Modern Classroom Layouts: AV Technology for Collaboration

A teacher in front doing most of the talking, students in perfectly aligned rows doing the listening. This is what a classroom layout has looked like for hundreds of years… until now.

Desk arrangements from elementary schools to Universities have taken a break from the tradition and embraced the approach by tech companies and start-ups, which focuses on collaboration as well as encourage the use of technology as a learning tool instead of a distraction.

Usually we didn’t have much say in seating arrangements, either you were put in alphabetical order or a ‘first come, first to pick’ situation where the shy kid would quietly sit in the back and the smart kid with all the answers would dominate the front row, but that would leave students will little room for interaction between them.

Things got worse as passing notes while the teacher turned her back turned into constant distractions with students checking their cell phones underneath their desks.

In a world where technology is an integrated part of our lives and sitting to listen is a struggle, what does an effective modern classroom look like today?

It’s looking more like this:

The use of several huddle spaces in a large room encourages students to work together while also keeping them focused. And instead of confiscating cellphones, students are encouraged to ‘BYOD’ or Bring Your Own Device to share information from their tablet or laptop.

The right AV equipment created a connected classroom, integrating technology as a quick and easy to use tool to enhance the learning experience.  Installing for example large LCD screens, say a 50 inch NEC-E505, placed at the head of each huddle space,  where you can have a clear view of material  being presented by the teacher, no more struggle to read a projection screen or finding text way too small on a video being shown in the front of the room, students have an HD monitor right in front of them where they won’t miss a thing.

Add to that the use of a camera, like a Vaddio Clearshot 10, students have a clear view of their professor and/or classmates, and teachers have a clear view of all the students.
These are just a few of the tools that are currently enhancing classrooms across the world, ready to learn more? Contact your AV Planning experts by calling 800-409-3587, email us at info@avplanners.com.