Considerations in the physical layout of the computer classroom
When we were designing a computer classroom, we were concerned that it be designed so the inclusion of computers in our courses not hinder our efforts to use other aspects of reform pedagogy in our classes. Too many of the “computer classrooms” that we have seen, are designed simply by putting computers on desks in traditional classrooms. Or by putting blackboards in a computers lab. Both of these designs hinder some instructional styles. Since we want to teach the students that computers are simply one more resource to be used when the task at hand calls for it we wanted a classroom that could be flexibly be used in a variety of teaching situations.
A first step in designing the classroom is thus to consider the scenes that a visitor who stopped by at random times would routinely see. After discussing this with faculty that would be teaching in the room we decided that the scenes would include:
1) The students are working at computers and the instructor is either moving around the room helping the students or guiding them from the instructor’s machine with the screen image of that machine projected on the from wall. 2) The instructor is at the front of the room either lecturing at the board or using the instructor’s machine to demonstrate a concept. The students are taking notes. They
may be using the computers to do the kind of scratch work that is often done in a classroom discussion. 3) The students are working in groups either in their places or at the board with the machines not being used on a particular exercise. The instructor is moving from group to group or making comments to the whole class.
We also found that instructors envisioned regularly moving between two or more of these scenes in a typical class period.