From one-room school houses, to
kitchen tables, to sophisticated, technology-rich environs, schools today are
as varied as ever. Most people don’t think twice about what a school looks
like. However, if you’ve ever taught in a school which was teetering on
antiquity, you may feel differently. So, just how important is environment in
education? Do the surroundings really matter?
From my perspective, I think most
teachers can teach just about anywhere. And for those who are truly passionate,
they deal with what they have to work with and make the best of it. They may
have to be creative, but creativity is one of the 4Cs of 21st
century skills, right?
Does this mean I don’t think it
matters what a school looks like or the shape it’s in internally (mechanics,
electrical, etc)? Absolutely not. Ideally we would all teach in the
sophisticated, technology-rich school. Ideally. But reality sets in and we
realize that’s not going to happen. Do teachers sit and whine about not having
great spaces to work in? Most don’t. Yet, if people saw and knew of the
conditions in some schools, they would be appalled.
The topic is near to my heart since my
outdated-but-workhorse of a school underwent renovation this spring/summer.
Yesterday teachers and staff moved in and unpacked. It was glorious! What was
so great about it? Hot water. Yes, there will be hot water in the staff
bathroom. A sink. Yes, there is a sink in the staff lounge. Outlets. Yes, there
will be more than two outlets per classroom. Technology. Yes, some rooms will
have projectors. Heat and AC. Yes, not just half of the hallway will be
warm/cold.
New classroom in the midst of getting set up |
Now having written all that, mostly
tongue-in-cheek, I will say that there were days in the past thirteen years of
teaching at my school, where it was tough to teach. The heat would barely reach
the mid-60s in the classroom, forcing most to keep coats on. It was tough to
expect much when my own fingers lagged behind a bit from the cold.
But those days are past. I am so
grateful for the new environment, physically, that we can offer our students on
the first day of school. With two other high schools in the city recently
receiving some major renovations of their own, it was good to have our state
legislature allocate money for our school to be remodeled.
Now my students, nontraditional kids
who usually don’t fit into the “standard school,” can come to a place where it
appears we do care. Everything is new and reconfigured to offer more space,
more efficiency, and more consideration to students and their needs.
I’m proud of the work my principal and
the rest of the staff did in making this dream of so many years a reality. It’s
been a renovation long overdue but one, thanks to our state legislature, that
is amazing. You know it’s a good remodel when you get lost going to your own
classroom!
Thanks to the funding of our state,
my school will be the coolest alternative school in the state. Physically. But
adornments aren’t everything. What’s the environment like in our classrooms? We
can have the latest and greatest in the room, but how do we make engaged
learning happen? Environment does matter, in all senses of the word. More to
come on this topic….