Future Classroom Lab (FCL)
Created by European Schoolnet, the Future Classroom Lab (FCL) is an inspirational, fully equipped, reconfigurable, teaching and learning environment in Brussels, challenging visitors to rethink the role of pedagogy, technology and design in their classrooms. In the Future Classroom Lab, visitors can explore:
- The competences and roles for students’ and teachers’ 21st century teaching and learning.
- Different learning styles and more personalised, active learning.
- Learning environment design and how it can impact student engagement and classroom interaction.
- Current and emerging technology to support all of the above and societal trends affecting education.
FCL Malta – Our Interactive Learning Spaces
Our MoE was approached by EUN to appoint a Lead Ambassador in December 2017 who started attending F2F meeting with other Ambassadors from various European countries in 2018.
The new Digital Literacy Centre in Hamrun (Malta) has four interactive classrooms equipped on the FCL concept.
Our objectives at FCL Malta:
- Promote the FCL concept with School leaders to encourage them to invest in an Interactive Learning Space in their school.
- Provide COPE sessions for schools who would like to adopt the FCL/Interactive Learning concept.
- Invite teachers and co-teach within this innovative and flexible environment
- Have these learning spaces available for educators to come and experiment innovative teaching in an environment that fosters flexibility, creativity and collaboration.
- Host foreign visitors and organise days with workshops/activities eg Erasmus+ projects
- Organise activities for students and teachers working on projects eg Coding projects, eTwinning projects.
The Pedagogical aspect of the FCL
The Future Classroom Lab is formed by six different learning spaces. Each space highlights specific areas of learning and teaching and helps to rethink different points: physical space, resources, changing roles of student and teacher, and how to support different learning styles.
All together the spaces form a unique way to visualise a new, holistic view on teaching. The zones reflect what good teaching should be about: being connected, being involved, and being challenged. Education should result in a unique learning experience, engaging as many types of students as possible.
In the future classroom, students are encouraged to discover for themselves; they are given the opportunity to be active participants rather than passive listeners. In the Investigate zone, teachers can promote inquiry- and project-based learning to enhance students’ critical thinking skills. The flexible furniture supports this concept, and the physical zone can be reconfigured quickly to enable work in groups, pairs, or individually. New technology gives an added value to the research by providing rich, versatile and real-life data, and also by providing tools to examine and to analyse.
The future classroom allows the students to plan, design, and produce their own work – for example, a multimedia production or a presentation. In the Create zone, simple repetition of information is not enough: students work with real knowledge-building activities. Interpretation, analysis, teamwork, and evaluation are important parts of the creative process.
The students of the classroom of the future will need a different set of tools and skills to present, deliver, and obtain feedback on their work. The presentation and delivery of the pupils’ work has to be factored into the planning of lessons, allowing students to add a communicative dimension to their work. Sharing of the results can be supported by a dedicated area for interactive presentations that, through its design and layout, encourages interaction and feedback. Online publication and sharing are also encouraged, allowing the students to become accustomed to using online resources, and familiarising themselves with the principles of eSafety.
In the future classroom, the teacher can use technology to enhance interactivity and student participation in traditional learning spaces. One challenge of the traditional classroom setting is getting all students actively involved; technology enables each and every pupil to contribute. Solutions vary from individual devices like tablets and smartphones, to interactive whiteboards and interactive learning content.
Future classroom learning places much importance on the ability to collaborate with others. The teamwork takes place while investigating, creating and presenting. The quality of collaboration is composed of ownership, shared responsibility and decision-making process within groups. ICT can help to create a richer way of communication and collaboration. Collaboration in the 21st century classroom is not limited to face-to-face and synchronous communication, but can take place online and also asynchronously.
The Develop zone is a space for informal learning and self-reflection. Students can carry out school work independently at their own pace, but they can also learn informally while concentrating on their own interests outside of the formal classroom settings both at school and at home. By providing ways to foster self-directed learning, the school supports learners’ self-reflection and meta-cognition skills. The school encourages its students towards true lifelong learning by acknowledging and validating informal learning.
For more information of the Future Classroom Lab concept, please visit:
The Future Classroom Ambassadors Digest gives an update of the activities carried out in each country.