In all facets of education today, from pre-k to post-secondary, there is a whirlwind of change. School leadership throughout the world are experiencing mounting pressure to evaluate how, what, where, and when we provide opportunities for students to learn. (2017, Hanover Research) Through research, we learn that traditional in-line learning is obsolete and today’s learning environments need to support collaboration, active learning and technology-rich environments to engage and prepare today’s students for the future.
More and more, research is available to support the concept that redesigned learning spaces can positively impact student outcomes in academic achievement and soft skills such as communication, problem solving, interpersonal and self-directional skills.
The H.E.A.D. project showed that a well-designed learning environment can have significant positive effect on student achievement within a year. Focusing on elements like naturalness, level of stimulation and classroom design, researchers in this project found intentional planning of the environment will boost student engagement and encourage teachers to change instructional practices.
Below I have provided an annotated bibliography with a few of the research studies and resources that I have found to be helpful when forming my ideas on why to recreate learning environments.