The fall semester for most colleges in the United States is in full swing and students are getting back into the routine of reading textbook chapters and studying for tests. Most people who have graduated from a higher education facility remember learning in a traditional lecture hall with every student facing the professor. Although, times are changing and classrooms are shifting from a lecture based teaching curriculum to a more a collaborative and interactive environment. If you are involved in the higher education design process, there are several classroom design trends you should follow to improve the environment for students.
Stay up to date on the latest classroom design trends in higher education.
Technology Integration
The days of students learning and studying from a traditional textbook are over with most people transitioning to their laptops or tablets go over material from class. A college classroom needs to adapt to students dependence on technology with an interactive whiteboard so that professors can lead a discussion with digital text. Students can follow the lesson by directly watching the professor or looking at their laptop. Since most students take notes on their electronic devices, classrooms should be equipped with outlets nears desks and USB ports in those outlets.
Flexibility is Key
Traditional lecture halls with students stacked up over each other are going to be seen less and less as years go by and classroom design improves. Higher education design is moving towards easily transformed and reconfigured learning spaces. The furniture and technology should be able to be moved around based on the student’s needs. If students need to work in groups and collaborate on a project, then the furniture should be reconfigured easily to achieve that goal.
Reimagining the Campus Library
Since colleges are transitioning to digital textbooks and books in general, students are not using libraries in the traditional fashion anymore. It is rare that students will go to their campus library to check out a book. Now, libraries are being transformed into lounge spaces where people can work on projects for class. If you go into a college campus library today, you will find many areas that are sectioned off as work spaces students to collaborate.
Office Furniture from Glover Furniture Group
Glover Furniture and Design Group is a woman-owned and operated business that serves the Delmarva region with educational, institutional, and commercial furniture and design services. For information on how we can optimize your classroom or office design, give us a call at 1-800-966-9016 or contact us online. To see examples of our work and stay in touch, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and Pinterest.
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