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Technology-Enabled Teaching >> If You Build It, We Should Come
6/28/2005
Also, the use of varying ceiling heights and soffits, while useful in some respects, can, without careful coordination, make the projector-screen relationship problematic. Another important part of help-ing to create a projector-capable classroom is the “switching” of lights (addition of on/off or dim capability). Says Campbell at MCTC: “Instructors really want the ability to turn off lights above the screen, for instance.” Switching only the lights directly in front of the screen d'es two things: It prevents direct spill of light onto the screen, effectively raising the screen-image contrast ratio and apparent image quality by improving black levels, and it allows the instructor to keep the rest of the lights in the room on for notetaking and so that the instructor can continue to see and be seen.Can everybody hear? Classroom acoustics get a lot of attention, but are often subject to concerns beyond that of what is best for learning and teaching. “Lighting and acoustics have a great impact on the way students can learn, but they tend to be value-engineered out of projects,” notes Fitzgerald at Minnesota. “The classroom is a sophisticated teaching and learning system; basic design elements need to be considered from the outset.” This is especially important when class sessions involve distance education interactivity or are recorded for video-ondemand playback; the room needs to be quiet with respect to the noise generated by the HVAC system, and nearby plumbing and electrical transformer systems. Noise criteria specifications can be used to convey to the architectural team what the acceptable amount of noise would be from the building systems. The other main source of intruding noise is from environments outside the classroom: adjoining classrooms, hallways, other floors above and below the classrooms, and the outdoors. Windows, doors, walls, and floors need to be carefully considered in terms of how they contribute to the learning environment by shutting out distractions. Finally, reverberation is a factor that needs to be controlled in large classrooms: The RT60 (or reverberation) rating needs to be appropriate for the type and size of the instructional space.
Successful Approaches
Get technologists involved early. Campus technologists and building designers agree that the most important approach to integrating campus architecture with technology-enabled teaching is to get the campus technology people involved early in the process. There are at least three main benefits in early involvement by the campus technology team(s):
1) Being in sync with the program. This means that the design team explains the intended use of the various spaces so that the technology groups can identify the possible technologies that will be needed in the space. Often, technologists are merely handed a set of blueprints and told to add their “stuff.
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