary Jo was named to the Forbes "30 Under 30" list in education.

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Where to Find Money for Your School's Edtech Purchases - EdSurge News

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Paying for technology shouldn't have to come solely out of a school or district's already-strapped budget. For some districts, the best way to attain massive amounts of money to pay for edtech purchases or initiatives is through bonds.

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These five steps are essential in creating a 21st-century classroom: establishing zones, ensuring resource accessibility, encouraging mobility, igniting inspiration, and fostering respect.

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Flexible Learning Spaces

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Video Conference App | Video Conference Software | Shindig

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Virtual and hybrid events with "work the room" video chat networking Learn more "Work the Room" Networking and Virtual Lobby Virtual Backstage and Open Podium for maximal participation Advanced production and enhanced engagement When Engagement Matters, Virtual Event Organizers Choose Shindig *Shindig's tech is underpinned with some 25 issued US Patents.

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Future Classroom Labs Network: Learning Zones

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Future Classroom Labs Network: Learning Zones

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The Future Classroom Lab is created by European Schoolnet, its supporting 30 ministries and industry partners to help visualise how conventional classrooms and other learning spaces can be easily reorganised to support changing styles of teaching and learning.

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Creative and natural painting in browser. Open/save in JPG-format.

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Our discussion feedback

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Create fun and interactive presentations for your meeting, event, conference or classroom. Mentimeter is a free, easy-to-use software that you can use online.

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LEARNING ZONES MODEL ONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE

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LEARNING ZONES MODEL ONLINE COURSE STRUCTURE

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BrightSide - Inspiration. Creativity. Wonder.

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Our site is dedicated to creativity. We made BrightSide to help nurture the seeds of creativity found in all of us. We believe imagination should be at the heart of everything people do. BrightSide is the place to find the most inspiring manifestations of this from around the world.

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School design and furniture for 21st century learning spaces.

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Posted by Elizabeth Alton on Wednesday, November 7th, 2012

Architectural firm Rosan Bosch was commissioned by the Swedish Free School Organization to develop a unique learning environment for a new school in Stockholm, Sweden. The end result is a continuously flowing space without walls. Instead of a rigid segregation of functional spaces and an unimaginative line of desks, Rosan Bosch designed wide open spaces with flowing lines, colorful furniture and seamless integration.

A theory in best learning practices suggests the current standard in school design - gray and institutional environments - actually suppresses the natural creativity and experimentation that helps children learn. The Swedish Free School wanted to explore the process of creating an environment that was an antidote to that situation. The Free School and Rosan Bosch collaboration has created an exciting new kind of learning environment that's getting excellent results.

The concept behind the Free School's design is simple: a physical design that breaks down the metaphorical and social boundaries of the standard classroom environment. Rosan Bosch believed that by removing these boundaries they would promote intellectual curiosity, self-confidence, and a strong sense of community. The school, located in Stockholm, is reporting that all these things are increasing among its students.

Individual spaces within the school have very loosely defined, permeable boundaries, large statements and very abstract landmarks. Each distinct space is viewed as a "learning laboratory that's flexible and makes it possible to work on distinct hands-on projects and themes." Visually, the inspirations are varied: a giant iceberg, a tree supporting the ceiling, a reading nook covered in deep soft red carpet.

As the architects explained during a recent interview, "instead of classical divisions with chairs and tables, a giant iceberg for example serves as cinema, platform, and room for relaxation, and sets the frame for many different types of learning." By taking the idea of open spaces and egalitarian learning, they were able to combine this with fun inspiration from nature to create a kid friendly environment.

Another major consideration in the design was the importance of digital media to the school's curriculum. The students often work on laptops, and specific spaces around the school make it possible for students to work on their computers alone or in learning clusters. Each space has a subtle theme that is integrated into the design. The absence of walls doesn't remove the sense of unique spaces; instead the design uses different visual cues to achieve that result.

The Swedish Free School is a radical departure from typical school design. But so far, it appears to be working. Reports coming out of the school about student reactions are very positive. We hope that the Swedish Free School can serve as a model for other schools looking at innovative learning design.
Image source: architizer.com

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Swedish Free School: Classroom Without Walls - Entertainment Designer

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Posted by Elizabeth Alton on Wednesday, November 7th, 2012 Architectural firm Rosan Bosch was commissioned by the Swedish Free School Organization to develop a unique learning environment for a new school in Stockholm, Sweden. The end result is a continuously flowing space without walls.

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The students had helped to decorate the room, and they knew exactly what was going to happen. I wanted to give the students an opportunity to use authentic language in a realistic situation, and I used the tables, walls, and chairs to create that learning environment.

One of my mentors often said, "You can't change people, but you can change their environment, and that will make the change happen." This saying can also apply in the classroom. You can change the environment to promote a desired behavior.

Some of the least used tools a teacher has to create optimal learning environments are the furniture, floors, and walls in the classroom. Taking these three underused teaching resources into account will help teachers to better engage the bodies and minds of their students.

Mash-Ups With Desks

The first underutilized spaces are the desks, chairs, and other furniture in the classroom. The set-up of my tour bus classroom was not the traditional straight rows facing forward, nor was it the collaborative grouping of four to a table I normally use. I had changed the arrangement of the desks because I had a particular purpose that changing the seats would facilitate: Straight rows lend themselves to giving the teacher more control over student behavior (reducing talking). They also help students to focus on the side of the room they are facing. When the teacher (or students) are presenting, this is ideal.

