SPACE TYPE
Teacher Collaboration Workspace
Up to 12 Occupants
Dispersed Teacher Collaboration Workspaces give teachers a professional workspace and place of respite to connect with each other, plan, share information and resources, reflect on their teaching and on their students’ progress, research and plan best practices, and help each other help the students. These workspaces enhance teacher prep and teaming with areas for independent and small group work, as well as focus rooms for privacy. Depending on the configuration, it may also include dedicated spaces for socializing, dining, health and wellness. The benefits include expansive thinking, novelty and innovation, and a sense of enjoyment and self-expression.
Activities
Dynamic collaboration
Planning and teaming
Independent work
Socializing
Downtime and relaxation
Teacher Collaboration Workspace
Configuration A
Workspace for 8 teachers, including workstations, teaming table and soft seating corner.
Teacher Collaboration Workspace
Configuration B
Supports more teachers, expanding the space to include kitchenette, larger teaming table or huddle room, small focus rooms for privacy, and larger soft seating zone.
Access
Distribution
Providing each of the Small Learning Communities with a Teacher Collaboration Workspace allows maximum efficiency of space usage—all learning spaces can be used all periods of the day independent from teacher schedule.
Visual Connection
Because Teacher Collaboration Workspaces foster greater communication and collaboration between teachers, a visual connection empowers teachers to model these behaviors for students. A connection to the Indoor Learning Commons supports learner activities via indirect supervision.
Shared Ownership
Ownership of the Teacher Collaboration Workspaces should be shared both by the Small Learning Community as well as all teachers and support staff. Providing a network of workspaces with varying affordances and interior qualities empowers teachers to choose the space that best supports them.
Considerations
General
Use physical walls with transparency to define spaces. A space for up to (8) teachers could be accommodated in 600 SF to include eight workstations, a small conference table and a soft seating corner. In this scenario the kitchenette can be outside of the footprint and shared with students. For larger spaces with more teachers, the kitchenette ca be inside the footprint with a larger conference table or separate conference room, small focus rooms for privacy and larger soft seating zone. A larger Teacher Collaboration Workroom could work well in a renovation of a traditional Teacher Lounge/Workroom/PTA Room in Admin.
Interior Feel
A balance of home-like and modern workplace with zones defined by furniture and finishes such as carpet tiles, tackable acoustic panels and space to hang art and personalize it. The space should include storage and work surfaces to eliminate clutter to avoid stress.
Storage
A standing height counter with lower lockable cabinets and open shelving is recommended as well as a full-height lockable cabinet with adjustable shelves for shared resources.
Furniture
Individual work stations (24” work surface, task chair, overhead shelf, 50” divider panels along the spine as needed, lockable mobile pedestal with cushion top); a conference table for (8) that uses the work station chairs; and soft seating.
Technology
Please see the technology section under Best Practices for a list of items to use as the start of discussion in the programming phase.