Toolset 2 – Future Classroom Modelling

There is no single model for the future; there will be a wide range of different interpretations from traditional to innovative. Technologies create a proliferation of models, methodologies and institutions.

The Future Classroom Model is a self-review tool that enables schools to reflect on their teaching and learning and their capacity for technology-supported innovation.

The model has five dimensions corresponding to key elements at play in the future classroom: learners, teachers, learning objectives and assessment, school capacity, and technology resources. There are five levels for each dimension. As a school moves from one stage to the next, its capacity to be innovative in technology-supported learning and teaching increases. Note, however, that there can be good practice and effective learning at all levels, and that level five does not imply that further innovation is impossible.

The starting point for the scenario development process is to self-assess the school's current level of innovative teaching practices and ICT integration. There are two ways to use the tool: as a self-review exercise (Tool 2.1) or by using the dimensions and level descriptors within the reference guide (Tool 2.2) as a starting point for discussions. Either way, the main purpose is to identify what a school needs to do to have more of the characteristics of the Future Classroom.

You can complete a self-review for one dimension and leave others until later or complete all the dimensions at once. Once a review is completed, the system generates an overall picture of progress towards the Future Classroom and suggests activities to move to the next stage. The next step is to design Future Classroom Scenarios that take account of where you are in the model. The scenarios set out achievable visions for learning and teaching that move a school towards the classroom of the future.

School self-review

By using the online tool (Tool 2.1), and responding to the stimulus questions and statements, teachers and school leaders can situate their school in the matrix. Once the questionnaire is completed, the tool automatically calculates the school's level overall and for each dimension and suggests what should be included in a Future Classroom Scenario in order to develop further. The results and suggestions are a starting point for discussion. They offer data for schools and teachers to develop a strategy to innovate. The school's Innovation Team can use the results for benchmarking and future actions.

Future Classroom Scenario creation

The interactive Future Classroom Model (Tool 2.1) can be used at the start of a Scenario Development workshop and the report produced can then be used as a stimulus to design a scenario.

As a quicker and simpler alternative, the reference guide to the Future Classroom Model (Tool 2.2), can be used to discuss the five levels of innovation, so that there is a collective understanding and agreement on where the school currently is in terms of innovation. This activity could also be completed by small groups of other stakeholders such as teachers and learners.

The aim of the activity is to identify what a school has to include in its Future Classroom Scenario to reach the next level or to explore new ways of teaching and learning. It's advisable not to try and jump levels as the degree of change required may be difficult to achieve.

The tools in this toolset