HOW DO WE GET THERE?
WHAT WILL IT TAKE?
In addition to the implementation of sophisticated (AI?) facility/scheduling software, there are other requirements, assumptions, and considerations involved in this system:
There are still many potential concerns and considerations when developing a system like this:
WHAT ABOUT...
...individuals with learning differences who thrive on consistency and schedules?
...classes and activities that require specific equipment and supplies (e.g. chem and biology labs, band) and may require a specific scheduled time (e.g. pre-prep for a food lab or chem lab)?
...the cost of technologies like this and the continued socio-economic divide?
...students or teachers who want to opt out of providing their location or personal data?
INTEGRATED DEVICES and CONSISTENT TECHNOLOGY
What other considerations? What are we missing?
This responsive system is heavily dependent upon technology and will require all stakeholders to have fully integrated mobile devices with the appropriate applications installed. This could include mobile phones, tablets, wearables (watches, glasses, other...). Students, teachers, and staff would require a stable wifi network in order to have reliable access to teaching and learning resources, schedules, directions, work orders, as well as to provide regular data updates back to the system.
For ideal implementation, classrooms and learning spaces should also have consistent technology resources that teachers and students are familiar with. This will enable seamless movement from one space to another without wasting time with setup of different audio or visual components. Teachers should be able to easily submit work orders/setup orders through their mobile devices in order to have the spaces ready when they are needed. Classes will also have to move away from physical resources like textbooks and make more use of mobile devices that can be accessed from almost any location (on or off campus).
RELEASE OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
In order for a responsive system to work effectively, it will require large amounts of data to be gathered about students and teachers. Attendance, health info, address, preferences, affinities, skills, etc. will all be useful information for the scheduling system to track. Access to this level of information will require a robust data collection policy as well as trust in the system for all involved. The balance between protection of privacy and optimization of systems based on personal information is an ongoing one that we must all continue to negotiate and seek to understand.
SHIFT IN PREPARATION AND PLANNING
This dynamic and flexible system requires a whole new outlook on planning of the school day for teachers, students, and administrators. It will lead to a major shift in the approach to lesson planning and will require teachers to let go of personal spaces. The dynamic nature of the setup should also promote collaboration among teachers and facilitate the sharing of resources and lessons. Teachers may be able to schedule more small-group time with students who require extra support or are looking for additional challenges, and students may be able to work with different teachers within a given subject area if that works better for their schedules and learning.
As with any technology system, this will have various levels of implementation, from the basic concept of more dynamic facilities scheduling and notifications, to dynamic classes and fully flexible schedules.