Back-to-back, side-by-side, circles, triangles, squares, and multiple other desk combinations can promote different behaviors. If trained correctly-within a lesson-students can quickly move their seats as necessary to accommodate the learning needs without causing disruptions. Here are five ways you can organize desks to promote specific outcomes:

1. Debates: Split the class and put the desks on opposite sides facing each other.

2. Jigsaw (where your students move around, teaching each other): Set up stations in the corners of the room.

3. Paired work: Desks can be face-to-face or you can do double pairs-four to a group.

4. Socratic Seminars: Create an inner and outer circle with your desks.

5. Performances: Position all the desks on the perimeter of the class facing inward.

How About the Floor?

In early elementary, teachers place sitting carpets to gather students for storytelling. When my students perform the 10-second practice vocabulary quizzes, I have them stand in two lines, face-to-face with a partner. They quickly review the vocabulary, and when I call out, cambien! ( switch in Spanish), one partner moves down to the next student and they have 10 seconds to teach their new partner their vocabulary words.

Activities like Simon Says, Do as I'm Doing, Verb Basketball, Conjugation Relay Races, Head Shoulder's, Knees, and Toes, and dancing the Macarena all require floor space in order for the students to engage their bodies and brains.

I observed a math teacher place tape on her floor to represent graph paper, and the students had to physically graph the equation in groups. I have seen students use the floor for storyboarding, experimentation, and data gathering. So, go for it-move that furniture out of the way and help your students become totally engaged.

Walls That Talk

The wall spaces are just as changeable as the furniture and should match the learning activity. Word Walls are one way to make this happen. Typically, Word Walls are located on one section of the classroom wall. Depending on what is being studied, the words are changed periodically. Because I am a firm believer in total physical response learning, I spread my word wall all across the room. Additionally, I used non-verbal clues, such as pictures and drawings to represent words and phrases for the unit we're studying. I ask my students to point to, stand under, or touch the picture represented by the words I speak.

I can imagine a geometry teacher placing various geometric structures around the room and asking student to point to the rhombus, parallelogram, or stand under the isosceles triangle. An algebra or chemistry teacher could use formulas. In English, types of writing-expository, persuasive, descriptive, and narrative-could be displayed on the walls. In social studies, you could have illustrations of events. It only takes a few minutes to have all of the students participate in recall-learned information, and you can do it every day.

In my tour bus classroom makeover, the students walked in with ooh's and aah's and, surprisingly enough, sat down with little fanfare and began the warm-up writing assignment. Students were prepared when I called the first tour guide to give her presentation.

Effective use of the furniture, floors, and walls will further motivate students to learn through active participation and high engagement. Please share your creative use of classroom spaces in the comments section below.

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3 Unused Teaching Tools: The Furniture, Floors, and Walls

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The students had helped to decorate the room, and they knew exactly what was going to happen. I wanted to give the students an opportunity to use authentic language in a realistic situation, and I used the tables, walls, and chairs to create that learning environment.

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In their book, Turning Learning Right Side Up: Putting Education Back on Track, authors Russell L. Ackoff and Daniel Greenberg point out that today's education system is seriously flawed - it focuses on teaching rather than learning. "Why should children - or adults - be asked to do something computers and related equipment can do much better than they can?" the authors ask in the following excerpt from the book. "Why doesn't education focus on what humans can do better than the machines and instruments they create?"

"Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth learning can be taught."
- Oscar Wilde

Traditional education focuses on teaching, not learning. It incorrectly assumes that for every ounce of teaching there is an ounce of learning by those who are taught. However, most of what we learn before, during, and after attending schools is learned without its being taught to us. A child learns such fundamental things as how to walk, talk, eat, dress, and so on without being taught these things. Adults learn most of what they use at work or at leisure while at work or leisure. Most of what is taught in classroom settings is forgotten, and much or what is remembered is irrelevant.

In most schools, memorization is mistaken for learning. Most of what is remembered is remembered only for a short time, but then is quickly forgotten. (How many remember how to take a square root or ever have a need to?) Furthermore, even young children are aware of the fact that most of what is expected of them in school can better be done by computers, recording machines, cameras, and so on. They are treated as poor surrogates for such machines and instruments. Why should children - or adults, for that matter - be asked to do something computers and related equipment can do much better than they can? Why doesn't education focus on what humans can do better than the machines and instruments they create?

When those who have taught others are asked who in the classes learned most, virtually all of them say, "The teacher." It is apparent to those who have taught that teaching is a better way to learn than being taught. Teaching enables the teacher to discover what one thinks about the subject being taught. Schools are upside down: Students should be teaching and faculty learning.

After lecturing to undergraduates at a major university, I was accosted by a student who had attended the lecture. After some complimentary remarks, he asked, "How long ago did you teach your first class?"

I responded, "In September of 1941."

"Wow!" The student said. "You mean to say you have been teaching for more than 60 years?"

"Yes."

"When did you last teach a course in a subject that existed when you were a student?"

This difficult question required some thought. After a pause, I said, "September of 1951."

"Wow! You mean to say that everything you have taught in more than 50 years was not taught to you; you had to learn on your own?"

"Right."

"You must be a pretty good learner."

I modestly agreed.

The student then said, "What a shame you're not that good a teacher."

