Helpful advice about teacherwalls.
Fusion Classroom Design have installed teacherwalls all over London and the South East, in schools ranging from junior through to FE level. We’ve learnt a lot about the process simply by asking questions and listening to the hopes and wishes of teaching staff, school business managers and headteachers. Here are some notes about getting the best out of teacherwalls….teacherwall design advice.
What comes across clearly is the opportunity cost of expenditure. Investment in teacherwalls is a matter of priorities…the money could so easily be spent on other things. With this in mind we thought it would be helpful to note some of the aspects that contribute to a good teacherwall installation, including teaching wall design principles, construction elements, and the process of getting from request to reality.
Getting to A.
Step A is a conversation around efficacy of teacherwall. Possibly spurred-on by a visit to another school and seeing teacherwalls in use, what is the thinking behind making classroom teaching walls the priority.
If you’ve seen them installed you’ll already know how a classroom looks when walls are added. What isn’t necessarily immediate is the before and after effect. There could be several grades of ‘before’. A Victorian or pre-war school will have a certain architecture. Less window, more brick. Solid floors with heating pipes on show. Or maybe the classroom is suffering from an explosion of feral furniture. Tray storage, a slightly low-tech teachers desk. Boards, screens, cables. In either example its fair to say the buildings aren’t adding to the learning experience. Just as vital…its hard to entice new staff to work in legacy classrooms. An old style classroom isn’t a ‘silent salesman’ that leaves a good impression as part of the interview process.
Step A can be a no-brainer. If you can’t change the architecture, changing the classroom gets a huge boost from teacher walls.
B is for Budget.
There’s a quick answer to the very important question ‘how much do teacherwalls cost’? £3000 to £7500 is the median price range, without VAT, for a teacherwall. However there’s a caveat. The teacherwall itself isn’t the only cost element. Electrical attendance to present power sockets, and fit smartboards, is another cost. Depending on scope of works this might add a further £1000.
If you have any FF&E to remove beforehand, you might have a small number for strip-out as well.
Having set out the financials, we’re occasionally privy to the thought process behind allocation.
As in step A, head teachers review of investment in school teacher walls will consider the impact on learning environment, the boost to the teacher from investing in a classroom interior, and the uplift in perception of school premises both for parents and new recruits alike.
The first question may well be ‘Is there need for the product’? Do teachers feel that they would benefit from having a better physical space to display their lesson plans, present activities, and to store resources? Is a decluttered hardware environment helping the teaching process.
C is for Convenience.
Compare ease of using disparate display surfaces, standalone storage, and on-show equipment with the integrated nature of a teacherwall. Teacher walls are easy for teachers to use and customize. High capacity storage behind lockable doors is convenient and lends itself to keeping a tidy classroom.
Teacherwalls should be designed with lesson planning in mind. Adjacency of whiteboard doors and smartboards seem to be the number 1 feature. Integration of Gratnells trays helps to combat the proliferation of standalone furniture pieces.
C can also stand for Cables.
Cables. AV cables that might be in use, or might not. Extension leads that aren’t the safest way to distribute power. Data cables or uncertain vintage, and wall mounted sockets that are witness to every technical development since 1977. You name it we’ve seen it in classrooms many times. And who’d have thought that cables could gather dust.
Teaching walls are the antidote. Just the process of change means old stuff can be stripped out. Added to this when hardware goes back in, its hidden. Or it should be. A key part of the design process is to ensure cable routes are integral. Ask how cables will run from teachers PC to smart screen. Where will power sockets be presented. What happens if a cable needs to be replaced…how can they be accessed in the future. Its no problem to incorporate cable access panels in a teaching wall at the design stage.
D is for Durability.
How durable is the teacherwall as a product: Teacher walls should be durable enough to withstand daily use. They should be made of quality materials that will not easily damage or break. This gets down to the nitty gritty of joinery design. There are some points to watch out for.
Are whiteboards made using gloss mfc, or whiteboard laminate. Go for laminate every time. Gloss MFC is a poor relation that doesn’t clean off too well and the surface just doesn’t last as long.
What is the weight load capacity for the smartboard back-board? Is it reinforced to ensure stability for a heavy screen?
Hinges. Arcane we know, but worth a mention. 90 degree hinges can be an Achilles heal. Better to have 170/180 degree hinges as doors can fold back flat, reducing risk of a door being damaged, and indeed damaging a pupil. Win win. And 180 degree hinges on whiteboard doors means that both sides of the door can be used for dry-wipe writing. Feedback from teachers is that double sided whiteboard doors are a joy to use.
Shelves. They’ll get heavily loaded. Are you getting 18mm shelves, 25mm, or even steel. Worth asking, and best to avoid 18mm.
Depth. Consider the dimension of stuff you intend to store inside a teacher wall. Its easy to increase the depth of the cabinetry at the design stage. We’ve seen the reverse where teachers have tried to force big plastic storage boxes behind hinged doors, causing hinges to be ripped off. Typically we also evaluate the overall classroom layout when drawing classrooms with new teacherwalls to ensure the overall use of space works well.
E is for everything else.
The size and layout of the classrooms: This is where Fusion step in. We spaceplan classroom teacher walls with some basic principles. Teacher walls should be sized and placed to fit the needs of the classroom. This includes
- the teaching focal point
- overall layout of school tables, teachers position, and the architecture of the room.
- They should work for teachers to see class and screen.
- Access to storage should be instant or convenient.
The curriculum and teaching style: The design of the teacher wall should align with the curriculum and teaching style. This is where the design brief from staff is vital…we need to know what you want in a room. A teacherwall can be universal in its configuration, or tailored to a particular subject.
The technology infrastructure: The teacher wall should be compatible with the technology infrastructure OR…encourage a new standard for integrated tech that moves the classroom environment up to date.
Look and feel. We haven’t really mentioned the appearance factor. Teacherwalls look good. Obviously we’re biased but we hear this at almost every design meeting. Staff and SLT alike see the advantages. A big differentiator in teacherwalls stems from the age range. You’ll notice in the images that low smart screen heights are a feature for classrooms with KS1 and KS2 children. This is one of the biggest differences in style. Another is integration of a teachers desk. There are a range of formats, and sometimes a desk isn’t integrated at all. Any option is fine…and we’ll design the classroom to suit.
Installation day. If everything has been captured at the design stage, installation is typically two a day, per team, per classroom. Then you’ll have some attendant cabling and setup, loading of storage. And its done…ready to use.
E is also for Elevation. Teacherwall elevation design.
An Elevation drawing is a view looking at the front of a teacherwall, rather than a plan view looking from above. Elevation shows all the separate doors, the smartboard and whiteboard spaces, storage, etc etc. Its an important part of the design process. We recommend spending time talking through an elevation drawing as it can highlight differing aspects and is very important to fully review.
F is for Finishes.
In theory teaching wall is available in a huge range of colours and finishes. Most are cost-neutral. In the majority of installations schools are choosing relatively plain colours, white, grey, or a wood-grain, so that a teacherwall isn’t competing with the teaching materials and screen displays. There’s another aspect to this as well. White and grey tend to be more timeless, as do the regular wood grain colours. No one wants to go rogue and chose something that will date quickly. Having said this maybe its time to move on. Birch ply and one or two other finishes are popular in commercial and hospitality settings and could work well in schools. Could a bit more personality and character be designed in?
If you want Fusion to design a teacherwall do get in touch, or click here to see more examples of classrooms that have been enhanced the teacherwall way.
We hope this A-F teacherwall design advice article has been of use. Do get in touch if we haven’t answered a question…happy to help.