One of the oldest learning spaces is the church, synagoge and mosque. They consist of a place to study, a teacher and students and a holy book – (ex. bible, torah or koran).
There are lessons we can learn from religious environments. By observing learning spaces within a religous environment we will see it consists of two parts:
- A physical place to work – (ex. desk, chair and book).
- Activities that takes place – (ex. lessons from the preist, rabbi or mullah).
In our evaluation of learning spaces, we like to envision them as pockets of activity. Learning spaces which are dynamic have a mix of elements. You can have two or three people working together. When there are more then six to eight people in an environment two modes of behavior and activity take place:
- Informal – cafe, meeting place.
- Formal – classroom, training area.
Students working in an environment require learning spaces. The way you can measure their success is by observing the activity that is taking place. How do you describe your learning space?
