Wendy Crocker, a curriculum and e-learning specialist in Western’s Teaching Support Centre, demonstrates a smart board to Cohen Dishke Hondzel, 3, and his mother Catharine, a research and curriculum development officer at Huron University College, in the new Western Active Learning Space (WALS).
WALS, a general-use classroom located in the basement of the University Community Centre (UCC 66), is the result of a Productivity and Innovation Fund grant, valued at roughly $250,000, from the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities. The room features an open-concept space in which there is no ‘front’ or ‘back’ of the room. Six tables are evenly dispersed, set up around short-throw projectors and boards. Each table has its own laptop and accommodates up to six students.
The classroom also features an adjacent observation room, where research can be conducted on pedagogy and technology enhanced learning.
“What makes WALS special is the focus on student-centred learning and collaboration and a shift in pedagogy from a traditional lecture style to students being involved in their own learning,” Crocker said. “Students are on much like a teacher is on. There’s very much an expectation that you’re going to participate.”