Open offices

Open offices

It need hardly be said that these fads were and are (at best) a waste of time and (at worst) a set of expensive distractions. But open plan offices are worse. Much worse. Why? Because they decrease rather than increase employee collaboration. Source: It’s Official: Open-Plan Offices Are Now the Dumbest Management Fad of All Time |…

Open offices don’t work, so what’s next for the classroom?

Open offices don’t work, so what’s next for the classroom?

The scourge of open offices is not a new subject for ranting. Open offices were sold to workers as a boon to collaboration — liberated from barriers, stuffed in like sardines, people would chat more and, supposedly, come up with lots of brilliant new ideas. Yet study after study has shown open offices to foster…

Our classrooms are mostly open offices, can they be better?

Our classrooms are mostly open offices, can they be better?

It began as a post-war dream for a more collaborative and egalitarian workplace. It has evolved into a nightmare of noise and discomfort. Can the open office be saved, or should we all just be working from home? Source: Yes, the Open Office Is Terrible — But It Doesn’t Have to Be (Ep. 358) – Freakonomics…

More research into the terribleness of open offices – what about schools?

More research into the terribleness of open offices – what about schools?

Classrooms around the world have been the equivalent of open offices almost since their inception. Is this the best way? Some new research shows that schools may want to think about how the classroom affects their students. Open offices are as bad as they seem—they reduce face-to-face time by 70%: Employees at two Fortune 500…