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STUDENTS EXPECT MORE

Today’s students desire an active learning environment—expecting more from their classrooms than ever before. They want their surroundings to support co-learning, co-creation and open discussion.

Educators are often faced with a tough choice: promote active learning or organize a classroom to fit as many students as possible. The existing classroom footprint is only so big, and there’s not much flexibility.

STUDENTS USE TECHNOLOGY ALL THE TIME

Today’s Students

• Digital natives
• Comfortable using technology to display, share and present information

Many of Today’s Instructors

• Digital immigrants
• Leveraging technology to support the pedagogy used in the classroom
• There are concerns for those who are untrained and uncomfortable when asked to develop instructional design protocols for truly engaging learners.

Important Classroom Considerations

• Vertical surfaces to display content
• Multiple projection surfaces and whiteboards
• Various configurations

CATS COLLEGE CAMBRIDGE: WHERE INNOVATION MEETS TRADITION

Long known for its 800+-year-old university namesake, the city of Cambridge of today is often described as Europe’s equivalent of Silicon Valley, a center for science and research. Just a short bicycle ride away from the university’s history-steeped campus is a much newer and also celebrated school: CATS College Cambridge, where the city’s inspirational setting is the backdrop for an innovative, forward-facing high school program for international students.

NODE CHANGES THE FACE OF CLASSROOMS AT UNIVERSIDAD MARIANO GALVEZ

Universidad Mariano Galvez de Guatemala (UMG) is a private university in Guatemala. The university is considered to be one of the most prominent higher educational institutions in Central America. Like all higher education institutions, the school has been trying to address the many changes impacting education today: increased student expectations, rapidly changing technology and the adoption of more active and interactive teaching styles designed to engage students, leverage technology and explore more varied educational approaches.

TEACHING THE TEACHERS

Dr. Shimon Amar, president of Ohalo College, a teachers’ college in Katzrin, Israel, knows first hand about employer dissatisfaction with new graduates. By introducing new active learning classrooms and teaching pedagogies at this teachers’ college, Amar and his staff are preparing a new generation of instructors, and ultimately their students, for the 21st century.