Organize Your Classroom Like the Apple Store-Big Learning, Big Fun! | Instructional Des... - 1 views
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When you walk into an Apple Store, you are immediately caught up in the energy and excitement.
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David Goodrich on 11 Feb 14This was an interesting idea to me for having a conceptual model help frame the concept of an active learning classroom focused on customized, individualized and personalized instruction. The author takes what many already know about the exciting energy one can palpably sense when remembering an Apple Store experience and then uses it as a way to encourage a live classroom to be restructured to include a theatre, a studio, a play space and a genius bar. There are descriptions for each of these areas that are in line with a typical "Station Rotation Model" of blended learning. This post reflects very positively on the experience of trying this model with adult learners where the instructor reportedly received the best satisfaction ratings they have ever seen for a professional development workshop. Washor, E., Mojkowski, C., & Newsom, L. (2009). At the core of the Apple Store: Images of next generation learning. Phi Delta Kappan, 91(2), 60-63.
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In 2009, I was introduced to a brilliant article Next Generation Learning Environment that posed the question-can the student instructional experience replicate the Apple Store experience? We put the model to the test with adult learners and they, in turn, tried the strategies in their classrooms. Our resulting feedback showed the highest satisfaction ratings I have ever seen for professional development. Learners appreciated choice and the ability to follow an individual learning path.
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The environment was organized around four main learning areas: Theatre, studio, play and genius bar.
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We often used it for a 15 minute introduction or to provide an opportunity for the entire group to dialogue about a topic.
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Students can choose studio sessions to attend or the teacher can assign them based on specific student needs.
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These should be interactive and not full lecture format, often the teacher shares a strategy and the students practice while interacting and sharing their explorations.
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Genius Bar-This is the time when the student works one-on-one with the teacher or facilitator to learn a specific skill or work on a difficult concept.
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Play-This is an area of “designed” exploration. An area with a variety of resources focused on the lesson content is created an students move in and out of the play area as they have time, interest or need.
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This is self directed, exploratory learning yet it should still be focused on the specific learning objectives for the lesson.
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We feared that students who were not directed to one of the other areas would camp out in the play area all of the time. To the contrary, we had to stop and have a brief theatre that gave permission and demonstrated how to “play” with learning.
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It is helpful that the author addresses their initial apprehensions to implementing a play area that will resonate with many common fears regarding students veering off course into domains not related to the intended learning outcomes of the course. They recommend to provide guidance with the learning objectives in these spaces while letting the learners explore options within those parameters which makes good sense. It is also important to note that although they were pleasantly surprised by the amount of enthusiastic findings from this particular station to the point of highlighting them in the theater, these were adult learners they were working with. Personally, I am confident that young students can also reap the benefits of this more autonomous learning posture when wisely shepherded by an expert teacher.
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here are a few tips… 1-Field Trip- Visit an Apple Store as an observer. Look for the different types of learning and experience them for yourself before you implement them.
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The author concludes the post by leaving the reader with a few tips. They recommend to take a trip to an Apple store to get a renewed lay of the experience there. They also recommend to use the resources and curricula at one's fingertips without feeling like they need to be done away with to fit this model. Instead, the recommendation is to find activities that naturally come alongside the curriculum and that could be used in this type of learning environment. Lastly, they encourage teachers to start small by testing it out with just one unit or even just one lesson, just trying it and then to share what they learn in the process. Sounds like an enticing invitation to me.
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2-Use the resources you already have- It is not necessary to throw out your lessons and recreate new. Instead take a fresh look at your lessons and find activities that naturally fit into one of the learning structures. You also might consider making short video lessons that can be used in studios or the play area.
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3-Start small- Do not revamp your entire classroom, instead try it for one lesson or unit and do a couple studios and a play area. This way you can learn and improve as you go.
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Nathan January 17, 2013 It would also be great to have the employee to customer ratio of an Apple store. I’ve seen stores with 20 employee (front & back if house) serving maybe 100-150 people. Piquant idea though about organizing physical & mental spaces.
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This was an insightful comment, but it may have failed to recognize the power of cultivating self-directed learners who can be viewed as both teacher and learner interchangeably. In fact, I seem to even recall this happening in an Apple store where I was able to help out a customer and even a few Apple employees. I have also been helped by other costumers in the Apple Store.
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