Appalachia Leadership Lab
Capstone: Classroom Redesign

I’ve always believed that creating a warm and caring learning environment was an essential component to education. Even in college, before having my own classroom, my soul burst with passion on this topic. Now that I am a teacher in the 21st century, with a room filled of 6 and 7 year old “21st century kids” I am even more convinced! In 2015 our children should spend an 8 hour school day in a room that looks like it belongs in 2015. However, so many of our classrooms across the country look a little 1915ish. The desks are in rows. The teacher is in the front. Sometimes the teacher needs to be in the front. But, some of the best learning takes place when the teacher is somewhere in the middle, facilitating.

Today we live in a world of collaboration and innovation. We literally have the world at the tip of our fingertips (or our thumbs). In one click we can communicate with someone on the other side of the globe. Shouldn’t our classrooms be the same way? Creating innovative learning environments are capable of becoming very expensive. But, there are some easy, accessible and realistic fixes out there. It just may require a little extra time and TLC! It is possible. It can be done. Yes, I’m on my high horse. It must be a Kentucky Thing.☺

So, for my capstone I am in the process of researching 21st Century Classroom Redesign with the intention of offering my own Professional Development to fellow colleagues. I’m hoping others will share in my beliefs on this topic and begin thinking “out of the box” for ways they might make their classrooms more innovative and personalized for our amazing children of today! Some might even jump up on the horse with me. It’s high, but totally worth the jump.