Reflection 1 - My Swamp
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My ‘swamp’ is the school library in which I work and refer to as “the kitchen pantry”. Like most kitchen pantries, students and staff come to the library to satisfy their hunger. They approach the door of the pantry with a desire in mind, come in and have a browse inside. Some know what they are looking for, make a selection and enjoy their snack. Others don’t know what they want, so they look, however nothing is appealing or suits their needs at the time, and leave unsatisfied.
The library is mostly used by the students, who come with their class for lessons or lunch time activities. Then there are the teachers who come to collect resources and have meetings. At play times, there are a variety of activities on offer for students, including reading, borrowing, computer games, board games, colouring in and puzzles. These activities are popular however, due to the physical design of the library these times are often noisy and crowded. Due to the lack of furniture and the positioning of shelving, there are no real divisions of space, which means the students are bunched, for a better word, together. There have been times when I have seen students in a far off corner or sitting under a desk to find any solitude to read a book alone!
While I cannot change certain aspects of the design of the building, it is clear improvements need to be made as to how the space is used. Being new to the role of teacher librarian, I need to show more initiative and creativity and consider going beyond what has always been done in the past. In his keynote speech, Burge (2001, p. 1) asks his audience to consider being open rather than being “imitative”. It is my desire that the opportunities provided through my learning in the unit of Designing Spaces for Learning and visits to other swamps, I will become open to taking risks and make changes, making it easier for users to find what they need and satisfy their hunger.
References
Burge,L. (2001). People development: Reflective practice for educators. Keynote Speech for the Networking 2001 Conference. Brisbane, Australia, October 14-18.
Reflection 2 – Site (a) - Who and what is valued at learning space
As I pushed the doors open to this site, a primary school library, and walked through the threshold, my mind was immediately stimulated by all I saw. The room was brightly lit and was full of colour and displays on the walls. Labelled boxes of books were abound, along with a variety of different book shelving. There were distinct areas for different age groups and activities, but it did not feel as though segregation was the intention. Rather, these areas had a welcoming manner to let all know they had a place within this learning space. It was refreshing and eye opening to me as this site is very different from my swamp as discussed in Reflection 1. There was so much to see and look at, that I felt excited and could not wait to explore every corner of the library.
Through the library windows different aspects of the school could be seen, such as the oval, however the gentle hum of the air conditioning gave a sense of an oasis from the hot outdoors. There is an area for younger children to browse freely through the junior fiction books and sit in a space that is confined and safe. Books in the fiction section are arranged so that students are able to find what they are looking for more readily, or to explore and browse covers without having to pull books from shelves. The main area the teacher librarian uses for her classes is at the back of the library away from the main entrance, therefore allowing the freedom to continue her lessons without interruption from library visitors.
I can see her philosophy of teaching shining through. This library is foremost for the students. A place they can feel comfortable while they are away from the constraints of a classroom. A place where they can be transported to other worlds, apart from theirs, through books.
It is unfortunate that I was at this library during class time. It would be wonderful to come back during a play break and see children interacting with this space. This visit certainly inspired me to reconsider the physical design elements of my own swamp.
Through the library windows different aspects of the school could be seen, such as the oval, however the gentle hum of the air conditioning gave a sense of an oasis from the hot outdoors. There is an area for younger children to browse freely through the junior fiction books and sit in a space that is confined and safe. Books in the fiction section are arranged so that students are able to find what they are looking for more readily, or to explore and browse covers without having to pull books from shelves. The main area the teacher librarian uses for her classes is at the back of the library away from the main entrance, therefore allowing the freedom to continue her lessons without interruption from library visitors.
I can see her philosophy of teaching shining through. This library is foremost for the students. A place they can feel comfortable while they are away from the constraints of a classroom. A place where they can be transported to other worlds, apart from theirs, through books.
It is unfortunate that I was at this library during class time. It would be wonderful to come back during a play break and see children interacting with this space. This visit certainly inspired me to reconsider the physical design elements of my own swamp.
Reflection 3 - Charrette Process: benefits and disadvantages
I was fortunate to experience running a charrette in regards to the design problem presented in Reflection 1. An adapted VAST heuristic was used and the target stakeholders were Year 6 students. Prior to the charrette I explained the purpose of the activity, which was to provide ideas to help solve design issues with our school’s library. The students worked in small groups armed with pencils and post it notes. As they brainstormed ideas they added their post it notes under the appropriate headings to the board.
Images sourced by L. Frazer Photos were taken using the cartoon effect and in grey scale to ensure anonymity.
It was wonderful to see the students get involved so enthusiastically. Most of their suggestions were realistic and it was encouraging to see them getting excited about the library. For days afterwards students were coming in asking if their suggestions were being considered. I believe they were eager to participate because they were given the freedom to think outside the realms of possibilities for this space and more importantly, that their ideas were being considered and were valued.
A disadvantage of running the charrette was the students were more interested in giving suggestions as to how the space could be improved, rather than spending time thinking of the positives within this space. Another disadvantage was carrying out the charrette with only one year level. A wider range of age levels would have given a broader range of suggestions and ideas.
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Image sourced by L. Frazer
Reflection 4 - Where to from here for me as a learning space designer?
My key learnings from this unit.
Studying a subject such as Designing Spaces and Learning has been enlightening, challenging and empowering. I now feel better equipped with approaching design issues in my own work space and feel more confident with using strategies that will help with future planning. At first, the idea of solving a design problem and writing a proposal addressed to stakeholders, was overwhelming. However, during the research and writing stage of the proposal, I came to realise that as a teacher librarian, it is not just up to me - designing spaces involves everyone who uses the space and it is a journey we all take together.