Emergency lockdowns in flexible learning spaces with students who have high needs: vignettes of teachers’ experiences and considerations for practice

Newly build school environments are designed for a plethora of functions. Schooling spaces need provide the necessities for an emergency school lockdown where property can be secured for safety reasons. This article addresses issues associated with locking down in flexible learning spaces with students who have a disability. Vignettes from three teachers who teach in newly built non-traditional classroom spaces are presented. These teachers work with students who have very high and complex needs in satellite units in schools. Themes of preparedness, hypervisibility, and resource access were apparent in the data. Open plan designs with the extensive use of glass can be problematic for housing large groups of students for protracted periods of time. Spaces for shelter need to be concealed from windows, doors and entry ways. Findings attend to how premises can be secured safely with students and teachers exposed to minimal trauma.