ABSTRACT
The author discusses the outcomes of two research projects that invited children to imagine the places and spaces that would engage them fully in learning. Thornton and Brunton point to features such as the accessible and visible courtyards of Reggio Emilia-influenced schools as critical to the child-centred pedagogy that takes places in them and the adjoining classrooms. An Indian example is Tagore's Shantiniketan school created in the early twentieth century, founded along the lines of an ashram, or "ancient forest sanctuaries of India where, beneath the trees, the wise taught the young". In the notable Summerhill School in the UK, classrooms are inside but the outside woodland is equally important as a learning area, to play and to make things. The chapter also examines Reimagining Learning Spaces which was a response to an Australian government initiative, the Building the Education Revolution (BER) program, created to stimulate the national economy following the 2007-2010 global financial crisis.
