Campus Life

New SCALE-UP classroom may define future of active learning

A new learning experience has arrived at the University of Lethbridge with the opening of the first SCALE-UP classroom, a student-centred and active learning environment space designed for student success.

The rooms feature d-shaped tables positioned around the perimeter of the classroom, each with access to a monitor that is mounted on the wall.

The acronym SCALE-UP refers to a Student Centred Active Learning Environment with Upside-down Pedagogies. What it means is a flipping of the way in which content is delivered and utilized, with the goal of promoting a classroom environment focused on active learning.

“Rather than using classroom time to deliver material to students, the SCALE-UP philosophy calls for the majority of the background reading to be done prior to class,” says David Hinger, director of the Teaching Centre. “By doing this, class time can then focus on engaging students in more active approaches through problem-based learning or group-based activities.”

The SCALE-UP room is designed to support these activities. The rooms feature d-shaped tables positioned around the perimeter of the classroom, each with access to a monitor that is mounted on the wall. Students can project their tables’ content onto the wall for the entire group to see, while an instructor, who is positioned at a centre station in the room, also has the ability to display content and can override all monitors.

Students commonly work in teams of three, but also engage in a larger group of nine. Roles, regularly rotated, are assigned within each team, allowing each student to contribute to the group dynamic in a different way.

The initial SCALE-UP room is serving as a pilot project that could shape the way future classrooms are designed. The University is currently in the planning phase of the Destination Project, a transformational endeavour that features the construction of a new Science and Academic Building. The lessons learned from the University’s first SCALE-UP room could create a blueprint for the design of classrooms in the new building.

“The objective of the pilot project is to research the effectiveness of this type of learning environment and to evaluate the learning experience for both students and faculty,” says Hinger. “This project will help to inform the type, size and number of classrooms that will need to be created and, as such, is an investment in the future of learning at the U of L.”

For more information on the SCALE-UP classroom and other experimental classrooms being researched at the U of L, visit the U of L Learning Environment Evaluation website.

Further insight is available by viewing the SCALE-UP classroom grand opening video.