Before moving into their current location, program mangers were able to request minor renovations to the building to better accommodate the program. As a result, prefabricated walls were installed at the end of the existing cafeteria to create a classroom space for the employment preparation program. Despite the fact that the students are split into two learning groups, only one classroom was provided. A second classroom area was created with moveable partitions that were assembled to demarcate space in the cafeteria. This was where the higher–level group had gathered for their vocabulary lesson. This space has worked fairly well for short periods of time, but becomes noisy during the morning break and just before lunch when students from other programs go to the cafeteria. As a result, class-based sessions were often shortened. The two instructors arranged a schedule that allowed them to use the walled classroom space as much as possible. There were many elements in the main classroom that reflected classrooms found in older elementary schools. Most of the furniture was obtained from the board's surplus supply depot. This meant that furniture was often older, not in demand, and mismatched. There were a variety of desk and table sizes, and an assortment of chairs. The haphazard desk and table heights made it difficult to assemble the desks together so students could work in small groups. Instead, the desks were set up in three horizontal rows, facing a moveable blackboard. In this configuration, the students faced the blackboard and instructor who often stood at the front of the room. Two instructor desks were placed at the side of the classroom. Other desks were placed along the back wall and four computers were set–up on these. The classroom computers were not often used; instead, students went upstairs each week to a computer lab used by both the general literacy and employment preparation programs. The bookshelf contained a few copies of two or three different dictionaries
and a few math workbooks. Books were borrowed by the instructors from a teaching
resource library in the building. Students could use the books in the classroom
but couldn't take them home. Decorating the classroom were a few houseplants
that sat on a deep window sill and a variety of posters were on the walls.
Most of the posters were not directly related to employment preparation but
were more inspirational and related to personal aspirations. The largest poster read
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