If you’ve been a student during the last handful of decades then you know the sound of metal desk legs being dragged against linoleum. Educators have long asked students to free their desks from tidy rows to work in collaborative groups. Now architects and school districts are building spaces where group work is the default setting.
At Thrive Public School in Linda Vista, classrooms are clustered in two’s, with large barn doors between them. Teachers can open the doors to combine classes for certain lessons. A small, office-like space that can be accessed by both classrooms offers another place for students to learn. The idea is that students learn at different paces, and in different ways, so they need different spaces, too.
