3. Evaluation Plan

Ongoing evaluation of a learning space ensures its longevity and continuing suitability for students over time, and it in this respect it links closely to sustainability. There are a range of ways to ascertain the effectiveness of a learning space and specifically, what elements of the physical and virtual space are meeting the needs of the students attending Pen & Paper. Brown’s Learning Space Rating System has provided several points of reference for the evaluation of the learning space project (Brown, 2015).

The Learning Space Rating System (Brown, 2015) considers each aspect of a project from conception through to completion and would be a useful investment to consider the design process and whether it has met the brief of supporting student writers. The first principle reflects upon the way the space fits within existing structures and given the current colour scheme of the library in which the Pen & Paper space is located has a predominant colour scheme of green and this colour has been drawn into design, this works effectively (Brown, 2015, para. 15). The principles reflect upon stakeholder engagement which would be an aspect that would be most powerful in fine tuning the proposal as the students would have suggestions and ideas of their own. The ongoing maintenance of the learning space, comfort provided, and how well the furnishings wear are considered and given that this project is run through the library it would be necessary to account for upkeep through the library budget (Brown, 2015, paras. 16-20). Thankfully, as the school is BYOD the day-to-day support with technology is high so this service would be useful in maintaining the projector and document camera in the learning space as well as issues with accessing Google Classroom without being an imposition on school resources (Brown, 2015, para. 20). The level of innovation, in the final principle of the rating system, would be an interesting element to consider but it is possible that the opportunities provided in the space would be considered innovative (Brown, 2015, para. 21).

An evaluation of the space could be drawn straight from the reflections of students (Lomas, 2005, para. 33). The opportunity to survey students to glean what they find most impactful while collecting suggestions would hopefully give great insights and, as Lomas so eloquently captures, student feedback may indicate how a space has been or could be ‘pushed to its limits’ to see just what kinds of learning, collaboration, and products may be created through engaging with the space (2005, para. 34). It would be wonderful to embed a survey into the Google Classroom using Google Forms to determine future directions with questions such as:

Overall, the learning space will be deemed successful if the students it was designed for return to use the space, feel comfortable, and have the resources to support them as they engage in their writing projects (Lomas, 2005, para. 33). The success of the online space would be evident through use and access of the provided resources and engagement through comments and shared writing with the Pen & Paper group (Lomas, 2005, para. 33). Writing is often a solo endeavour, so the creation of a purpose-built physical space and the extension of the online space supports the development and maintenance of a writing community, and this also reflects the way writers work in the world within the communities they create. Evidence of the effectiveness of the space will be ongoing participation and observation of what resources and furnishings students are finding the most useful within the space and how much the learning space provides room for fun, collaboration, and learning (Lomas, 2005, para. 35).