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Five Considerations to Keep When Designing Your Classroom

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Abax Kingfisher Pty Ltd

The classroom needs to be both a functional and an inspirational space. By considering these five points, teachers can be mindful of the messages their room communicates to students.

  1. Focal Points

School classroom furniture arrangements should guide students to where they should be focusing on for the majority of the lesson. Considering the more traditional structures, student classroom chairs arranged in rows or in a U shape both help the class focus on the front and centre of the room. By contrast, pods of four or six have students primarily facing each other, and suggest that classroom discussion will be a bigger part of their day-to-day learning patterns. 

When integrating STEM projects, or for demonstrations where all students should be watching, as with science experiments, furniture for school classrooms should wholly focus towards one area. Splitting the focus for students can encourage collaborative or constructivist learning, but forcing students to twist or swivel to face the teacher can create difficulties in maintaining attention. Most student chairs Australia based learning institutions use, especially high school classroom furniture, have solid legs and backs, so arranging them to avoid students needing to pivot around will lead to better outcomes.

  1. Interaction

For both primary classroom furniture and high school classroom furniture, the arrangements should consider how students are to interact with their teacher, as well as their peers. While primary classroom furniture tends to be purposeful, already communicating to students what type of work is expected in their learning area, additional consideration into spacing around the classroom can help students understand instructions. Similarly, in high schools, the teacher’s classroom enables or discourages conversation depending on the arrangement. Pods or clusters of school classroom furniture encourage students to work together, while rows or individually separated tables either enforce silent work, or invite students to shout across the class at their peers.

  1. Comfort

Comfort can be a large deciding factor for whether a student stays engaged with the class – often if a student does not have enough space to keep their belongings to themselves, or if they are bumping too closely with their neighbours, disruptions can arise. Small considerations such as chair size, proximity to the board, placement of heaters and air conditioners and even more subtle effects can significantly impact student behaviour. Some of the more modern options for classroom furniture Australiahas to offer strikes the balance between comfort and durability for school settings, so it can be useful to swap out warped or unbalanced chairs and tables for newer sets which take student comfort into consideration.

  1. Mobility

An effective school classroom furniture arrangement will allow teachers and students to move about the room easily. It can be highly beneficial to leave plenty of walkways and gaps so that the teacher can be in close proximity to any student within short notice. Furthermore, it makes good sense from a health and safety perspective to ensure that all students can access the classroom exit easily without needing to push past other students. In smaller rooms, this can be achieved through the use of lighter student classroom chairs and smaller tables, which can also encourage students to move about and work with different partners throughout the course of a lesson.

  1. Celebration

The last consideration is a more emotional one – does the classroom feel like a space where learning is valued and appreciated? Although care should be taken to not trigger sensory overload, the use of student displays around the room, or a dedicated corkboard for exceptional work, can give students models to aspire towards. Students can also have their own say in decorating aspects of their room, so that they come to class feeling like they belong and have some ownership of the space.

By making these considerations, teachers can ensure that their classroom arrangements are inclusive, effective and optimal for student learning. Depending on the needs of your own students, any of these approaches to furniture for school classrooms can be considered as a strategy for increased engagement, reduced behaviour issues and overall better education outcomes.

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