The student had it right; what most faculty members are good at, if anything, is learning rather than teaching. Recall that in the one-room schoolhouse, students taught students. The teacher served as a guide and a resource but not as one who force-fed content into students' minds.
Ways of Learning
There are many different ways of learning; teaching is only one of them. We learn a great deal on our own, in independent study or play. We learn a great deal interacting with others informally - sharing what we are learning with others and vice versa. We learn a great deal by doing, through trial and error. Long before there were schools as we know them, there was apprenticeship - learning how to do something by trying it under the guidance of one who knows how. For example, one can learn more architecture by having to design and build one's own house than by taking any number of courses on the subject. When physicians are asked whether they leaned more in classes or during their internship, without exception they answer, "Internship."

In the educational process, students should be offered a wide variety of ways to learn, among which they could choose or with which they could experiment. They do not have to learn different things the same way. They should learn at a very early stage of "schooling" that learning how to learn is largely their responsibility - with the help they seek but that is not imposed on them.

The objective of education is learning, not teaching.

There are two ways that teaching is a powerful tool of learning. Let's abandon for the moment the loaded word teaching, which is unfortunately all too closely linked to the notion of "talking at" or "lecturing," and use instead the rather awkward phrase explaining something to someone else who wants to find out about it. One aspect of explaining something is getting yourself up to snuff on whatever it is that you are trying to explain. I can't very well explain to you how Newton accounted for planetary motion if I haven't boned up on my Newtonian mechanics first. This is a problem we all face all the time, when we are expected to explain something. (Wife asks, "How do we get to Valley Forge from home?" And husband, who does not want to admit he has no idea at all, excuses himself to go to the bathroom; he quickly Googles Mapquest to find out.) This is one sense in which the one who explains learns the most, because the person to whom the explanation is made can afford to forget the explanation promptly in most cases; but the explainers will find it sticking in their minds a lot longer, because they struggled to gain an understanding in the first place in a form clear enough to explain.

The second aspect of explaining something that leaves the explainer more enriched, and with a much deeper understanding of the subject, is this: To satisfy the person being addressed, to the point where that person can nod his head and say, "Ah, yes, now I understand!" explainers must not only get the matter to fit comfortably into their own worldview, into their own personal frame of reference for understanding the world around them, they also have to figure out how to link their frame of reference to the worldview of the person receiving the explanation, so that the explanation can make sense to that person, too. This involves an intense effort on the part of the explainer to get into the other person's mind, so to speak, and that exercise is at the heart of learning in general. For, by practicing repeatedly how to create links between my mind and another's, I am reaching the very core of the art of learning from the ambient culture. Without that skill, I can only learn from direct experience; with that skill, I can learn from the experience of the whole world. Thus, whenever I struggle to explain something to someone else, and succeed in doing so, I am advancing my ability to learn from others, too.
Learning through Explanation
This aspect of learning through explanation has been overlooked by most commentators. And that is a shame, because both aspects of learning are what makes the age mixing that takes place in the world at large such a valuable educational tool. Younger kids are always seeking answers from older kids - sometimes just slightly older kids (the seven-year old tapping the presumed life wisdom of the so-much-more-experienced nine year old), often much older kids. The older kids love it, and their abilities are exercised mightily in these interactions. They have to figure out what it is that they understand about the question being raised, and they have to figure out how to make their understanding comprehensible to the younger kids. The same process occurs over and over again in the world at large; this is why it is so important to keep communities multi-aged, and why it is so destructive to learning, and to the development of culture in general, to segregate certain ages (children, old people) from others.

What went on in the one-room schoolhouse is much like what I have been talking about. In fact, I am not sure that the adult teacher in the one-room schoolhouse was always viewed as the best authority on any given subject! Long ago, I had an experience that illustrates that point perfectly. When our oldest son was eight years old, he hung around (and virtually worshiped) a very brilliant 13-year-old named Ernie, who loved science. Our son was curious about everything in the world. One day he asked me to explain some physical phenomenon that lay within the realm of what we have come to call "physics"; being a former professor of physics, I was considered a reasonable person to ask. So, I gave him an answer - the "right" answer, the one he would have found in books. He was greatly annoyed. "That's not right!" he shouted, and when I expressed surprise at his response, and asked him why he would say so, his answer was immediate: "Ernie said so and so, which is totally different, and Ernie knows." It was an enlightening and delightful experience for me. It was clear that his faith in Ernie had been developed over a long time, from long experience with Ernie's unfailing ability to build a bridge between their minds - perhaps more successfully, at least in certain areas, than I had been.

One might wonder how on earth learning came to be seen primarily a result of teaching. Until quite recently, the world's great teachers were understood to be people who had something fresh to say about something to people who were interested in hearing their message. Moses, Socrates, Aristotle, Jesus - these were people who had original insights, and people came from far and wide to find out what those insights were. One can see most clearly in Plato's dialogues that people did not come to Socrates to "learn philosophy," but rather to hear Socrates' version of philosophy (and his wicked and witty attacks on other people's versions), just as they went to other philosophers to hear (and learn) their versions. In other words, teaching was understood as public exposure of an individual's perspective, which anyone could take or leave, depending on whether they cared about it.

No one in his right mind thought that the only way you could become a philosopher was by taking a course from one of those guys. On the contrary, you were expected to come up with your own original worldview if you aspired to the title of philosopher. This was true of any and every aspect of knowledge; you figured out how to learn it, and you exposed yourself to people who were willing to make their understanding public if you thought it could be a worthwhile part of your endeavor. That is the basis for the formation of universities in the Middle Ages - places where thinkers were willing to spend their time making their thoughts public. The only ones who got to stay were the ones whom other people ("students") found relevant enough to their own personal quests to make listening to them worthwhile.

