Optimal learning - What fits your brain?

During the Onderwijsfestival on March 6, the Future Learning Spaces team was present to facilitate an interactive workshop. This workshop focused on the question: what does an ideal learning and working environment look like for you? With a focus on personal preferences and neurodiversity, participants were given the opportunity to experience for themselves which environmental factors influence their learning process.

The participants were challenged to carry out assignments under different circumstances and with different materials, such as:

• Sitting on a yoga ball or armchair
• Wearing headphones with a choice of 3 types of music
• Using LEGO
• Drawing
• Standing at a high table

After these exercises, the participants reflected on their experiences in groups. They discussed how these different stimuli influenced their concentration, creativity and involvement.

Results and next steps

The conversations showed that everyone has a unique preference: what one person experiences as pleasant, is an obstacle for another. Creating a physical learning environment in which everyone feels welcome and autonomous starts with recognizing and supporting those individual differences. Small adjustments, such as the possibility to move, listen to music or use visual material, can already make a big difference.

The insights we have gathered will be included in the further development of experimental teaching spaces within the UU, such as the Collaborative Space. We would like to continue the conversation about how we can work together on a learning environment where everyone feels supported and welcome! So do you have ideas? Mail to fls@uu.nl!