When we first introduced the concept of learning communities, these are some of the immediate questions parents asked: 

#1 Are you going to be using one large open space for learning?

#2 Are the new environments noisier and what is the impact on students? 

#3 Are there too many kids in one space? 

Over the last few years, as part of our plan to transition to these environments, we have learned much about the impact of teaching and learning in learning communities. At times, we have not done the best job of sharing and explaining our design and its  advantages, so uncertainty, skepticism and questions about the advantages of learning communities over traditional classroom spaces are understandable. We are committed to addressing that with transparency and good information based on research, practice, and firsthand experience.

For 10 years now, our educators have been working in professional learning communities (PLCs), and this is something we are trading on as we prepare to move into the new building. I have seen our teachers become better facilitators of learning within and across subjects when they work collaboratively and learn from one another. Our students have more and more opportunities to connect and work with like-minded peers who share their interests and passions and for teachers to group them based on skill levels or learning needs.

So then, what is a learning community, and what is it not?

What it is: An environment designed to be able to serve many functions. It is flexible, not open. 

What it’s not: The open classroom concept of the 1970s

• As part of PLCs, our educators are used to working in a cooperative and collaborative fashion. This collaboration is key to sharing expertise, fostering learning, and helping our teachers further strengthen the learning experiences of our students.

• Learning communities are designed to share and configure spaces in ways to best promote student learning and collaboration. These include four separate, enclosable classrooms, a common area, a small group room, and an educator workroom. Each can be adjusted to meet the needs of learners and the content of everyday lessons — giving teachers the opportunity to create environments that best suit the individual student’s needs and learning styles. 

• Even as small breakout rooms, moveable walls (allowing a space to grow or shrink), small booths, and quiet nooks enhance the student experience, they empower educators to be more intentional about devoting spaces to more learning activities as they share resources rather than having the same materials and resources in every single classroom.

• The flexibility of the learning community allows teachers to better meet the individual needs of students, including grouping students together who may need intervention or extension opportunities in that unit to learn at their highest levels.

What it is: An environment purposefully designed to support students’ thinking, reflect on their assumptions, and help them construct understanding. 

What it’s not: Noisy and/or disruptive to student learning

• These environments are structured so that they allow for purposeful talk. Students are able to clarify their thinking, consider others’ points of view, and reflect and seek feedback across a collaborative space or in a quiet nook as the task demands.

• The environment is created so that sounds and noises are absorbed with the use of in-room partitions, soft furnishings and plush coverings, bookshelves and mobile screens, carpet and wall/ceiling treatments, and more. As their lesson plans require, teachers can teach in their fully enclosed classrooms or utilize shared space.

• Our recent Learning Walks series with our parents help build a strong understanding about learning communities. What we’ve heard: “I just wanted to say that I attended a learning walk which took me into middle school. Wow. Great stuff! All my fears—noisy, chaotic, disruptive, incohesive—were quashed.” 

“When they first started, I spoke to colleagues that were already teaching in these collaborative spaces at SAS, and the more excited I got about maybe participating in one myself. Working alongside more than one other teacher, I learn from them, they learn from me, the whole hope is that we will learn from each other.” Jess Harrison, fifth grade teacher 

What it is: A learning community allows for levels of interactions, first within the immediate community and later with the larger grade level—all with the intent of building relationships with like-minded students and adults. 

What it’s not: One space that holds 88 students

• The student-teacher ratio in our learning communities remains the same as our standard classroom, which is 22:1. However, with multiple teachers in the space, efficiencies of time and skills are created. Students are afforded the freedom to move between reading nooks, collaboration rooms, and quiet phone booths, and have access to like-minded peers from other neighboring learning communities and the opportunities to build connections with other educators in the space.

• Collaborative structures help to decrease teacher isolation, codify and share successful teaching practices, and open the door to innovationand collective efficacy. This collaboration results in richer, deeper learning experiences for students, as units of study are built on the collective expertise of all teachers, not the solitary practice of one.

• Space matters in innovation as it affects outcomes, especially when chosen and designed consciously. Physical environment influences how people feel, how they think, and how they connect with each other. Ultimately, it is not about designing one optimal learning experience for all people, but designing multiple, diverse pathways so that every learner can engage.

“I’ve had a great opportunity to collaborate with my colleagues. Here we make sure we are planning together, and doing together. In previous years, we would talk about what we wanted to do with the students and then go off and plan in our separate spaces. Now we come up with a plan and we execute the plan together.” James Toney, sixth grade teacher