A physical place for virtual education

The coffee shop at Holland (MI) Christian High School

I am not one of those who wish to see the physical school disappear.

I am also a deep believer in the concept that contemporary (and future) technologies allow all the walls of the school to "fall," and that that is a good thing.

Where education really happens at Michigan State's College of Education

I was on Twitter with Eric Sheninger @nmhs_principal the other morning, and we were discussing this, because, as I think I said, as much as I like virtual learning, there is something essential about looking into the eyes of learners, of watching their body language, of touching them when they need that bit of humanity.

A long time ago I went to a "school without walls" - a free, open, project and passion-based high school. There was no required attendance. Most students took no classes in any given semester. I got English credit for working with the late night news guy on WVOX radio. Social Studies credit for watching and interviewing the homeless in Grand Central overnight. Others worked at the local hospital, or the city's parks department greenhouse, or, wherever.

But we had a school. We had a place to go. And almost all of us came there pretty consistently. We came there to hang out. We came there to talk. We came there to use the school's sports facilities. We came there because our girlfriends or boyfriends might be there...

But while we were there our teachers saw us, and talked to us, and sensed how we were doing. They pulled us into conversations. They might even make a suggestion or two. And while we were there we talked, and overheard. We were all doing different things and we talked about those things. I never read a book in high school, but I heard all about Beowulfand Steppenwolf, The Teachings of Don Juanand The French student revolt, American Notes for General Circulationand Only Yesterday: An Informal History of the 1920s, and many more. My math was mostly related to betting on football games (not kidding) but I would listen to debates about math theories from friends, and for the first time in my life, began to be interested.

The couch in The White Room, late 1970s

Now, our space was truly awful. It was supposed to be the "regular" school's third cafeteria, but not many kids stuck around for lunch, so it wasn't needed, and they gave us this huge white space - we called it "The White Room" - with the window area blocked off by a series of "classrooms" with walls that stopped a meter short of the ceiling. So we dragged a couch in, and a few chairs. Marked off a hopscotch game on the floor. Put up a 7-up clock. It stayed incredibly ugly, but... we still came.

Because that physical commons was important, and it still is.

Commons Area at New Tech Academy, Kent County, Michigan

So, I still want schools. That physical place is important. But I don't want ugly. I want beautiful and flexible and interactive. Kids should be free to come and go, but I'd like them to want to stay. Kids should have the tools they need there, and access to food and drink and other "comforts." And the faculty needs to be there too - not for supervision - but for interaction as students need and want.

So, start with effective wireless capabilities in your "Physical Space for Virtual Learning," and make sure 4G comes in well. Then build a Tool Crib of devices, ready to grab. Windows and Mac laptops, fully equipped and fully accessible. iOS and Android and WebOS Tablets. TabletPCs. Have lots of ways to hook those and student-owned devices up to big screens or projectors. Then make sure you have powerful desktops with great scanners and printers, production centers for student creativity.

Schiphol Airport Park, Amsterdam, Nederlands

Have lots of different kinds of seating. Tables and floor space for collaboration, and spaces - like music practice rooms - for solitude or quiet. The furniture should all be movable, and probably whimsical in some ways... no need for this to be a cold space.

"10 Forward" at Mozilla

And there needs to be place for play. Put an Xbox 360 in there (with Kinect), have real television availability, don't want to miss big football/soccer matches or great movies.

All the best companies know that a "work environment" works best when there is variety to the space, variety to the time, and variety in staff interaction. The same will be true at school. Staring doesn't usually help us, widening our vision does.

There are some other important ideas: Design so that lighting varies, bright, dim, warm, cool. The idea of uniform room lighting, pulled from turn-of-the-20th-century German factory design, has never been appropriate for human use. Our eyes get to relax and refocus when we move from bright to dim and vise-versa. Design so that noise levels can vary as well. Not everyone needs auditory chaos, but many do. serve everyone. Don't pick "50 year" furniture. Schools are always buying "stuff that lasts," and paying a fortune for it. And in many places we're stuck with these great deals from 1962. But human societies change, and our knowledge changes, and so we want our spaces to change. You'll probably do better going to Ikea and re-furnishing every other year.

And if you can't eat around it, or drink around it, just don't buy it. Education is messy - if your carpet or upholstery can't be easily cleaned, you've bought the wrong stuff.

Finally, think what you can bring to the space. Think of MeetUps linked to any possible subject of mutual interests. Hold Hack Days geared to music or games or teaching or anything. And invite the community in - local developers, local talents, local artists, writers, baristas, chefs, all while bringing yourselves to the community - never be afraid to UStream exciting stuff that is happening.

A tech meet up in a pub, how learning happens in this century

Virtual education should not be "the end of school." Rather, it is one great opportunity to re-imagine school. Please, don't make your alternative to the boring classroom a bunch of kids sitting home alone.

- Ira Socol