Essentials Magazine Essentials Fall 2016: EDspaces Edition | Page 9

in education; they should have a voice
in how they are educated and how
schools are designed.
It used to be that educators could
enter the profession and teach the same
way in the same types of classrooms
from the beginning of their careers
until they retired 30 years later, but that
era is gone. Now they must be comfortable with being uncomfortable. The
days of mastery have been replaced by
a career of constant adaptation to new
expectations, new teaching styles —
and new types of learning spaces for
Gen Z.
n
EDspaces 2016 Speakers:
MARK AND DWIGHT will be
presenting What’s in Your
Space? Combining Technology,
Global Skills, and Learning Styles
in a New Type of School on
Wednesday, November 2
at 1:00 PM.

DWIGHT CARTER AND MARK WHITE
have worked
together for over
15 years, first in the
Gahanna-Jefferson
Public Schools in
Gahanna, Ohio,
where they were
both administrators, and now as
authors, speakers
and consultants. Together they led the
team of teachers,
students, and community members in
the design of Clark
Hall, a high school
building that was
named the Best in
Tech 2012 by Scholastic because of its innovative
use of global skills, technology, and learning
space to teach Generation Z. They recently coauthored (with Clark Hall architect Gary Sebach)
What’s in Your Space? 5 Steps for Better School
and Classroom Design, which is published by
Corwin Press.

FROM IDEA TO EXECUTION
Some quick, cheap fixes include:
• adding some bright paint to walls
• putting a few soft chairs or exercise balls in one corner of a classroom
• converting part of a hallway or
cafeteria to a new type of space by
adding new paint, furniture, rugs, or
carpet squares
• turning a large storage room into a
collaborative learning space
• shifting the school library, or one
part of it, into a 21st century environment by adding bright, comfortable
chairs
When wondering how to begin,
educators can ask the ultimate authority: their students. Great starter
questions are: “Which furniture is
most comfortable for you? What colors
do you like? What ideas do you have
for how to use the space? Do you see
any other things we can do to make
the space more fun and to help you
learn?” Students are the new partners

Connect with and convert more educators
EMAIL | DIRECT MAIL | TELEMARKETING | DIGITAL ADVERTISING

Early Childhood • K-12 • Higher Ed

www.agile-ed.com

essentials | www.edmarket.org 9