Just across the hall from Suite 1000, a special classroom with new technology is now available for reservation. Equipped with several cameras and extra computer monitors, the Slide Classroom is an experimental space designed to explore a variety of current and emerging technologies and instructional approaches. 

The classroom’s name stands for Sandbox for Learning Innovation and Design in Education—with technology meant to mirror classroom designs in current K-12 classrooms to ensure that pre-service students are well-prepared as they enter the profession. 

Tom Edelberg, Instructional Consultant at the School of Education, says one of the most important aspects of the new room is how it will allow students to actively participate in the tools that the instructors are using.

“With the collaboration space, you can have a group of students sitting together with one screen and one keyboard. They have to basically work out together who is going to be typing, who is going to be talking, and they also have to hear other people’s perspectives. That room is providing that kind of space for them. So there’s ample opportunity to expand the space for learning,” Edelberg said.

The classroom was made possible through a generous donation from Ellen Jay, an alumna of the IU School of Education. After graduating with her bachelor’s degree in 1968 and her master’s degree in 1969, both in elementary education, Jay spent most of her career in the Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland, where she worked with the school library media programs for 30 years, and spent time as an adjunct professor at Catholic University and the University of Maryland graduate library schools. 

Speaking at the unveiling of a plaque honoring her gift, Jay said, “Instructional Design is where my heart is. It’s not just about technology… it's about everything that goes into instruction and information literacy.”

Anyone looking to make a reservation in the Slide Classroom can do so through 25Live.