How To Define Space

President's Corner

WHEN WE TALK about space in education, we often consider that area inside the four walls of the classroom or the spaces that form what we call a school campus. However, as Dysart Unified School District in Arizona began redefining, redesigning and reimagining the teaching and learning environment to meet the needs of the 21st-century learner, we had to rethink our definition of space.

The website OxfordDictionaries.com offers several definitions of space, but the one that really resonates with me is “a continuous area or expanse that is free, available or unoccupied.” This broader definition better applies to the changes we are making in Dysart to meet the needs of our students and personalize their learning experiences.

To drive the changes to support student success and to accomplish our strategic goals, we know we must create the space to innovate. Too often in schools, we think only about physical space, but tweaking physical space is not enough as we redefine, redesign and reimagine the educational system of the 21st century. As we work to personalize education, we need to think beyond the organization of the classroom or the tools we use in that space.

Technology, maker spaces, digital content and other learning resources are tools, but will not necessarily change the teaching and learning environment. Meaningful change requires philosophical and conceptual change. In Dysart’s classrooms, we are dedicated to personalizing learning and define it by reflecting on the concepts of time, place and space. For us, personalized learning is about students owning their learning and about schools providing the spaces that allow students to connect interests with opportunity.

So how do we redefine, redesign and reimagine our systems to meet the needs of tomorrow’s workforce and leaders? We create the space for innovation. To make space to innovate, we have to “exnovate.” What does that mean?

To innovate is to make substantial changes that improve on previous approaches. To exnovate is to stop engaging in practices that no longer meet or support current needs or desired outcomes. To do that in Dysart, we cleared the space and made room for creative solutions and new approaches.

The work to redefine, redesign and reimagine education requires us to think about how we support innovation to create systemic changes in processes and resources, and how we support and inspire individuals within the system to innovate. That may require reducing the level of anxiety associated with change and creating risk-free space for innovation.

But it doesn’t end there; we also must create the space to spotlight successes when we innovate and use those successes to support continued growth and creative change.

Another example of redefining space in this new 3R environment involves strategic planning and establishing a clear mission and vision. In Dysart, our revised strategic plan and our profile of a graduate help us redefine future-ready graduates and provide direction for redesigning the teaching and learning environment to support our goals. As a result, we articulate the purpose of that space and what it will look like for our students.

Of course, space also can be defined as the physical space in our schools. Dysart teachers are creating more flexible learning spaces, changing physical space, while experimenting with individual student pace through self-directed scheduling. This has had an immediate impact for students. (Visit our district’s video library to see how changes to physical space impact student learning.)

How do we define space in Dysart? As we innovate, space will be filled with redefined, redesigned and reimagined concepts for teaching and learning.