My Way

This week we analyzed the advantages and disadvantages of open office spaces and cubicle office spaces.  What I found most interesting is how much personal preference factors in to how we view each type of space.  I really enjoyed reading people's comments on the class discussions and seeing how much of our personalities came out in our analyses. While I am a very social person, I tend to prefer working in private, small spaces if I need to get something done.  I do not like any noise at all, not music, not the hum of people talking, nothing.  I know others who work best when they are listening to music or when they have the opportunity to work with others.  I have noticed that teachers typically run their classrooms in the way in which they themselves best function.  If they work better as individuals, they tend to have a lot of independent work in their classrooms.  If they work best in silence, they tend to keep on task time very quiet.  If they work better with others, group work is typically highlighted.  If they work best with noise, there is a hum of student chatter or possibly music being played.  

One of our biggest challenges as educators is branching out and understanding that our way is not the only way.  The way we see things may not be the only way to see things.  The way we learn is not the only way people learn.  We must constantly seek to diversify the way we do things in our classrooms and not fall into a rut of "my way or the highway."