In the first model, each teacher has a classroom. The teacher gives instruction exclusively in that room, and no other teacher uses that room. In this model, the room can be a rich environment, tailored precisely to the curriculum: posters, bulletin boards, bookshelves, and filing cabinets support learning.
In the second model, teachers change rooms several times a day. The rooms are minimalistic, with few pictures on the wall, and little or no storage in the room. The learning space is generic.
While these two different models lead to achievement, there is a third model which leads to disaster: the attempt to blend these two models meets with failure. Either all the teachers have their rooms, and the rooms belong to the teachers, or none of the teachers have their own rooms, and no room belongs to a teacher.
This third model fails because it sends a mixed message to the student. Consistency among the school's teachers on this point is crucial, even if they diverge on other matters.
To schedule a building, then, administrators should bear in mind that if some of the teachers are scheduled such that they have their own rooms, then all the teachers should be scheduled that way. Conversely, it is also good practice to schedule the building such that none of the teachers have their own rooms.
[Andrew Smith is a German Teacher at Pioneer High School]
