Medium-Scale project - Mark Rutherford

Redeveloping a library space to prepare learners not yet ready for independent learning

Mark Rutherford is a Specialist Arts College and a member of the North East Bedford Learning Trust. They have been collaborating with two Middle Schools and five Lower Schools to develop personalised learning across the schools in a consistent and coherent way.

Mark Rutherford is a Specialist Arts College and a member of the North East Bedford Learning Trust. They have been collaborating with two Middle Schools and five Lower Schools to develop personalised learning across the schools in a consistent and coherent way.

In September 2003 the school overhauled the KS4 curriculum to enhance student choice and personalisation. The number of vocational and applied courses was increased and more intervention strategies were put in place. Mark Rutherford sees education as a life long experience that gives equal importance to positive values, attitudes and beliefs as to the acquisition of knowledge, skills and ideas.

The school aims to develop students to become decent human beings with a sense of personal worth and to value the rights of others. Education thrives in an atmosphere of positive encouragement where school, home and community work together to support learning.

Personalised Learning at Mark Rutherford
Through a variety of stakeholder activities information was gathered regarding the meaning of Personalised Learning at the school. This information was distilled down into the 'Focused Theme' for Mark Rutherford Upper School, the delivery of which will be supported by the Mark Rutherford Space for Personalised Learning and a programme of change management. The focused theme is:

'To develop independent, confident and socially responsible young people through the use of flexible learning opportunities designed to build the experiences, understanding and skills through which they can define and realise their own success.'

Project Aims
The MRUS project is to identify the learning 'vehicles' which will help deliver the Focused Theme of Personalised Learning and through this process understand where and how space can best support these vehicles.

Personalised Learning vehicles
Working with the Project team the school identified four learning 'vehicles' to support their Focused Theme, along with the activities and group sizes that would best support each 'vehicle' as shown below:

Design principles
The design team, in continued collaboration with the school, developed design principles to support the learning 'vehicles' as below:

- Shared enclosed office space to manage learning areas
- Storage and display organised to maximise useful space
- Flexible spaces with visual links, with minor boundary control to enable the 'vehicles' to operate in adjacent spaces
- Enclosed separate small meeting and interview rooms
- Medium technology provision with ability to upgrade in the near future
- Locations for the 'vehicles' to be identified with different furniture settings

Project location and Design Concept

1 - Independent Learning: Group size 1 - 6
Researching, Thinking

2 - Support Services: Group size 1 - 12
Presenting, Group working, Researching, Mentoring, Listening

3 - Class time: Group size 15 - 30
Presenting, Group working, thinking, Performing, Debating, Listening.

4 - Enhanced Curricular Activities: Group size 30 - 60
Presenting, Group working, Thinking, Performing, Debating, Listening.

The existing library was identified as the preferred area to be developed, and the layout plan below shows the space zoned into areas for the delivery of the four learning 'vehicles'. A wireless network with laptops is included, as well as the facilities and resources of a typical new school Library/Learning Resource Centre.

This has been broken into four areas:

- Area 2 includes enclosed small meeting/interview rooms to facilitate one-to-one and small group meetings for Student Support Services. These link to a space with separate projection facilities that supports two groups of up to 12 students, each working with learning mentors. This area can also support a larger group of up to 24 students.

- The Independent Learning space, area 1, will support up to 30 students with the researching and thinking activities necessary for individual focused tasks. Two worktops are for individuals and/or pairs of students working on 8 fixed pcs; two circular tables will provide for groups of up to six pupils each, who may be engaged in individual or group learning activities; and some separate individual seating is also available.

- Area 3 can be used by whole class groups of up to 30 students for Class Time activities. Visual separation from other groups within the Library space provided through the use of mobile acoustic screen elements, and low level book display units.

- Area 1 and 3 can combine for Enhanced Curricular Activities. Area 3 has projection facilities, and Area 2 has mobile furniture which can be used for groups of up to 60 students (or other users) in Area 3.