McGill.CA / Teaching and Learning Services (TLS) / Teaching and learning spaces / Renovated learning spaces

Macdonald-Harrington G-01

AV Instructions

Alignment with Principles for Designing Teaching and Learning Spaces

Academic Challenge

Promote individual, active engagement with content.

Layout

Oversized tablet work surfaces attached to chairs provide ample space for classroom materials (e.g., notebooks, laptops, textbooks). Mobile furniture permits rapid room reconfiguration for different learning activities.

Acoustics: Acoustic design mitigates distraction from outside and inside sources.

Furniture

Chairs on wheels permit students to work individually or in groups.

Technologies

Access to resources: Learning Management System, internet (via student laptops). Power outlets allow students to keep their computers charged during class.

Lighting & Colour

Appropriate natural and overhead lighting for individual work.

Photograph of classroom in Macdonald Harrington G01 building

 

Learning with Peers

Promote active engagement with one another.

Layout

A flexible layout permits students to collaborate with one another and configure the space in multiple ways, moving easily from small group (groups of 2-4 students where the chairs’ tablets together make a table surface) to larger group activities.

Acoustics: Sound zones support multiple simultaneous conversations among students.

Furniture

Comfortable chairs on wheels permit students to turn to discuss and work with those next to or behind them, and allow for reconfiguration of the classroom to support a variety of collaborative learning approaches.

Technologies

Shared workspaces include multiple blackboards.

Lighting & Colour

Appropriate natural and overhead lighting gives ample light for group work; green chairs bring an energizing accent colour to this space.

Photograph of classroom in Macdonald Harrington G01 building

Experiences with Faculty

Promote interaction and communication.

Layout

Instructor is not limited to the “front of the room” and instead has access to all students due to easily mobile furniture.

Acoustics: Sound zones ensure that not only are students able to hear the instructor, but that the instructor is also able to hear the students.

Furniture

The podium provides ample space for all instructional materials, and has a height adjustment for accessibility and convenience. Mobile furniture for students supports different teaching strategies.

Technologies

A data projector permits display of different learning materials.

Lighting & Colour

Brightly coloured chairs help to provide a welcoming ambiance in the room.

Photograph of classroom in Macdonald Harrington G01 building

Contributions to the Campus Environment

Classrooms that incorporate elements of active and collaborative learning are part of a vision for a variety of flexible campus learning spaces. This classroom is designed for all populations using the space: well-lit, with a standardized room control panel that simplifies instructors’ use of equipment in classrooms across campus. IT is consistent with teaching and learning needs, and durable furniture contributes to sustainability efforts. Both physical and virtual affordances help maximize High Impact Practices (HIPs) for student learning within and beyond this classroom.

McGill University is on land which has served and continues to serve as a site of meeting and exchange amongst Indigenous peoples, including the Haudenosaunee and Anishinabeg nations. Teaching and Learning Services acknowledges and thanks the diverse Indigenous peoples whose footsteps mark this territory on which peoples of the world now gather. This land acknowledgement is shared as a starting point to provide context for further learning and action.

Back to top