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Discussions & Questions about: autonomy vs. responsibility for knowledge and skills on an exam; flexible seating and richer spaces would be so great; levels of choice/agency and guidance needed based on student ages/levels (e.g., G6 math class may have less choice than a DP2 English class in which they take part in the planning and pacing of the entire course).

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How do we have students demonstrate their self selected pieces of work on our windows and walls? Reflections, visual thinking routines...showing their journey through learning to visibly show their autonomy and choice they have in class

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Creating Autonomy-Supportive Learning Environments | Jon Stolk | TEDxSMU

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Innovative Spaces and Learning: the Truth About Classrooms | Kathy Naasz | TEDxCentenaryUniversity

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How to Create a Positive Learning Environment

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A positive learning environment can support all children to flourish. Find out how to create a positive learning environment in your classroom here.

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Barbara McCombs, PhD, University of Denver

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Developing responsible and autonomous learners: A key to motivating students

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Research has shown that motivation is related to whether or not students have opportunities to be autonomous and to make important academic choices.

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Flexible Classrooms: Providing the Learning Environment That Kids Need

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NEASC - New England Association of Schools and Colleges

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Flexible learning tables that can be moved around into individual or groups with the shape of the tables.

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The picture books are organized by author's last name. All picture books have a sticker with the letter of the author's last name and the shelf where they go have the same sticker.

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We sourced a shelf from storage to fit the picture book that is great for students to get better access to the books and the top of the shelf is very useful to work standing.

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In order to do this well, perhaps we need to get a better understanding of what each element of this looks like. (e.g., what does good/approapriate goal-oriented autonomy look like? How do we measure what informed choices look like in the classroom? What counts as 'beyond' the classroom?)

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Students’ autonomy can manifest in several ways when learning a poem.

Choice: The teacher offers several poems, and the students can choose which one they want to learn. This allows them to select based on their interests, whether they prefer a shorter, easier poem or a longer, more challenging one.

Learning method: Students can decide how they want to learn the poem. They may choose to repeat it aloud, write it down multiple times, or use digital tools, like a poetry recitation app.

Presentation method: Students can choose how to present the poem. They have the option to perform it individually or in groups.

Time: Students can organize how they want to learn the poem within the available time. Some may prefer to memorize larger sections at once, while others may break it down into smaller parts and progress gradually.

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Standing desk?

Different Tables - kidney table

Lap desk for kids who want to work on floor

Wobble chairs

Whiteboard walls/tables

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How do classrooms get used in ways other than just learning? ASAs, school wide events

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How do classrooms get used in ways other than just learning? ASAs, school wide events

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Teachers share lesson/unit plans that can can evidence agency for the unit

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Teachers share lesson/unit plans that can can evidence agency for the unit

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We can share the link of the work being done on here. We can ask teachers to add them to the highlight folder on Seesaw too.

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When students create posts on Seesaw, they have autonomy over what they want to make or how they want to create a post.

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Continue to share ideas in between us and hear different perspectives and approaches into how to improve in these areas

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Maybe we could consider some of the points in this article? https://spencerauthor.com/7-things-student-ownership/

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A Snapshot of Student Ownership

Right now, my middle son is at the computer typing away on a shared Google Document that he and three of the neighborhood kids created for a collaborative story they're all writing. They formed a writing club. For fun.

They initiated the entire project and they own the entire process. Even though they are only a few blocks away, they are instant messaging each other and leaving comments on one another's work as they plan out the plot, setting, and characters. Assessment is happening naturally. They are setting up their own work schedule and deadlines. Project planning is happening naturally.

At some point, they will probably publish on Wattpad and Storybird and perhaps even start a blog. But for now, it's a small shared document. It's completely unassuming - even humble.

And yet . . .

It's powerful. On a lazy Saturday morning, they are choosing to be makers and designers and storytellers. Instead of passively consuming cartoons, they are actively crafting stories.

But there's an invisible collaborator that nobody sees right now. This entire self-direct project actually began with a teacher. She didn't come up with the idea (the kids did that). She isn't monitoring their progress (the kids are doing that). But she sparked the love of writing in a few students and empowered them to share their work with the audience. Students chose the topics and themes and worked through the writing process in collaborative teams. Now two of her students are working with both a younger and an older student to do a summer-long writing group on their own time.

They own the learning.

And it's not just her. Joel's science teacher empowered students to create their own experiments. It's the first time he's ever done that at school. Now he's making a list of supplies and questions and half-baked hypotheses.

He owns the learning.

My daughter has a stack of books she wants to read. She has things that she is planning to build this upcoming week. She has topics that she wants to explore based upon things she learned in class. Her entire year has been a journey toward an ever-expanding worldview. And it's because of her teacher.

