Week 6: Changing Learning Environments

Strengths and Weaknesses in SJI’s Physical Learning and Teaching Spaces

Background: St Joseph’s Institution (SJI) was founded in Singapore in 1852 as a secondary school for boys. By the mid-1980s, the school building was deemed an unsatisfactory environment for conducive teaching and learning as the building was situated along Singapore’s busy Bras Basah Road and was literally just 50 metres from the noisy main road and the classrooms were crowded. Classrooms were of traditional design (Warger & Dobbin, 2009) possibly fitted out to facilitate De La Salle's simultaneous method of instruction (Battersby,1949; Wright, 2000) now synonymous with the traditional classroom setting.

The old Bras Basah Campus very near the main road

In 1988, SJI relocated to a more spacious campus at Malcolm Road. Here the physical learning environment was a great improvement from the 1852 building. New and improved modern facilities included computer labs, a spacious library, special interactive classrooms and school-wide Wifi accessibility.

SJI Library: A comfortable learning environment

In 2013, it was decided that more classrooms were needed to be added to the existing campus because of “an increase in student population from 1,600 to 2,200 students” (Surbana, n.d. p. A2) as the new International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme would necessitate this. Presently, besides building more classrooms, the decision was taken to redevelop the whole campus. Building plans include refurbishment of the existing building as well as adding new educational blocks for the students of the International Baccalaureate Programme based on the philosophy of “[creating] a sustainable and environmentally sound design, in tune with the Global Energy & Emission Concerns” (Surbana, n.d.).

Surbana Artists' impressions of the new campus

Considerations:

I am very impressed by the process taken by the school in consulting the various stakeholders (teachers, parents and alumni) in the conceptualising of the new school building.

However, it might be good also to consider the views of the students seeing that they will be the ones benefiting most from the new building. As it is likely that the student of the future will be a networked student (Jonassen, Howland, Moore & Marra, 2003), IT support needs to be reflected clearly in the planning of a new campus building.

Also, as the new campus will be a teaching-learning space, perhaps more emphasis should be placed on the requirements/ desires of teachers. It would be good to allow teachers a ‘free hand’ in generating ideas for maximising the teaching-learning experience in the classroom. By extension, perhaps each teacher could be given a budget for purchasing items needed for achieving this objective.

For further consideration

With the changing nature of the student, what learning environment (virtual or real) might be detrimental and/or beneficial to the student and are these environments economically viable to administrators of educational institutions? Has there been research into the effects of home schooling/ distance education (non brick and mortar type education) on the learner and the educator?

References

Battersby, W.J. (1949). De La Salle: A pioneer of modern education. London, New York: Longmans, Green.

Jonassen, D.H., Howland, J., Moore, J. & Marra,R.M. (2003). Learning to solve problems with technology: A constructivist perspective. (2nd ed.). Prentice Hall

St Joseph's Institution. (2009). Open House day. Retrieved from http://www.sji.edu.sg/subpage.php?id=465

St Joseph's Institution. (2009). ArtScience Workshop. Retrieved from http://www.sji.edu.sg/subpage.php?id=307

St Joseph's Institution. (2009). Tan Ser Yung. Retrieved from http://www.sji.edu.sg/subpage.php?id=351

Surbana.(n.d.) Architectural Report

Warger, T. & Dobbin, G. (2009). Learning Environments: Where space, technology, and culture converge. Educause.

Wright, G. (2000). John Baptist de La Salle: a 17th century educational innovator. Philippines: De La Salle University Press