By the way, this attitude toward teaching has not disappeared. When quantum theory was being developed in the second quarter of the twentieth century, aspiring atomic physicists traveled to the various places where different theorists were developing their thoughts, often in radically different directions. Students traveled to Bohr's institute to find out how he viewed quantum theory, then to Heisenberg, to Einstein, to Schrodinger, to Dirac, and so on. What was true of physics was equally true of art, architecture...you name it. It is still true today. One does not go to Pei to learn "architecture"; one goes to learn how he does it - that is, to see him "teach" by telling and showing you his approach. Schools should enable people to go where they want to go, not where others want them to.
Malaise of Mass Education

The trouble began when mass education was introduced. It was necessary

To decide what skills and knowledge everyone has to have to be a productive citizen of a developed country in the industrial age

To make sure the way this information is defined and standardized, to fit into the standardization required by the industrial culture

To develop the means of describing and communicating the standardized information (textbooks, curricula)

To train people to comprehend the standardized material and master the means of transmitting it (teacher training, pedagogy)

To create places where the trainees (children) and the trainers (unfortunately called teachers, which gives them a status they do not deserve) can meet - so-called schools (again a term stolen from a much different milieu, endowing these new institutions with a dignity they also do not deserve)

And, to provide the coercive backing necessary to carry out this major cultural and social upheaval

In keeping with all historic attempts to revolutionize the social order, the elite leaders who formulated the strategy, and those who implemented it, perverted the language, using terms that had attracted a great deal of respect in new ways that turned their meanings upside down, but helped make the new order palatable to a public that didn't quite catch on. Every word - teacher, student, school, discipline, and so on - took on meanings diametrically opposed to what they had originally meant.

Consider this one example from my recent experience. I attended a conference of school counselors, where the latest ideas in the realm of student counseling were being presented. I went to a session on the development of self-discipline and responsibility, wondering what these concepts mean to people embedded in traditional schooling. To me, self-discipline means the ability to pursue one's goals without outside coercion; responsibility means taking appropriate action on one's own initiative, without being goaded by others. To the people presenting the session, both concepts had to do solely with the child's ability to do his or her assigned class work. They explained that a guidance counselor's proper function was to get students to understand that responsible behavior meant doing their homework in a timely and effective manner, as prescribed, and self-discipline meant the determination to get that homework done. George Orwell was winking in the back of the room.

Today, there are two worlds that use the word education with opposite meanings: one world consists of the schools and colleges (and even graduate schools) of our education complex, in which standardization prevails. In that world, an industrial training mega-structure strives to turn out identical replicas of a product called "people educated for the twenty-first century"; the second is the world of information, knowledge, and wisdom, in which the realpopulation of the world resides when not incarcerated in schools. In that world, learning takes place like it always did, and teaching consists of imparting one's wisdom, among other things, to voluntary listeners.

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'The Objective of Education Is Learning, Not Teaching' - Knowledge@Wharton

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In their book, Turning Learning Right Side Up: Putting Education Back on Track, authors Russell L. Ackoff and Daniel Greenberg point out that today's education system is seriously flawed -- it focuses on teaching rather than learning. "Why should children -- or adults -- be asked to do something computers and related equipment can do much better than they can?"

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Flexible Seating Elevates Student Engagement

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Breaking up rows of desks fosters collaboration and empowers kids to think about how they work best.

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Jennifer Gonzalez
(The One in Charge)

Crazy-good teaching? The kind that gives you the good butterflies and makes you sing at the top of your lungs the whole drive home? It's an art. It's also a science. We can study and practice it in hundreds of ways, and this is what I obsess about here. When I was full-time in the trenches, I was too busy teaching to fully develop my craft, keep up with research, play around with new tools, or find PD that really hit the spot. Now I have made it my full-time job to do this for you: I dig through all of it, weed out the crap, and show you the best stuff so you can crush it in the classroom.

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CCL project summary

The Creative Classrooms Lab project (CCL) brought together teachers and policy-makers in eight countries to design, implement and evaluate 1:1 tablet scenarios in 45 schools. The project produced learning scenarios and activities, guidelines and recommendations to help policy-makers and schools to take informed decisions on optimal strategies for implementing 1:1 initiatives in schools and for the effective integration of tablets into teaching and learning. The project, funded by the European Commission's Lifelong Learning Programme, was coordinated by European Schoolnet, involved 10 partners and ran from April 2013 to May 2015.

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CCL project summary The Creative Classrooms Lab project (CCL) brought together teachers and policy-makers in eight countries to design, implement and evaluate 1:1 tablet scenarios in 45 schools. The project produced learning scenarios and activities, guidelines and recommendations to help policy-makers and schools to take informed decisions on optimal strategies for implementing 1:1 initiatives in schools and for the effective integration of tablets into teaching and learning.

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I have always liked moving classroom furniture around, mixing up tables, moving bookshelves along with reorganising the learners in the room too. I usually do this at the start of every term as a way of shaking off the last term and starting afresh, a new perspective and for some, a new partner to work alongside. But recently I have realised that not much has actually changed, the classroom is basically still the same. The mode of learning has remained focused at designated tables. I decided that if I wanted to continue looking at innovating teaching and learning I also had to innovate my classroom too.
The word classroom can be defined as a place where teaching and learning occur. It can be indoors which is normally the case or outside. Today it can even be on your PC or mobile device. Yet in almost every school we see classrooms very much alike - chairs will be grouped around tables or in rows so that each learner can clearly see the teacher who is usually at the front of the room. Victorian classrooms were not much different and we have all heard the the tale that a Victorian teacher would no likely feel very comfortable in classrooms today. That's why I threw the 'classroom organisation rule book out the window and have tried to innovate my classroom layout as much as I try to innovate teaching and learning.