This is a bold reminder of the power of student ownership and the role that teachers play in empowering their students. They are becoming self-directed, critical thinking, creative learners who are learning how to plan and design and collaborate.
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7 Things That Happen When Students Own Their Learning

We know that it's important to move from compliance to student engagement. But what happens when you take it another step and empower your students to own their learning? Here are seven ideas:

#1: They fall in love with learning by finding joy in pursuing their passions and geeky interests. In the process, they learn how to research and curate and communicate. When I look at my son's class, I am struck by the fact that so many of the students are sharing their work with one another on their own time. And it isn't simply the "best" writers. They're all convinced that they have something valuable that they want to share with others. But it's because of this shift that the teacher has made from trying to "make the subject interesting" to "tapping into student interests."

#2: They embrace a maker mindset as they work through a design process and launch their work to the world. When students own the creative process, they become designers and engineers and builders and tinkerers and artists. They learn how to solve problems and create solutions and share their work with an authentic audience.

#3: They develop iterative thinking, viewing mistakes as a chance to learn. This leads to a shift from a fixed to a growth mindset. Whether it's a maker project or a shared document or a science experiment, my kids are going to make tons of mistakes. However, they're going to view it as a part of the process. The idea isn't to embrace fail ure so much as fail ing. Failure is permanent and fixed. Failing is a temporary thing in the journey toward success.

#4: They become self-starters, exploring new frontiers, asking hard questions, and trying new things. Not every kid will become a future entrepreneur but they will need to think like entrepreneurs in an uncertain world. The corporate ladder is gone and in its place is a complex maze. But self-starters are the ones who will navigate the maze and figure out how to build something new along the way.

#5: They become problem-solvers and systems thinkers. It might not seem like a big deal in the moment, but when students own the project management process, they figure out how to solve problems in the moment. They learn how to navigate multiple systems and even build more efficient systems as well.

#6: They also challenge the system as hackers who think divergently and rewrite the rules. If the last two points deal with navigating systems and thriving in a Creative Economy, this idea is different. It's the notion that student ownership is subversive. It challenges the status quo. This is the idea that learning should be disruptive and that students should be empowered to challenge injustice and create a better world.

#7: They become architects of their own learning, engaging in project management and collaboration. We often say that we want students to become lifelong learners but that requires student ownership.

A.J. Juliani puts it this way, "Our job is not to prepare students for something. Our job is to help students prepare themselves for anything."

In other words, when we empower our students, they are able to own their learning forever.

Empower Your Students with Voice and Choice

Want to get started with student ownership? Check out this page with free articles, videos, and resources. Also, check out the Empower Blueprint and Toolkit below.

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7 Things That Happen When Students Own Their Learning

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Right now, my middle son is at the computer typing away on a shared Google Document that he and three of the neighborhood kids created for a collaborative story they're all writing. They formed a writing club. For fun. They initiated the entire project and they own the entire process.

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Something to wonder about

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Creating powerful, playful inquiry projects in early childhood by Ben Mardell and Ruth Baxter Hesseldal EARCOS workshop

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Articles, videos, etc. related to student agency

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How the physical makeup of classrooms affects learning.

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To gather evidence for the two principles, starting to deepen our understanding might help? (It feels like we are going on a treaure hunt without knowing what we are looking for) There seem to be many different aspects to both "independence in learning" and the "learning space". (it doesn't seem like it's enough to just provide the right furniture... It seems that helping independence can also be greatly influenced by changing the way teachers speak and the words they choose...etc),. Also, having a clear picture of the timeline for this NEASC process would be helpful :)

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During language lessons:

Vocabulary Development: I provide vocabulary exercises on various topics (e.g., travel, sports, technology), allowing students to choose the topic that interests them the most. This way, they can select based on their own interests, making the learning process more personal and motivating.

Independent Writing Task: During writing skills lessons, I let students freely choose the topic of their essay or composition. For example, they might decide to write about a personal experience, a current event, or a fictional story. This approach helps students connect more deeply with the task and express their creativity.

Conversation: In pair-based speaking exercises, I offer several conversation topics such as favorite movies, future goals, or travel experiences. Students then choose which topic they would like to discuss. This choice enables them to engage more meaningfully in the conversation.

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Adaptive Learning Spaces: Nurturing Minds, Shaping Futures

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Adaptive learning spaces are giving traditional classrooms stiff competition by offering a host of benefits from social to academic. Learn more here!

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Observe Key Moments: You don’t need to stay for the entire class. Look for key transitions, instructional moments, or student interactions that provide insight into the focus of your observation.

Be Consistent: If observing multiple classrooms, allocate the same amount of time to each class to ensure consistency.

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Debrief as a Group: After completing the observation, meet with fellow observers to discuss findings. Share insights, but remain focused on the collective goal rather than individual classrooms.

Align Observations: Ensure that all observations are framed within the agreed-upon criteria and rubrics (e.g., Learning Autonomy, Use of Space, Engagement).

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Remain professional and ask the list of questions we created and the standards we are looking for promptly throughout the allocated time.