La salle ACTIF (France)

The FCL in Petit Quevilly, Normandy, France, was opened in September 2015 at the Collège Denis Diderot for 11-15 year olds, and is called the ‘salle @ctif' (action, creation, technology, innovation, future). The classroom is divided into zones (present, create, investigate, develop, go further) with a green screen in the create zone. All the furniture in the room is on wheels or moveable creating a flexible space for teachers and students to arrange the space according to the needs of the classes. This space focuses on bringing innovative teaching methods into everyday teaching, creating sharing opportunities for students and teachers and promoting experimentation.

The tools in the lab are available for students of all ages in the school and also for younger students of the other local primary schools who wish to participate in joint projects between schools and classes. Teachers of all subjects are welcome to use the room with a special emphasis on encouraging interdisciplinary projects. Training sessions for teachers from schools in the region allow sharing of good practices and discussions around ideas for innovative ways of learning. The smartboard and wi-fi system allow video conferencing with schools and teachers further away and around Europe. 

The projects encourage the discovery of new technologies and allow students to choose the most appropriate tool for their work. Initial projects focus on the creation of flashcodes, collaborative sites and green screen videos. Additional key focus points include helping students to develop speaking competences particularly through the use of the Present zone, and also creating opportunities for students (especially girls) to dive deeper into science and coding. 

The equipment available to the students includes laptops, tablets, smartboard, flip cameras, MP3, thymio robots. Initial funding for the construction of the lab was provided by the school. An architect firm provided advice on layout and design. The school maintenance team adapted unused equipment for the purposes of the lab. Funding requests for equipment have been filed with various educational organizations. 

The @ctif project is recognized as an innovative teaching project (December 2015) and is part of a three-year experimentation programme with local external support. The @ctif project is a candidate for the 2016 National Innovation in Teaching project.    

More information:

Find out more about La salle ACTIF and the process of building a Future Classroom in a K12 school in this webinar.

Contacts:

 

Address:

Collège Denis Diderot

2 Rue de l'Esplanade

76140 Le petit Queviilly

France