by Randall Fielding, AIA

“Classrooms are out! No more classrooms! Don’t build them!”
Roger Schank, Institute for Learning Sciences

Do these sound like the words of a radical outsider? Schank is no outsider to the educational establishment. He is the director of Northwestern University’s Institute for Learning Sciences. He holds three faculty appointments at Northwestern, as John Evans Professor of Computer Science, Education, and Psychology. Previously, he was professor of computer science and psychology at Yale, a visiting professor at the University of Paris and a faculty member at Stanford.

According to Roger, the only way we learn is through “doing,” and failure. Failure gets our attention, it fosters an emotional response, which is essential for learning. “Doing,” and emotional experiences rarely take place in a classroom.

“We should spend about 1/3 of our day at the computer, 1/3 talking with others, and 1/3 making something.”

What are the environmental implications if learners are spending 1/3 of their day at the computer, 1/3 talking with others and 1/3 making something?

Computer-based learning is best suited to an individual work station, not a classroom. Talking or social learning lends itself to small, coffee shop-like spaces, where learners can gather informally. Learning by “doing” can happen in a wide variety of environments, including gardens, science labs, technical shops and dance studios.

Environments for computer-learning, social leaning and active, learning by “doing,” need not be located on school grounds. Museums, hospitals, businesses, parks and private homes are all environments which can support learning. The table below includes a list of non-classroom environments which can facilitate a balanced cycle of learning activities:

• Library carrel
• 4-10 student workstation
• Private workstation
• Hall niche with laptop
• Garden bench with laptop
• Home workstation at employer office

• Small conference room
• Large meeting room
• Media resource area
• Hallway (standing)
• Cafeteria or snack area
• Garden steps, bench
• Entry hall
• Parking lot
• Home

• Tech or science lab
• Shop
• Garden
• Dance studio
• Playing field
• Hospital
• Retail store
• Professional Office
• Museum
• Zoo
Learning by Doing Active Zone

Roger Schank’s ideas regarding learning activities and cycles were tested and refined while developing training programs for private industry. Anderson Consulting, an international leader in business consulting, spends over $200 million each year on training it s project managers. While Schank was teaching at Yale University, Anderson offered him 30 million dollars to develop a program to “fix computer learning.” According to Schank, this did not interest him, instead, he told Anderson he wanted to “fix education.” Anderson brought Schank to Chicago to help found Northwestern University’s Institute for Learning Sciences. ILS found that what was wrong with corporate training programs was that they were modeled after school and university learning models. The ILS steered Anderson away from the traditional classroom model and towards a “virtual learning” model.

* A good example of this can be see at the High School of Environmental Studies (Zoo School), In Apple Valley, MN, or the design for the Sharm El Sheikh School, Egypt, both planned by Bruce Jilk. These plans utilize 10-12 student work groups arranged around a flexible, technology-rich resource area. For details: Sharm El Sheikh

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