schoolroom n : a room in a school where lessons take place [syn: classroom]

English

Noun

1. A classroom, a room in a school used for instruction.

A classroom is a room in which teaching or learning activities can take place. Classrooms are found in educational institutions of all kinds, including public and private schools, corporations, and religious and humanitarian organizations. The classroom attempts to provide a safe space where learning can take place uninterrupted by other distractions.

Typical Equipment

Most classrooms have a large writing surface where the instructor or students can share notes with other members of the class. Traditionally, this was in the form of a blackboard but these are becoming less common in well-equipped schools, and are replaced by flipcharts, whiteboards and interactive whiteboards. Many classrooms also have TVs, maps, charts, books, monographs and LCD projectors for presenting information and images from a computer.

Types of classrooms

For lessons that require specific resources or a vocational approach different types of classrooms both indoors and outdoors are used. This is known as situated learning. Classrooms can range from small groups of 5 or 6 to big classrooms with hundreds of students. A large class room is also called a lecture room. A few examples of classrooms are:-

• Computer lab
• Food Technology room
• Science labs, although these aren't really classrooms they are laboratories
• Gymnasium

Challenges to the Classroom

While the classroom is clearly the dominant setting for learning, the flexibility of classroom instruction is often called into question. Instead of isolating learners in a classroom, many teachers are experimenting with integrating learning into a student's daily life. New learning technologies and mobile devices make it possible for learning to take place at any time, at any place, and (perhaps most importantly) at any pace that the learner desires. Web 2.0 technologies (social networking) that are intended specifically for education, such as Classroomn.com, allow educators to integrate technology with learning.

According to the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD), more than 40% of corporate training now takes place online and not in a classroom.

External links

• Classroom Management Plan at SchoolMarm.org
• Classroom Design for the future
• Classroom Seating Plans Keep students with good relationships together and bad relationships apart.
• Productive Groups Commercial software that allows teachers to create productive groups of learners with good relationships in the same group, while those with bad relationships are kept in different groups. It also helps to cluster people of similar ability together or spread them out.