Perfect working-playing environment?

Since yesterday's post there has been a lot of interest in Jen Macaulay's classroom as a place of playing and learning, comments from both teachers and those working in business and a huge number of views. The classroom has been added to the expanding Classroom Displays group on Flickr, too.

I'm getting the feeling there is a genuine desire for more sharing of classroom environments through video, photo or text, a desire that's always been there for this teacher but which is now made far more possible than ever before thanks to the tools at our disposal.
The question is:

• should it be the role of the teacher whose classroom it is to regularly upload images, video or text about their learning space; or
• is there a role for visiting support staff, teachers and visitors from the education and children's services department to snap as they travel, posting to Flickr with the tag of the school and edubuzz, writing a small description of how the space is used; or
• is there a role for students in documenting their learning space as part of their own learning log?

Comments

[LindaH]

Hi Ewan, You ask:
is there a role for visiting support staff, teachers and visitors from the education and children's services department to snap as they travel, posting to Flickr
This is already happening to an extent. There are even some US high school pupil members of the Classroom Displays group. If more people do start to do this I hope they won't just tag their photos but will also add them to the group. I think we are starting to get a global perspective in the group on what learning spaces look like and I really want to encourage this.

[DK]

I'm thinking a dedicated website/blog which solely focusses on learning spaces would be a great project/resource. Much in the same vein as http://www.aintnodisco.com/ (which focuses on agencies work spaces).

Embellish it with video and podcast interviews and you have yourself an amazing platform for disseminating good practice.

If only I had the time...

DK

[Ewan McIntosh]

Linda, I think you're spot on and your creation of the group is a simple and effective move for people looking into school spaces, including, of course, classroom teachers.

DK, thanks for the link. These are brill.

The trick now, I guess, is making the former resemble closer the latter in terms of coolness and attractiveness for older kids in school.

[Huw]

What a joy to discover these photos. It reminds me of my daughter's primary school in Southsea before we moved to France nearly 4yrs ago. What a fantastic place that was, worth photos of the pre-school and primary if they're not already here somewhere - Brambles Nursery and Goldsmith Infant School.

Here in rural France things resemble my primary school classroom of 40 years ago.

My main comment is to ask whether there are similar examples and photos in secondary schools? And what about further education colleges, or even universities? I'd like to see and learn from these if possible.

Thanks for the blog by the way, I've a regular reader/subscriber.

[Ewan McIntosh]

I'd be keen, too, to see some examples from further up the schooling system. I know that my secondary French and German classroom tried to emulate as much of the kind of thing you see above. There's a task for some of our teachers.