The room is now our Learning Zone and there are no pre-seating arrangements. My class are free to move around, sit with whomever they wish at any time and, if they so wish, pop outdoors for some fresh air and a quick 'chill out' session if needed. The Learning Zone is divided into 5 areas.

1. Discussion and Thinking Zone - Learners can drop in whenever they wish to talk about their learning, find solutions, help each other and just to think and chill out. It's also still the area where my class gathers for a whole group focus or an additional Creation/Show Off zone.

2. Discovery Zone - There are 2 of these although one is missed off the top of the image. These contain laptops, pc's and other technology that the learners can use to guide them on their learning, discover answers, investigate and solve problems, collaborate on projects and create presentations.

3. Show Off Zone - This is where the learners focus on discoveries they have made and demonstrate their understanding through writing, presentation, art work, display whatever medium they wish to present their work.

4. Repeat Level - This has evolved from my use of Gamification of learning and an approach that my class enjoy. Whenever any learner requires help, advice, explanations and is 'stuck' this is the area they come to repeat the learning so they can move to the next level.

5. Creation Zone - Creating content for use in their learning, creating presentations to demonstrate learning, blogging, refining, editing. It happens here and it's usually very busy.

I have used this arrangement for one week and both my class and I prefer it to any other organisation we have created. Feedback from my class has been extremely positive

I prefer this because we can move around and sit with anyone we want....You can work anywhere you want which is better than sitting in the same chair all day....I can do my work better now

This adaption has come about because I have started a personalised learning approach with my class this term too. During the Christmas holidays I came across Doug Belshaw's Daily Planner V2 which he created to help him and others to plan their day. This plan only needed a little editing to use with my own class so after checking that I could use Doug's idea (it's CC licenced) I created the Personal Journey (PJ) for every learner to use. A PJ lasts for one week and can be continued if required. Each learner receives their PJ on a Monday morning with Numeracy and Literacy targets and the Most Important area added by myself. The personal area is for every learner to complete and this is done during the morning before we start the day. Learners can add to this section during the week and there are areas where I, or the learner, can add steps to take in the next PJ as well as a section to add thoughts about the week. There is also an area each learner can use to collect their discoveries made during the learning journey. The PJ needs tweaking but like any plan it is a working document.

My planning has now become their learning journey. It is no longer trapped in a file, hard drive or online. It's there for every individual in the learning zone. PJ's allow every learner to move through their journey at their own pace so some PJ's have had additional targets added where others have remained the same.

How has this changed my teaching approach?

I no longer do whole class introductions unless it's a vital part of the learning journey for the whole group.
I have to move around as I don't have a table or chair.
I can focus on targeting every learner.
I don't follow a timetable anymore.

I am incredibly excited using this approach and I will add further posts over the next few weeks as our Learning Zone becomes our new classroom.

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Innovating learning requires innovating the classroom too

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I have always liked moving classroom furniture around, mixing up tables, moving bookshelves along with reorganising the learners in the room too. I usually do this at the start of every term as a way of shaking off the last term and starting afresh, a new perspective and for some, a new partner to work alongside.

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Personalized learning is built on the idea that each learner is unique and learns in different ways. This is called variability in learning.

To support all learners' unique needs and preferences, learning environments have to be flexible. It takes a process to transform learning environments and change learner and teacher roles. This process does not happen overnight.

Take it one stage at a time
Shifting successfully from a traditional, teacher-centered learning environment to a learner-driven, personalized learning environment (PLE) can happen in stages. At each stage, the teacher's and learner's roles change:

Traditional learning environment: Teacher centered with explicit or direct instruction
In a traditional classroom, the teacher's main job is to deliver knowledge to the learners. He is responsible and accountable for what learners learn.

Stage One PLE: Teacher centered, with learner voice and choice
In Stage One, the teacher is dipping his toes into personalized learning by encouraging voice and choice. To do that, she helps learners create learning goals based on how they learn best. The teacher uses this information to redesign lessons, assessments and the physical environment.

Stage Two PLE: Learner centered, with teacher and learner as co-designers
In Stage Two, the teacher and learner work together to co-design lessons, assessments and the physical environment. This is the stage where it becomes each learner's responsibility to acquire the skills and knowledge to choose the appropriate tools, methods and strategies they need to accommodate how they learn best.

Stage Three PLE: Learner driven, with teacher and learner as partners in learning
In Stage Three, learners self-direct and drive learning at their own pace. Their learning environment, no longer confined to the classroom, expands to include their home, community and extracurricular interests. Learners are responsible for designing challenging learning experiences for themselves, and the teacher's primary role is to partner with the learners.

This is a culture shift that takes time, commitment and perseverance. Because every journey must start with the first step, let's begin with the transition from a traditional, teacher-centered classroom to a Stage One PLE, where every learner has a voice and a choice.

The teacher can begin making this transition by:

As the teacher's role shifts, the learners will begin:

Understanding how each learner learns based on Personal Learner Profiles (PLP) and data.

Working with the teacher to establish learning goals based on how they learn best.

Creating a Class Learning Snapshot (CLS) based on four diverse learners' PLPs.

