Classroom Seating Arrangements

Classroom seating arrangements
Introduction
Seating arrangements are vital learning area settings that include the perspectives to assist learners to avoid
behavioral issues that may lower the concentration of learners and lessen duration of instructions.
Stadium seating arrangements. This appeals because it enables the teacher to be able to observe all
learners as they do their work and see what they are doing as it provides the learners with a clear view of the
front as well as the teacher.
Advantages of stadium seating arrangement. It leaves a lot of space in the room for open area group
work, class meetings and demonstrations. It takes up less floor space and makes it easy for learners to work
in pairs with classmates, infront, at the back and the deskmate. Also moving the desks for cooperative work
is easy because the desks can easily be shifted. All the learners face the instructor and this makes them stay
focused.
Disadvantages of stadium seating arrangement. Stadium seating arrangement does not work well with
large numbers of learners in a class because many desks will be used and the learners will be too far from
the teacher and the board. The concentration may also be difficult if the learners don’t see the teacher
moving around the classroom. It is less successful in classroom management when more than two rows are
used.
Small groups seating arrangement. This promotes a lot of collaborative learning, all learners are able to
see the board and the teacher can stand on one spot and see all the learners faces and work area (Fernendes,
2011)
Advantages of small groups seating arrangement. Promotes a lot of collaboration in learning. It saves
floor space even with several desks. It supports cooperative work. It is very good for smaller classes where
sitting in groups can be well handled.Disadvantages of small groups seating arrangement. It may
promote a behavior whereby learners do not complete their work, other learners may get distracted.
Learners may talk a lot during teacher-directed instructions and during each learner’s individual work.
Traditional rows - seating in pairs. This allows learners to work freely and easily with their deskmates
and with less destruction; and when the need for small groups arises, learners can quickly change their desks
to be in groups (Fernandes et al, 2011).
Advantages of traditional rows. Learners will be able to work easily with others. There are little
disruptions. Learners can always change easily without difficulty to do group work. Disadvantages of
traditional rows are that the teacher will always be far from learners seated at the back if he /she is not
moving around in the classroom. The learners will be more distracted and stop concentrating. They can
easily lose focus when the teacher is teaching and it is not easy for the teacher to see all the learners in the
middle and the back rows and for this reason, their participation may drop.
Applications to my class. I prefer the small groups seating arrangement because teaching children one on
one and correcting them is easier. In my school learners were used to sitting in the traditional rows, but last
term I decided to change the grade 3 class to sit in small groups as it allows children to learn from one
another, share knowledge and understanding, and collaborate with others. It also minimizes misbehavior of
learners as all the learners can be seen. Moving around the class to check children’s work also became quite
easy as the floor space was spacious enough for movement. Children are also able to do discussions and do
group work easily.
Defending small group seating arrangement. This seating arrangement is great for group work and
cooperative learning. It allows the learners to get to know each other. It is good for both large and small
classes because it saves space. It can be used as part of a behavior management plan. It introduces no
punishment and teacher intervention in class when they are no longer being seen as problematic ones in the
eyes of the teacher. Learners take part in classroom discussions and interaction skills are similar(Fernendes
et al, 2011) The teaching and learning procedure is more learner centered and educators will be seen as
facilitators who act as a guide to the learners. Learners are urged to work and assist each other.
Conclusion
Since changing seating arrangements attempts to correct traditional education, and studying problems, many
seating arrangements bring uncountable rewards to a learning area. The reason behind this is that modifying
learners' seats in different patterns can help educators to understand the behavior of learners, their
participation and performance in the learning area.
References
1. Bennet, N. and Dunne, E. 1992 managing classroom groups Hemes Hempstead:
Simon and Schuster Education (Google Scholar)
2. Fernendes, A.C. Huang J. & Rinaldo, V. (2011) Does where the student sits really matter?
The impact of seating locations on students' classroom learning.
International journal of applied education.
3. Wannarku & Ruh (2008) How should researchers in education operationalize on-task
behaviors (Google scholar)

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Classroom seating arrangements

front as well as the teacher.

to be in groups (Fernandes et al, 2011).

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