Strategy and Success
Professor Carolyn Bertozzi teaching in a newly renovated classroom, modern classroom design visible in the background.
Student & Instructor Feedback Informs Design
We have a robust design and refresh process that incorporates student and instructor feedback, starting in 2019 with the extensive survey and focus groups. All students, instructors and departmental administrators (SSOs) were invited to participate. Each Autumn, we conduct a post occupancy evaluation (POE) with all the instructors and students in refreshed rooms and use the feedback to inform subsequent refreshes.
- Preliminary Findings from the SCR Report - December 2019
- Flex Chair Pilot (new default layout and furniture) - October 2021
- POE Refreshed Classrooms 2022
- POE Refreshed Classrooms 2023
- POE Refreshed Classrooms 2024
Data-Informed Design
As classrooms are redesigned, the design team reviews five years of scheduling data for trends, instructor and student feedback. Key considerations also include local and campus-wide scheduling needs, pedagogical trends and needs, user comfort and diversity, room geometry.
The classroom design refresh process employs a data-driven strategic approach by analyzing scheduling and support data from the past few years, meeting with instructors, students, staff, and administrators, and administering post-occupancy surveys. In-person follow-ups with stakeholders further enhance the depth of our understanding.
We work closely with vendors to identify and configure furniture and equipment to support our community, emphasizing ergonomics and sustainability. Before implementation, new methods and equipment are examined in a limited-scope pilot study and evaluated for potentially broader use.
Our strategy incorporates current evidence-based best practices for pedagogy, classroom capacity, and means of enhancing accessibility (ADA requirements are a minimal starting point). We prioritize creating a sense of belonging based on inclusion and diversity and aim for an equitable classroom experience for all students and instructors.
This data-driven approach ensures that decisions are informed by empirical evidence, fostering a more effective and responsive classroom environment.
Inclusive Redesign
Beyond universal design, our rooms support the diverse needs of all our students and instructors. We pay particular attention to designing spaces that are inclusive, comfortable and easily accessible. As rooms are right-sized, perimeter seating is eliminated to ensure that everyone has a seat at the table.
It is estimated that 1 in 5 Americans 12 years and older experience hearing loss. Our interactive videoconferencing technology standard not only supports live synchronous classes, the built-in classroom microphones provide voice lift, ensuring that every voice in the room - not just the instructor - can be heard - both online and on the other side of the room.
Fostering community: Responding to the nation-wide epidemic of loneliness and social isolation, small group and flex chair rooms encourage students to connect with each other, to look each other in the eye, and develop a sense of community.
In partnership with the Diversity and Access Office and the Office of Accessible Education, LTS established FOCUS. The mobile-device-based campus standard for assistive listening supports people with hearing issues as well as anyone who wishes to benefit from the reduction of distractions.
Learn more about Classroom Layouts and Technology Standards
Chalkboard Discovery & Investment Project
Some disciplines and instructors prefer or require chalk but are not always scheduled into a room featuring the most suitable chalkboards of the type, size and quality. The SCR Chalkboard Program will optimize the placement of Designated Chalkboard Classrooms in the University Classroom Inventory. The discovery project will gather feedback from instructors to understand instructors' writing surface requirements and identify optimal locations for chalkboard classrooms, including board type and maximum size. Subsequent classroom refresh plans will be shaped by the findings of the discovery project.
Instructors and departments wishing to provide feedback and/or partner with LTS should contact classtechsupport@stanford.edu.