LOUNGE learning

As you can see in the post below, most of the kids wanted a lounge space for learning. This High school in Ørestad in Denmark by 3XN is one of the first to fulfill new educational visions regarding subjects, organization and teaching systems.
Communication, interaction and synergy are the key issues behind the design of the space. Interpretation of openness and flexibility regarding team sizes, varying from the individual over groups to classes and assemblies opens up to new collective learning. It also reflects international tendencies aiming at achieving a more dynamic and life-like studying environment and introducing information technology (aka laptops/cell phones/ipods) as a main tool. This also instigates and enforces the students’ abilities gradually to take responsibility for own learning, being able to work in teams as well as working individually.
This is by far one of the most engaging schools I have ever seen.

Kids say the darndest things...

Sir Ken Robinson is a brilliant British author who has published many books some of which entitled- Learning Through Drama, All Our Futures: Creativity, Culture and Education (The Robinson Report) , and his recent book The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything. I totally agree with his mentality. Education should include everything. We can just focus on math and English and science and disregard everything else. Math is in EVERYTHING. Teaching children such would only help them learn. Same thing with science and English. You need to learn how to COMMUNICATE. English is part of that, so is art, so is dance. Theater is English class.
Some of the points in this talk that I'd like to highlight are the following::
All kids have tremendous talent and we squander them pretty ruthlessly.
Creativity is as important as literacy and we should treat it with the same urgency.
We may not see this future but our children will and its our job to help them make something of it.

We have to focus on interactive learning and interactive teaching. How do we then design for these spaces for amalgamated learning lets say. You have to find what you like and go for it. But where is the platform for children to find their niche and then follow it to the ends of the earth.
We really have to not direct children but help them to find out what it is inside them that they can do.