Future teachers at Georgia Highlands College will now have an opportunity to practice their skills in a setting designed to closely resemble the classrooms where they will eventually work.

GHC has unveiled a new Education Lab at its Cartersville site, creating a simulated K-5 classroom where education students can practice teaching strategies, develop lesson plans and gain experience and confidence before entering the workforce.

The project was nearly two years in the making. Jennifer Carpenter, Division Chair for the School of Business and Professional Studies, provided the vision for the project, while Instructor of Education Deb Stephens helped bring the classroom together.

The room includes flexible seating, collaborative spaces and interactive teaching tools, with the goal of showing future educators how classroom design can contribute to student engagement, creativity and learning.

The lab won’t simply be a demonstration room. It will be incorporated directly into GHC coursework. Stephens recently developed a new Foundations of Reading course where students will develop a lesson plan during the semester and ultimately conduct a teaching demonstration inside the Education Lab.

GHC Dean of the School of Business and Professional Studies Joy Hambrick said the lab will allow students to move beyond learning about teaching and begin experiencing what being a teacher actually feels like. Students will be able to practice, collaborate and experiment with new approaches before taking responsibility for classrooms of their own.

The investment comes as GHC’s teacher education programs continue to grow.

The college currently has approximately 225 students enrolled in its education program, and officials expect that number to increase with the addition of a new bachelor’s degree in special education.

College officials say the Education Lab is another step toward preparing graduates who can enter schools ready to make an immediate difference, particularly as GHC works to prepare educators for communities across Northwest Georgia and beyond.