Chapter 3, Creating an Environment for Learning Summary and Analysis

Ayers opens the chapter describing how individuals fill their homes with reflections of their values. He believes all human environments reflect implicit or explicit values, one way or another. Environments also exert force on individuals, often telling them what to do, in part by embodying certain values.

Kids often perceive their schools as embodiments of values that demean them, including a lack of privacy and individuality, and that what is good for the group is good for you, that the schedule is in charge. Learning is linked to age more than anything else. Thus, teachers must be prepared to question their environments. Ayers then illustrates the point by describing how differently he organizes his classrooms depending on who he is teaching. He notes that small environmental choices can express important value...