Working with the teacher to create a personal learning plan based on their learning goals.

Redesigning the learning environment based on the CLS.

Choosing learning environments for individual and group work.

Transforming lessons and projects to encourage voice and choice.

Having more opportunities to have a voice in what and how they learn.

Universally designing methods and materials to engage and guide learners in establishing their learning goals.

Having more choices in how they access content and engage in activities so they are motivated to meet learning goals.

Designing, adapting and using existing assessment strategies.

Choosing how they express what they know and understand.

Understand how teacher and learner roles change
In a Stage One PLE, the teacher begins to encourage more voice and choice throughout the learning process, and learners take more responsibility for their own learning. What does this look like?
Understand how learners learn best
The first thing the teacher needs to wrap her head around is how each learner learns. A tool that makes this process easier is the Personal Learner Profile (PLP) we created using the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL), an approach developed by the Center for Applied Special Technology. UDL is an ideal framework for personalized learning because it addresses the uniqueness of each learner and variability in how they access, engage and express their learning.

According to UDL, it works best to give each learner:

Multiple means of representation (access). Each learner is unique in how they best access content and process information into useable knowledge, so they should be able to choose from a variety of learning modes.

Multiple means of engagement (engage). What motivates and inspires passion differs from person to person. Each learner knows best what strategies and tools will engage them in the content and inspire them to own their learning.

Multiple means of action and expression (express). Each learner knows how they best express what they know and understand using actions such as writing, presenting, drawing, acting, building and sharing.

By applying UDL principles, you can reduce individual barriers to the curriculum and maximize learning for everyone in your class.

Make Personal Learner Profiles
Each learner creates his or her own PLP by determining how they access and process information, engage with content, and express what they know. Once they discover how they learn best, they will be able to take more responsibility for their learning.

To grasp how this works in a classroom, consider a hypothetical learner named Jared and his strengths, interests and challenges. Jared's teacher helped him design this PLP based on how he accesses information, engages with content and expresses what he knows:

Jared's Strengths and Interests

Jared's Challenges

Access

Good spatial ability, can interpret graphs and charts, likes music

Difficult time focusing on the text, trouble organizing and taking notes

Engage

Comfortable with Google Docs and the internet, likes to come up with new ideas

Frustrated when writing ideas down on paper, cannot sequence what is happening in a story

Express

Artistic ability, likes to draw, likes taking pictures, likes building things

Not able to write or speak descriptively, does not know how to formulate a good question

Select resources for Personal Learning Backpacks
To be prepared for college and career, each learner needs to:

Acquire the skills to choose and use the appropriate tools, resources and strategies to support their learning.

Select the appropriate tools and resources based on how they prefer or need to access, engage and express.

Develop learning strategies to support their learning.

Reflect on evidence of their learning.

Each Personal Learning Backpack should include a customized set of tools that supports how the learner accesses, engages, expresses and learns. This will enable him to become an independent, self-directed and eventually expert learner who is prepared for college and career.

A Personal Learning Backpack might include a tablet or other mobile device, recording device, camera, websites and other resources. The mobile device could feature a customized set of apps to support the learner with various activities, such as:
Create a Class Learning Snapshot
Create a Class Learning Snapshot (CLS) focused on four diverse learners. This sample group of learners is called "the anticipatory set" because you use their strengths and challenges in how they access information, engage with content, and express what they know in order to anticipate the strengths and challenges of most learners. The CLS will help you decide on resources and tools for instruction that will support the majority of learners in your class.

Read more about designing for all learners instead of designing for an "average" learner.
Universally design your methods and materials
The teacher's role is to design instruction and materials so that they will engage and guide learners in establishing their learning goals. You can determine the methods and materials to use in your lessons by reviewing available resources and choosing a range of formats that will support the diverse needs and preferences of the four learners in your CLS. Thegoal is to givelearnersmore choices in how they access content and engage in activities so they are motivated to meet their learning goals.

For example, to give your learners more choice in how they access content, you could:

Provide both hard copies and digital files of all text and other materials.

Offer resources in multiple formats, including photos, speeches and videos.

Allow learners to choose from a variety of content topics.

To offer more variety in ways to engage with the content, you could:

Provide adjustable levels of challenge.

Allow learners to work individually or in groups.

Provide checklists for learners to monitor their own progress.

Redesign the learning environment
Once you know who your learners are and how they learn best, you are ready to redesign the learning environment. One way to do this is by incorporating multiple learning zones.
Kevin McLaughlin was a Year 4 teacher at Old Mill Primary School in Broughton Astley, Leics, United Kingdom, when he redesigned his classroom with learning zones. He now teaches kindergarten with the same design. The setup of his room allows young learners to self-direct their learning and complete each activity in the zone of their choice.

This is what his PLE looks like:

1. The Discussion and Thinking Zone is where learners participate in whole-class discussions and talk about their learning.

2. The Discovery Zone is where they investigate, solve problems and collaborate on projects.

3. The Show-Off Zone is where learners write, present and share their work.

4. The Repeat level is where learners go to get help, advice and explanations.

5. The Creation Zone is where they write, edit, develop and refine their content presentations.

Transform traditional lessons to allow voice and choice
Consider a grade 3 language arts lesson on the book Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney that's designed to meet Common Core State Standard ELA-RL.3.2: Recount stories, including fables, folktales and myths from diverse cultures; determine the central message, lesson or moral and explain how it is conveyed through key details in the text. This lesson can also meet the ISTE Standards for Students 1: Creativity and Innovation and 2: Communication and Collaboration.

