I was very moved by Judah's thoughtful description of his work as a photographer in general, and especially in educational settings. He shares profound insights about the powerful impact that environment, and the decisions that we, as educators, constantly make about our teaching environments, have on learning. I have always believed that the kind of physical environment that we create is an integral and vital component of developing effective learning experiences for students. Reading these ideas through the lens of a photographer, and the kind of decisions he makes and notices in learning environments, emphasized even more profoundly the importance of planning for teaching space. I loved his idea to occasionally step back and unpack with students what they notice about environment decisions, and how these decisions might influences their own learning.
There is so much to consider and explore in Judah's article. I can envision that reading it with faculty would open up a fascinating discussion about how they incorporate their decisions about their learning environments as elements in their teaching plans.
Thank you for sharing Judah's work and his article with us!
Minna H. Heilpern
Assistant Principal, General Studies, Grades 3-5
Yavneh Academy, Paramus, NJ
