This document discusses investigating blended spaces for learning. It explores learning as a complex process involving time, space, and being ubiquitous. Initial insights suggest thinking beyond the classroom to include student participation in curriculum development and considering classrooms as restrictive spaces. The document considers blending the formal learning space with the environment, pedagogy, and multiple learning approaches. It discusses designing dynamic, engaging, participatory, and ecological learning spaces. Finally, it explores ubiquitous learning and the need for internal diversity, redundancy, interactions, distributed control, randomness, and coherence for emergence and complexity within learning systems.

1. BLENDED SPACES: Investigations into the complex
nature of spaces for learning
• Action research
• Playfulness and
experimentation
• Deterritorialisation
• Following ‘lines of
flight’

2. Learning – a rhizomatic process?
Learning is a complex process in:
- time (e.g. threshold concepts)
- space (e.g. experiential)
- ubiquitous (e.g. cognitive, emotional, social (Illeris))

3. Initial insights – thinking beyond the classroom
• PhD research
• Secondary
education
• Student
participation in
curriculum
development
• Classrooms as
restrictive
spaces

4. Considering a blend – expanding the spatial,
embracing complexity

5. Thinking about formal learning spaces
• In space • environment
• In time • pedagogy
• multiple learning
approaches
Dynamic Engaging
Participatory Ecological
• co-constructivist • systems
• consultative approach
• sustainable

6. Towards ubiquitous learning – emergence and complexity
For emergence to occur within systems, Davis and Sumara (2006) argue, there is the need for a
number of linked processes to be present:
- internal diversity. Systems need to be able to react in a variety of ways by ensuring that diversity exists,
so that innovative solutions to problems can occur.
- internal redundancy. For diversity to be present there needs to be a level of redundancy, or duplication,
within the system - such as shared responsibility and interests.
- neighbour interactions. Here learning is seen as an interaction of the personal and the social. This leads
to the idea that whilst collective interests emerge and are pursued, this does not preclude individual
agency - It is these interactions which allow for the emergence of new ideas and perspectives.
- distributed control. To allow the development of rich neighbour interactions, it is essential that the
structure and outcomes of a group’s activity (in the case of classrooms, this means learning) is not
controlled from a single point.
- randomness. The system must allow for the exploration of possibilities, giving opportunity for personal
agency and the internal diversity identified above.
- coherence. Whilst randomness is important, complex systems are not chaotic and require a level of
coherence to orientate the activity of the actors within the system. Therefore, coherence ensures that
there is a loose framework within which individuals operate

7. Capturing the spatial complexities in learning

8. Spaces, technology and learning – a blended process

9. Blended learning to blended spaces – towards emergent
learning

10. Next steps – understanding and designing learning,
experiments in complexity