In a traditional classroom, the teacher would likely read the book, which is about a girl who learns about the world through her grandfather's eyes, out loud to all the children. She then would ask them all to do the same activity ? often a book report about the moral of the story ? to meet the standards.

How can this lesson be transformed to accommodate every learner? The teacher can still read the book to the whole class, but she can also make it accessible to them in several different formats, such as:

After the teacher reads Miss Rumphius along with the learners, she can facilitate discussions about the lesson the book teaches, asking questions such as:

What are the most important events that happened in the story? How do you know?

Can you tell how the character is feeling in this part of the story?

How does this character affect what happens in the beginning or at the end of the story?

What lesson is this story teaching you?

The teacher can also invite questions from the class about the story behind the story, using prompts about the book's themes. As a class, the learners can come up with an essential question, such as "How can you make the world more beautiful?" to inspire projects that will demonstrate what they have learned.
Give choice in how learners express what they know and understand
Here's how one pair of hypothetical learners, Susan and Jared, chose to express their understanding of the themes in Miss Rumphius. First, they brainstormed supporting questions for the essential question, "How can we make the world more beautiful?":

How can we make our school more beautiful?

How can we make a garden for our school?

These questions inspired Susan and Jared to develop a proposal and plan to plant a small vegetable plot on an empty lot in their school commons. They used iScape Free, a landscaping app on their tablet, to design a garden. During this process, they reflected in their KidBlog and invited feedback from others.

Jared enjoys photography, so he took photos of vegetables and other plants they wanted in their garden using the digital camera on his mobile device. Jared worked with Susan to choose pictures for the blog and upload them to DropBox. Both he and Susan wrote a reflection on this process. They compiled all of their evidence and reflections in their proposal, which they presented to their class using Prezi. Then the teacher helped them get approval from the school administration to make their vision a reality.

Because Susan and Jared became partners in learning with their teacher, they were more involved in lesson design and choosing the appropriate tools to support their learning. As a result, they became more engaged in the lesson and more motivated to learn.

As you start the new school year and meet your new learners, consider these ideas for introducing personalized learning into your classroom. You may find that when you really get to know each child and how they learn best, you can build a class community with a culture of trust and responsibility that inspires investment and ownership in learning.

Want to learn more about PLEs, focusing on the learner first and how technology can support personalized learning? Find resources and information about the three Stages of Personalized Learning on our Personalize Learning website, sign up for our 5 W's of Personalized Learning e-course, or read our upcoming book, Make Learning Personal , when it comes out this fall.

To learn more about the use of technology to personalize learning, check out Personalized Learning: A Guide for Engaging Students with Technology by Peggy Grant and Dale Basye.

Barbara Bray is co-founder of Personalize Learning, LLC, and founder/owner of . She writes a professional development column for Computer Using Educators' online journal, OnCUE. Bray has more than 25 years of experience making learning personal and building communities of practice. You can follow her on Twitter via .

Kathleen McClaskey is CEO and co-founder of Personalize Learning, LLC, as well as the founder and digital learning consultant for EdTech Associates. She has over 30 years of experience designing instruction and learning environments for all learners and in creating professional learning programs and projects using the Universal Design for Learning framework. You can follow her on Twitter via .

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Personalized learning is built on the idea that each learner is unique and learns in different ways. This is called variability in learning. To support all learners' unique needs and preferences, learning environments have to be flexible. It takes a process to transform learning environments and change learner and teacher roles.

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"It's never been a better time to be a teacher/learner."

Kevin McLaughlin is an ICT Coordinator / Primary Teacher at Old Mill Primary School, Broughton Astley, Leics, UK who transformed his classroom to a personalized learning environment. He is a Google Certified Teacher, an Apple Distinguished Educator, and Google Apps Certified Trainer. His students create PJs or what he calls their Personal Journeys. Kathleen McClaskey and I had to interview Kevin so he can share with our readers the why and how he changed his teaching and how his students learn now.

"My name is Kevin McLaughlin and I am a teacher. I also use technology, a lot, although it isn't always about the technology. I am passionate in my role as an educator, and I use my website to offer advice to others as well as detail my use of a wide variety of teaching and learning approaches."

Why personalize learning?
If you are going to consider personalised learning as an approach in your classroom then you should first understand that every learner is unique. Learners may appear to be similar and at times we can teach learners in the same fashion but to use this whole class approach for every lesson you teach then you run the risk of leaving learners behind. Learning requires more than a teaching plan that focuses on teaching. As educators we need to focus on the learning that is going to occur and the learning that is to come. We can do this by using a personalised learning approach.

What is your vision of personalizing learning?
I have envisaged personalised learning in my classroom as one that involves every learner in the development of their learning journey, that includes their own learning themes as well as those that the curriculum requires of them and allows them the opportunity to explore this learning in any way they see fit to achieve it.

Describe the first steps that you took to create a personalized learning environment in your classroom?
I began developing my approach when I realised that the three step teaching approach - introduction, main activity and plenary was hindering many of the learners in my class. Those that understood the learning focus would grow bored very quickly waiting for the opportunity to show off their learning. Those that required additional teaching had to sit through introductions and main activity demonstrations before getting the opportunity to be guided in their learning. A personalized approach gave me the time to focus on the needs of every learner from the onset.

