facresroom2010

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Background
Barton Elementary school is located in San Bernadino, California. Barton Elementary is in the middle of a huge transition as part of being identified as one of the bottom 5 percent schools in the State of California. Part of the transition includes new administration as well as restructuring the current programs in place. One of the first changes that the new administration recommended was the creation of a centralized resource room. Barton Elementary has many resources that are underused and lost amongst the shuffle. The school needs a place for teachers to access materials and resources that are available. The school is applying for a grant that would greatly increase the amount of resources available to teachers and students. In order to benefit the most from this grant and the resources that it will provide, a resource room is needed.







Stakeholders:

 * School Principal
 * Teachers

Optimal:

 * Place to house: teaching materials, consumable workbooks, extra text books, copy machines, lamination machine and Circut cutting machine and teaching supplies.
 * Office space for 3 support staff members. (materials clerk, academic coach, program facilitator)
 * Meeting space for small meetings.
 * Teacher work area for creating classroom displays and projects.
 * A place that will foster a feeling of school community amongst staff
 * Organized location for new resources
 * A location for entering data into a district data base

Actual:

 * Materials dispersed through out the school
 * 3 desks placed in the space
 * No place for small meetings
 * Room became a dumping ground for all unwanted materials and items in classrooms
 * No one would want to spend any time in the disorganized mess.
 * The required power sources and networking ports.

After speaking with the school principal we were able to get a more clear understanding of the expected use of the room. The school is moving towards many changes. The new principal discovered that the disorganized manner of school resources and materials was having a detrimental affect on student achievement as well as teacher performance. The desire of the stake holders was to gather and display all of the necessary instructional materials in one central location. Previously there was no creative workspace for teachers to use, the creative materials were located in the teacher lunch room that also doubled as an equipment room and a storage space for odds and ends.

After talking to the principal we surveyed teachers asking them what they would like in a resource room. The results of the survey were in line with the expectations from the administrator except they added that they would like a place to site and socialize and enjoy the atmosphere of the room. We feel that this will fulfill the principals desire for a more united staff.

Design Concept and Recommendations
The purpose of this room is to provide faculty with the equipment and resources to creatively work. This room will house all supplies and machines for creating bulletin boards, bound books, classroom projects, and various other classroom products. There will be a full time clerk, whose job description includes making copies, distributing classroom supplies, and assisting faculty with the room’s equipment.

Zone 1: Welcoming Entry
The faculty workroom is broken into smaller clusters to promote a sense of connection and personal identification with the space. Upon entering the room guests are greeted with warm tones on the floor and walls used in combination with comfortable furnishings give a sense of comfort in this area.

Zone 2/3: Copy Clerk Station, Teacher Computer and Storage
This is a specialized work area designed for efficiency. The open shelving in this zone houses all teacher materials such as consumable workbooks, and extra textbooks. A desk is included for a staff member who will be in this room full time. Her duties will include checking out teacher materials and making copies. The mobile computer cart is located here as well as grading/Scantron equipment.

Zone 4: Academic Coach and Meeting Area
The academic coach’s desk is located here. Partition walls are used to aid in noise reduction and privacy. The meeting area will consist of a table and enough seating for 6 to 8 people. There will need to be the mobility for various configurations depending on the meeting purpose. The mobile computer cart can be easily moved into this area for meetings.

Zone 5: Creative Work and Storage Area
This area is designed with teachers needs in mind. It includes a large counter height table for teachers to complete projects on. Cabinets house supplies, and counter tops have all the necessary equipment including a laminator, Cricut cutting machine, binding machine, poster maker, etc. The facilitator’s desk is located in this area.

//**Rough Floor Plan**//




//**Design Rationale**//
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Finishes
=Computing=

Assessing the Effectiveness of the Space
Several stakeholders have given input on proposed use of the space. In addition, one of our team members, Mario Jacquez, personally uses the space and understands how the Faculty Resource Room is utilized.

There are four different ways that we plan to assess the effectiveness of the space: surveys of users, recommendation forms and focus group meetings.

Observations
Informal observations will occur daily. These include the use of the equipment which can be observed in the workroom but can also be seen on classroom walls. Teachers can have laminated projects, posters, charts, tables, and Cricut designs posted in their rooms. Staff members should use this place for formal gatherings like grade level meetings, but it should also be an informal gathering place that fosters communication and a sense of community among the staff.

Survey of Users
Once a month, surveys will be sent out to collect information on how the room is serving the needs of each staff member who uses it. The survey will include questions about whether the room is meeting the specific user's needs, whether each staff member has all of the equipment he or she needs, whether there is an adequate amount of light and air, whether the user feels comfortable having small meetings in this room and whether the room is aesthetically pleasing. In addition, the survey will ask whether the user would like to voice his or her opinion in the monthly focus group meeting.

Recommendation Forms
Recommendation forms are meant to afford users the opportunity to give feedback regarding the effectiveness of the room and are separate from the survey. Recommendation forms will be available in the room at all times and users can write down their ideas about how the room can be improved or any other ideas the user may have. Since surveys will only be administered on a monthly basis, the recommendation form allows users to give feedback at the moment they think of it. A user can remain anonymous or include his or her name.

Focus Group Meetings
The focus group will consist of the stakeholders who initially gave input on proposed use and organization of the space. This focus group will meet once a month and review the surveys of the room's regular users and any input received from the recommendation forms. After a reasonable period of time, the focus group will make changes to the room based on feedback from the staff.

Our Accompanying Electronic Presentation


[].
====Daggett, W.R, Cobble, J. E, & Gertel, S. J. Color in an Optimum Learning Environment ( March 2008). International Center for Leadership in Education.====

[|]
Fielding, R. Learning, Lighting, and Color. (2006). Professional Lighting Design Magazine.