Trung Le is a pioneer of Cannon Design's education practice and has an incessant energy and passion exploring the intersection between design and learning. Le is widely recognized as an advocate for incorporating multiple intelligences and learning styles in the design of learning environments. As the lead designer for Cannon Design's education group, he creates spaces that encourage student inquiry and imagination and offer students a sense of what it means to be a part of a global community. Le's work has yielded awards from the Chicago, Illinois and national chapters of the American Institute of Architects during his 20 plus years at Cannon Design. His recent collaboration with Bruce Mau resulted in the publication The Third Teacher, a cabinet of wonders on how design can transform the ecology of learning. Le also leads The Third Teacher +, an education design consultancy within the ideas-based practice of Cannon Design that helps learning communities better serve 21st century learners. With an eye on the future of learning, the multidisciplinary team collaborates with these learning communities to formulate systemic strategies for pedagogical, curricular, and environmental change.

Comments

1. Pie in the sky ideas from an architect who's never taught before in his life... as a 14 year HS educator, I can tell you that designing a "learning environment" as envisioned by Trung Le and others is NOT a fix all for schools. The old saying "it takes a village to educate a child" is true: children learn from those around them, and while their learning environment can make a (small) difference, other issues need to be considered as well, including Maslow's Hierarchy Of Needs. Kids who come from broken homes will NOT be interested in how cool a school looks - they're interested in where their next meal is coming from, where they're going to be sleeping, where they're going to feel safe. A "Starbuck's" styled school is only a superficial bndaid, not taking into account the real factors that determine whether or not a struggling student will succeed or not.
2. (Empowerment x Self Organised x Emergence) Powered by: Technology = Transformation