How did you decide on the new design of your classroom?
I came up with the design after trial and error. I knew the traditional classroom layout would deter a personalized learning approach so it had to be changed. This requires a good understanding of your learners, how they interact with each other and the development of trust and respect from the start of the academic year as a personalized learning approach will be daunting for any teacher at first. You need to be prepared to allow the learners to move around, to interact with their peers, to sit anywhere with anyone, to use the floor space as well as a table and not to use groupings of any sort unless there is a specific reason for it.

The room is now our Learning Zone and there are no pre-seating arrangements. My class are free to move around, sit with whomever they wish at any time and, if they so wish, pop outdoors for some fresh air and a quick 'chill out' session if needed. The Learning Zone is divided into 5 areas:

1. Discussion and Thinking Zone - Learners can drop in whenever they wish to talk about their learning, find solutions, help each other and just to think and chill out. It's also still the area where my class gathers for a whole group focus or an additional Creation/Show Off zone.

2. Discovery Zone - There are 2 of these although one is missed off the top of the image. These contain laptops, pc's and other technology that the learners can use to guide them on their learning, discover answers, investigate and solve problems, collaborate on projects and create presentations.

3. Show Off Zone - This is where the learners focus on discoveries they have made and demonstrate their understanding through writing, presentation, art work, display whatever medium they wish to present their work.

4. Repeat Level - This has evolved from my use of Gamification of learning and an approach that my class enjoy. Whenever any learner requires help, advice, explanations and is 'stuck' this is the area they come to repeat the learning so they can move to the next level.

5. Creation Zone - Creating content for use in their learning, creating presentations to demonstrate learning, blogging, refining, editing. It happens here and it's usually very busy.

Read more about this on Kevin's website.
How does it contribute to personalizing learning for your students?
The classroom layout allows my class the freedom to explore their learning in a way that would not be possible if they were grouped by ability and had specified seating arranged for them. You can watch a video about this here:

Do you believe that your classroom model can be scaled?
Any educator would find it very straightforward to arrange their own classroom according to my layout. It's a simple matter of stepping back as the teacher at the front and giving your class over to learning.

How does your school determine how students learn best?
I am quite fortunate in that my school respect and trust the staff to teach in the way they see best for their class. My headteacher has been very positive in my use of this approach and after 8 weeks has seen the proof through improved results in Maths and English.

How do your students understand how they learn best?
My class and I discussed this approach on the first day back in January. We talked about when they considered the best ways to learn, how they liked to move around to discuss learning with others in the class, how when they were at home they could take a break when they needed one, how they could sit on the floor as well as at their desk. I valued their responses to help develop our classroom layout and the personalized learning approach that they would use.

What types of technologies are you and your students using to support their learning?
In my class the learners have access to desktop computers, laptops, 5 iPad devices and the school PC suite whenever it has open spaces. My class can use these technologies in their learning when they know it will be an effective tool for their learning. This approach to choosing the right tool for the job is an essential skill that takes time to instill. This is a recent example of a PJ, a Personal Journey that every learner in my class receives at the start of each week.

The Numeracy and Literacy targets include those required by the school curriculum but the rest is created by the learner and what they deem important to their own learning. Personalising the curriculum for every child in my class has been an inspiring journey for me. I have watched in awe at children working their way through their learning, solving problems in pairs, discussing and thinking, coming up with solutions, offering suggestions and advice to their peers. It has confirmed my belief that if we give learners opportunities to follow a personalised approach they will fly. After the very first week of using PJ's in my class I found the following outcomes.

Every child preferred this approach to their learning

Every child was on task every day without having to be told

Every learner made progress in Numeracy and achieved at least two targets that I had set them

Every learner achieved at least 1 of their own targets

Every learner told me they were looking forward to the next week of learning in their Personalised Journeys

What have you learned and what changes have you made from your initial steps?
I quickly learned that using a personalised learning approach meant standing back more as a teacher and giving the learners more opportunities to develop their learning. I found that I had to stop myself from merely giving the process at the start to provoking a question that would inspire the learners to discover solutions for themselves. My planning had to adapt very quickly and I found a daily planner created by Doug Belshaw to be the catalyst for the development of our 'Personal Journey' that every child is now using weekly for their learning experiences. The 'PJ' has changed from its initial conception after discussions with the learners about what worked and what could be left out. We have now agreed on a format that every learner is happy with.
What would you change in the future?
At the moment I am happy with how the use of the PJ is going. Our PJ's are on paper as we have found this is the best media for quickly changing plans on the go. I recently came across your chart on 'Personalization vs Differentiation vs Individualization' and it has sharpened my thinking and I will no doubt refer to it during the next few weeks to develop my approach further.

Read more here.

Readers can contact Kevin using any of the following:
kevindmclaughlin@gmail.com
http://ictsteps.com
@kvnmcl

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Kevin McLaughlin on PJs: Personal Journeys

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"It's never been a better time to be a teacher/learner." Kevin McLaughlin is an ICT Coordinator / Primary Teacher at Old Mill Primary School, Broughton Astley, Leics, UK who transformed his classroom to a personalized learning environment. He is a Google Certified Teacher, an Apple Distinguished Educator, and Google Apps Certified Trainer.

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10+ Tips for Using Brain-Based Methods to Redesign Your Classroom - EdSurge News

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“It is not what you do for your children, but what you have taught them to do for themselves that will make them successful human beings.” - Ann…

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Edutopia is a free source of information, inspiration, and practical strategies for learning and teaching in preK-12 education. We are published by the George Lucas Educational Foundation, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization.